Expert: Dick Benjamin - 11/20/2008

Question
truck has been sitting for 8yrs,brake pedal goes all the way down,checked brake fluid and its full. would it be air in the lines that need to be bled or do i need a new master cylinder.is their a certain way to bleed the brakes,it all looks original.any advice would be greatly appreciated,thanks

Answer
I'm amazed to hear that after 8 years of sitting, the master cylinder is still full - I wonder full of what?!.  The brake fluid would have evaporated by now - it's partly alcohol.

Anyway, after all that time, it would be foolish to try to drive the truck without replacing all 4 wheel cylinders, the master cylinder, and all 3 brake hoses - I'm certain the old wheel cylinders are corroded, probably stuck, and the cups in the master cylinder have lost their elasticity.  The hoses will be ready to pop and probably plugged with crud also.   

Once you have all those parts replaced (and you can do this yourself), just do a normal brake bleed and adjustment (assuming the linings and all hardware is good), and you will have a safe truck to drive for many years.

Great trucks - I drove one just like it from 1975 to 1994 - it always got me where I was going, sounded good, looked good, and hauled my loads.  Good luck with it.

Dick