How warm?

[r4atthebasin]

Struggling to keep my R4 on the road....

I have had the brakes overhauled, then the cooling system rebuilt then head skim / gasket etc and a mini engine rebuild so I thought that I might have reached a decent state - however a question on the brakes...

How warm should the centre of the steel wheels be on the outside (ie around the plastic Renault diamond and the studs) after a bit of driving and a few test emergency stops? Does metal warmth suggest something is sticking (the car has been unused for a couple of months) that (a) might indicate a need to look at the brakes again, (b) might be due to the car not being used for a while and will get better with use or (c) that is just the way it is?

Grateful for any thoughts!

 

[Steve Hennessey]

(c) - however, jack one wheel up at a time and if you can turn it by hand then all is okay

 

[r4atthebasin]

Thanks Steve for your prompt response.

I tried pushing it (out of gear / handbrake off) and did not feel any resistance at all - the first time (when I had driven circa 10 miles for the first time in ages) there was definitely resistance and the brake pedal wasn't right) but in the week it was all OK (after just a couple of miles test run) and today there was no resistance although (as in my original post) the steel wheels were warm at the centre (outside) whereas the rear ones were cool.

Your reply suggests warmth is OK so I'll try for resistance by pushing the car after some test trips and see if there is any resistance - I can't jack it up at the moment as the jack has seized solid!

Thanks

Michael

 

[Steve Hennessey]

It sounds as if you're worrying about nothing. If a car has stood for a while then there will be some surface rust on the discs but after a run things get better. The front wheels will always be warmer than the rear because the front brakes come on before the rear ones do and there's a larger braking surface. It's when you can fry eggs on the wheels that you need to worry!! If the car pulls to one side when braking then that always needs examining. The Girling calipers on GTL's rarely seize up.

Your biggest worry at the moment is the seized up jack because it's sods law that the next time you take the car out you will get a puncture - so get it unseized asap

 

[r4atthebasin]

Thanks - my R4 is a French LHD base model - drums not discs - however I'll go with your advice and see what happens!

I guess I better sort out my jack over the Christmas period.

Michael

 

[Steve Hennessey]

Ah - you didn't say it had drums. The main things that cause drums to bind is rust on the inner face of the drum, partially seized wheel cylinders, partially seized handbrake cable mechanism, incorrect adjustment. However, everything else I said still applies. Happy motoring

 

[André4Renaults]

I had the same problem on an early 1960's VW Beetle. The front brakes were JUST touching, as per the adjustment, but after a run the wheels became warm & stiff to turn by hand. I backed the adjusters off by 1/4 of a turn on both sides of the car & the problem went away.

As a general rule adjusting drum brakes is a bit of a pain but MUST be done regularly!

 

[r4atthebasin]

`Re How warm

Thanks Andrew

Been on a few short-ish trips and the problem has not re-occurred - so hopefully all OK now.

I was nervous as I had previously had a master brake cylinder failure and was worried that problem had come back despite new parts being fitted.