hi ,could anyone tell me whats going on with my brakes please,,i put the brakes on and the pedal doesn't come back the way it used to,it comes back very slowly and holds the brakes on, ,i put a new vacum hose on the booster but it has not helped,,your thoughts would be appreciated,,,,

Hi

There is a return spring the pedal that often breaks.

Steve

thanks steve,is the return spring a large round one that is around the pedal arm under the front? and how would you know its broken can you see where it is broken or do you need to dismantle to check it ,thanks in advance

Hi

If its broken it just rattles around on the shaft, I haven't worked on these for about 25 years so my memory is getting dim, I only work on my sons bug or my bug now.

You could always tell when they were broken, the car seemed to be really sensitive to pedal pressure, it almost fell to the floor, and wouldn't release like you said.

If you cant get one, a decent tension spring could probably be mounted in another location.

Steve

hi steve ,,i just disconeted the brake pedal from the booster via the split pin in the linkage and found the pedal worked fine so i am thinking its in the booster somewhere maybe? your or others thoughts much appreciated .

when it comes to your brakes, I would get a brake person to check em out.

may also be yr brake hoses and or on a Kombi the proportioning valve

yep it is away

thanks guys,, my next adventure is to replace the propertional valve,,,chow for now

Well here's a thread from way back that didn't seem to get closure. I'm bumping it because I have exactly the same problem.

Like komuter's problem, this is causing a big delay in the release of my brakes. I actually find myself reaching down and pulling the brake pedal up with my hand to get moving!

I've worked out that if I pull the vacuum house from the back of the booster, the brake pedal returns as normal. If I put my finger over the hole in the booster that the vacuum hose goes into, the brake pedal return is VERY slow.

I've changed out the master cylinder because my initial thought was that internal leakage past the cups was the problem. The booster is also relatively new having replaced my old one which had seized up.

Any ideas?

Check the vaccuum hose. You must use the correct type of hose. Do not use fuel hose, pressure hose or garden hose.

maybe the booster breather hose which is the fwd hose that goes to the chassis rail

Hey guys, thanks for your thoughts.

I've eliminated the hoses as potential causes.

The breather hose (front of booster) is free from obstruction and I have the problem whether it's connected or not.

There is plenty of suck on the vacuum hose which makes it highly functional in assisting brake application. The problem is in the release.

While it takes much more effort to apply the brakes with the vacuum hose disconnected from the booster (and blocked off) I have no brake release issues.

Still puzzled!!!

The brake pedal pivot is free and not semi siezed?

my experience with pedal not returning or too slow to return. both cases was rust in the MC bore. replaced or reco fixed mine. Though like above could be other things.

blocked MC intake ports? return spring, booster, mechanical issues with pedal etc..

Hmm, master cylinder is brand new. I replaced it because I thought that's where the problem was.

It's nothing to do with the brake pedal mechanicals either, because with the vacuum hose disconnected from the booster, the movement is totally smooth.

Time I took it to an expert I think. Will let you all know the outcome.

Booster then....easy to replace with new.

yeah sounds like booster, some valves not working right but the sounds of it.

Are the hoses proper vaccuum hoses? Don't just look for blockages.