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MG Midget brakes

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KevinEastwood

Freshman Member
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Hello
I have been working on a 1979 MG Midget. I replaced the brake master cylinder, shoes, pads, hoses and wheel cylinders. I bled the sytem and got a nice hard pedal, as soon as I start the car and drive off I lose the pedal. The brakes work but there is a lot of travel on the pedal.
 
If they are bled, and the master pushrod is close, next two questions:

Are the front wheel bearings not loose?
Loose w/b, loose rotor, kicks pads back too far when you drive.......but, number one: Did you adjust the rear brakes?
Did you adjust, seat the pads to al the hardware (couple of big raps on the stop pedal) and then do it again?

By hard pedal, do you mean you can walk up to the car after not touching it for 15+ minutes, hit the brakes, and the pedal is high and hard, or, does it take two or three strokes to get it high?
 
Kev, does this thing have a booster on it? I can't recall.

As TOC suggests, mechanical adjustment of the rear shoes is necessary. Pumping the pedal a couple times between adjustments helps align things so the last go at it is a "final" adjustment. Handbrake OFF during the proceedure.

Welcome to the forum, BTW. :savewave:
 
no booster (and, you may want to repost in the Spridget (Sprite + Midget) forum - though I don't know that you would get different advice.

welcome!
 
Hello again
The brakes were seated, the adjustments on the rear brakes were done. There is no brake booster. I do see a PDWA valve in the circuit and I was wondering if this comes in to play when bleeding. After the car is bled there is a great pedal, as soon as you drive away the pedal almost goes to the floor where I then have braking.
 
You may still have have air. when I redid my brakes, I belatedly cleaned the PDWA valve - I was amazed how filthy and gunky it was inside, it may be blocking something?
 
Frequently when you bleed the brakes it makes the PDWA go fubar
 
If it's just like the TR one you unscrew the plug and stick a screw driver init
 
KevinEastwood said:
Does anyone know the correct procedure to centralise the PDWA valve and then the correct way to bleed the system
Click to expand...

did you clean it out inside? I was stunned how much cr*p there was in it.
 
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