W123 Front Brake rebuild
Back in September, when I started to deal with the algae problem in my 240D, I noticed the car was quite hard to push. At that time I tested to see if the brakes were grabbing and it was clearly the fronts that were to blame. The rear wheels spun freely ever after a hard push on the brake pedal. Since I had the car in the air, I used the time to check what calipers I had on the car. On the front, I had Bendix and on the back I had Girling. Once I dealt with the fuel delivery issues, I planned to have the brakes sorted out.
Based on what I saw, I ordered rebuild kits for the front calipers, plus pads, rotors, wear sensors and all four brake hoses. The mechanic I was using to do the job also suggested I get wheel bearings while he was in there. Having seen the condition of the fuel tank, it is obvious that this car has seen little use in recent years. It is pretty typical of lower mileage cars that don't see much use to have binding or sticking brake calipers. This is another reason to use classics regularly and have the brake fluid changed every couple of years. I suspect a fair number of seldom used classics could do with a brake caliper overhaul. It took me a lot longer to deal with the fuel delivery issues than I had anticipated. The car finally went to visit the mechanic this week. I also asked him to look at the A/C as it was no longer cold. I got the car back today and the brake feel is transformed. He told me that he had to replace three of the four pistons in the calipers as they were all corroded. After seeing the inside of the fuel tank that does not surprise me. He also changed a valve in the A/C and recharged the system. Today was around 40C and the car had been sitting outside the mechanics workshop in the sun for a few hours when I picked it up. It was a good test of the A/C. On the move, it was quite good, but the performance in traffic was not so great. I'm not sure if the aux fan is kicking in enough, I'll have to look at that. On the W123 diesel the fan is only connected to the A/C pressure switch, not the coolant temperature like some of the petrol cars of this period. This means my trick of adding a resistor to make the fan kick in more aggressively is not as easy to do. I'll first make sure the fan is actually working properly, and if it is, perhaps add something that causes it to kick in more aggressively. I know it did before, but it is possible a relay or fuse has blown since. The 240D is now running and driving better than ever and I am looking forward to using it more in January. Read the full article
