brake and gear help

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Aug 17, 2008 | 05:28 PM

now_what

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brake and gear help

i was wondering if someone can help me out. i have a 1998 ford F-150 5.4 v8 and when i step on my brake to stop the brake peddle will go all the way to the floor but not all the time other times i is very touchy, plus when i step on the brake to put my truck into gear either reverse or drive it wount go into gear, but after 6 or 7 times stepping on the brake it will finally go into gear. any help would be great i am thinking maybe its air in my brake lines but i am not sure.

thanks

Aug 18, 2008 | 06:19 AM

torkum

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From: Mount Juliet, TN

Sounds like the master cylinder is going bad.

Aug 18, 2008 | 12:22 PM

now_what

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I went out and testest my brake lights and i noticed that when i have it in park there are no brake lights but when i finally put it in drive the brake lights work again. hopefully that will help somemore
thanks again everyone for that help.

Aug 18, 2008 | 03:01 PM

brian42

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From: San Diego, CA

When was the last time you bled the brakes or changed out the fluid? As your fluid absorbs water it loses performance. You should flush and change the fluid every 2 years. I had crappy brakes on my '97 5.4 2wd F-150 but it was always because I had a leak or the fluid needed changing (I ended up flushing about every year or so).

If your fluid is okay then you probably have a master cylinder problem. I had a Mazda car and I clogged the master cylinder because every time I compressed the caliper to install new pads I pushed all the fluid (with particulate in the pipe) back through into the master cylinder. That was expensive lesson. Now I bleed fluid as I compress the caliper piston so I don't backflush the master cylinder.

Aug 25, 2008 | 11:52 AM

now_what

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Update

just to update everyone, over the weekend i had the brake fluid flushed and the brakes bleed. but as soon as i started the truck and went to put it in gear it did the same thing. now if my master cylinder is bad would there be any brake fluid anywhere? my brake fluid was full and no leak in side or outside of the truck. is there anything else that would cause this? i read like could be a power booster or brake boost something like that? i am not sure. thank you everyone for the help.

Aug 25, 2008 | 12:48 PM

Pubale

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I had a master cylinder that did the same as you described. The end result was that the seals inside were worn and the fluid would leak past inside the cylinder. No outside leaks or fluid loss. If i pushed on the pedal slow and steady it would go to the floor. A quick hit on the pedal and it would stop at the proper height for a few second then leak down.

Sep 4, 2008 | 09:58 AM

now_what

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Update 2

i just had my master cylinder replaced with a new one. I went to the shop to pick it up and as i steped on the brake, the brake felt good, but i still couldnt get it in to drive or reverse. after about 10 trys in went into gear. any other ideas on what else is wrong.
thanks for all the help