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Triumph TR3 - Braking Issues

Was driving down the street Saturday. Van in front of me locked them up and ran into a gal stopped in the middle of the road. I hit my brakes hard to avoid hitting the van. Went around the accident, and a couple blocks later the steering wheel started shaking like crazy and then I could feel the car starting to bog down. Discovered the brakes apparently didn't release after the emergency stop. Limped it home at 5 mph with the front brakes bound up like anything (very stinky). Got home , let it sit and cool for an hour or so, the wheels then turned like normal. Figured maybe collapsed brake hoses, so I pulled the hoses and found they were pretty much clear. Could blow through them easily. I have new pads in the brakes so i don't think it would be caliper pistons sticking. As I was crawling home, the brake pedal was at the very top of its travel and hard as a rock. Could the hoses be pinching off the fluid flow under pressure even though they appeared to be ok after I pulled them? Or could the master cylinder be doing something weird after being hammered like it was during the emergency stop? This brake system is so basic there can't be a whole lot of possibilities as to the reason for the lock-up. Any input is appreciated. Thanks, Marty
Marty Scott

Marty-Three areas come to mind that could cause the brakes to lock:
1. Caliper pistons stuck.
2. Master cyl piston not returning.
3. Restrictor valve stuck. The restrictor valve is designed to keep a small amount of pressure in the lines to the front brakes and is located in the 5 way connection by the brake light switch. If the valves sticks it might not allow the front brakes to release.
Happy hunting
Berry Price

This thread was discussed between 24/06/2002 and 25/06/2002

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