Greetings,
I have a 94 XJS V12 with the Teves brake system that is acting squirrely after $2100 worth of work done to the sytem–see below for diagnosis and repair work done. Drove the car home from the shop (280 miles). Had to find someone who could work on this type of car. Brakes did not feel like I expected for having had the work done–seemed like a lot of pedal play. Parked the car for the winter–6 months–and took it out yesterday and brake pedal went right to the floor. I had to pump the brakes two or three time to get them to catch and stop the car. Called the shop and their first response was “master cylinder.” Before I load this vehicle up on a carrier and transport it 280 miles, has anyone had a similar experience that was easily rectified? Call me jaded; but, I feel like no matter what, the car will need a new brake master cylinder at 2k for a refurbished one. Any thoughts?
Replace aged accumulator and brake hoses.The accumulator was discharged so pump ran on every pedal application - replaced it. Hoses were original - replaced the front hoses. Removed rear hoses, did not match replacement parts. More hoses due tomorrow. Made sure caliper pistons were all free at rear. Front had sticky pistons on the right; ordered new calipers below. Brand new parts were available, got those after review w/ owner. Continues Monday
Hey Scott –
That sucks. Sorry to hear it. I hope you get some good responses, there is not a lot of love for the Teves III on this board. There are concerns that the pressure for the rear circuit depends on building pressure in the front circuit, which means if the front circuit fails you lose everything. Different conversation, don’t want to sidetrack your thread.
I’ve never done it, but if memory serves the bleed procedure is fairly specific for the Teves III. Hopefully the shop understood that and performed it properly.
If it’s not losing fluid, from a far it would seem like either a master cylinder or a bleed problem.
Good luck
Bob
Kirbert
(Author of the Book, former owner of an '83 XJ-S H.E.)
3
You should definitely get quotes on rebuilding/replacing that master cylinder before proceeding. It’s liable to cost thousands. Some here have rebuilt their own, sometimes buying a used master cylinder from some other Teves III car to obtain the solenoid valves at reasonable prices.
As Bob mentioned, I have long recommended that the Teves III be yanked and tossed as it is inherently unsafe. A low-cost fix is to replace it with the earlier non-ABS vacuum boosted brake system. The non-ABS master cylinder, brake booster and other associated brake hardware are all cheap and readily available. The one issue with this change is that you’ll need to find a brake pedal housing from either a pre-ABS XJ-S or from a Teves IV XJ-S. A pedal housing from a saloon won’t do. This still isn’t terribly difficult unless you insist on a pedal box with a clutch pedal.
A more involved fix is to upgrade to the Teves IV, which doesn’t have the safety concerns of the Teves III. The Teves IV was only available on the very last year of XJ-S production, though, making finding that hardware a bit more difficult to find. That last year was widely available in a manual transmission version, though – with the 4.0 six-banger – making it perhaps the better choice for those needing a clutch pedal.
Either option is likely to be a far less costly alternative than trying to R&R that Teves III master cylinder.
My 1992 model still sits, as I try to find the ‘old parts’ mentioned. I bought this car on a whim, and parked it in the building. I now think that even if I want the car to move, it may be easier to fabricate the new pedal assembly and use Wilwood Products like those used to fabricate brake systems on race cars. Kirbert and I have had this discussion some time back, and he is on the mark. To even consider repairing the Teeves is folly.
Kirbert
(Author of the Book, former owner of an '83 XJ-S H.E.)
8
Will this one work? Seller claims it’s a 1994, but it look pre-ABS to me.
Just curious, because most people I meet who have XJSs prefer and own convertibles. Which are 89 onwards. Which would have Teves 3. So I’m wondering how many will slowly disappear, or become undesirable because of the expense of fixing the braking system. They still fetch a much higher price than coupes.