My 79 262C Bertone is leaking brake fluid. From my best trouble-shooting it appears to be leaking from the brake line junction box. I think it maybe coming from the whole where the sensor goes in but I'm not sure. It is not coming from the master cylinder line and trickling down to the brake junction box. Anyways I was thinking about grabbing a junction box when I go to the boneyard tomorrow. I was already going to make a trip for some misc. stuff for the Bertone and Wagon so if I spot a clean looking box I thought it would be worth picking up.

Is there any advice as to replacing the junction box? What is the best tool for the brake lines without stripping them? What is the correct way to bleed the brakes w/o a pressure bleeder and with my wifes foot? Any and all advice will be welcomed. I hope to get the Bertone back for a smog check next week and would like to get the buttoned up before night fall tomorrow. Thanks for everyone's time.

Sincerely,
--
Julio Meza

1979 264GL B27F 123K --> BW55->M46, CLS, IPD Sway, 81+ Dash, Gauges

1979 262C B27F 159K --> Restore Project w/Possible V8

1984 245DL 209K -->Wifemobile

What is the correct way to bleed the brakes w/o a pressure bleeder and with my wifes foot?

Put a piece of 2x4 under the pedal so the piston seals can't get pushed into uncharted (possibly rusty, pitted areas of thr bore.

Opinions vary on the pedal method. I was taught to : 1- open bleeder, 2- press pedal and hold, 3- close bleeder, 4- let pedal up (repeat endlessly).

Before you start bleeding, go around and make sure you can open each bleeder. A frozen or broken bleeder half-way thru the job takes a lot of the fun out of it. While doing this bleeder check, you can also expell much of the old fluid in the caliper by depressing the pistons with bleeder open and piped to your drain container.

Since the 240 has two separate hydraulic systems, the currently recommended sequence bleeds each system separately.

The upper two piston chambers on the front calipers form an inverted "U", with a single bleeder at the highest point. The lower two piston chambers form an upright "U", with bleeders at the two high points. (See illustrations in Bentley, p 500-1 and Haynes, p 9-13)

Bleed Sequence:
Either A or B can be done first:

System A:
1) Left rear
2) Left front - Upper piston chambers (single bleeder, top)
3) Right front - Upper piston chambers (single bleeder, top)

System B:
4) Right rear
5) Right front - Lower piston chambers (inner and outer bleeders, either first)
6) Left front - Lower piston chambers (inner and outer bleeders, either first)

ALSO — When opening the lines at the BJB, block the brake pedal down about 2". That way no fluid will leak from the MC.
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Bruce Young
'93 940-NA (current) — 240s (one V8) — 140s — 122s — since '63.

Thanks Bruce. I was able to find a 88 245 that just had over $700 of brake work done on it about 2 months ago. There was a reciept in the glove box that listed all the parts that were replaced by Pepboys (all rotors, calipers, rubber brake lines, pads, and the BJB). I snagged up the BJB but had to leave the rest. I will have to talk to the wife in order to head back on Monday to get whatever is left. I also found paperwork showing that the AW70 tranny solenoid had been replaced last October so I snagged that up too. Question on the AW70 I saw, the torque converter was light blue in color or painted a light blue, does that mean it maybe be a lockup torque converter? All in all a good day. I found a wagon windshield washer switch that also had the picture of the wipers for the headlight on it. I had never seen one of those before so I snagged it up. I was able to get the entire CRUISE CONTROL system out of that 88 just in case I know someone that needs it or if I ever get a 86+ 240. Well I have to head out to the Bertone to start on the BJB. I have printed out your instructions and will have them in hand. Thanks again for your time!

Sincerely,
--
Julio Meza

1979 264GL B27F 123K --> BW55->M46, CLS, IPD Sway, 81+ Dash, Gauges

1979 262C B27F 159K --> Restore Project w/Possible V8

1984 245DL 209K -->Wifemobile

Hi Julio,

How I envy your rust-free environment! Congrats on the good score on brake parts. Regarding—
Question on the AW70 I saw, the torque converter was light blue in color or painted a light blue, does that mean it maybe be a lockup torque converter?

I don't know what the color means, but if its a "locker" there will be an "L" suffix on the tranny data plate. My 940 says AW-71L.

And now that the fire is out, to me "rebuilding" the BJB (2 bitsy 0-rings) is no more "risky" or whatever than rebuilding a caliper. I mean which one works all the time, and which one just sits there waiting for trouble? How badly "worn out" can a BJB be?

IMHO, an opinion stated as gospel can easily spark flames. I only post what I've tried, and state whether it worked or not. If I offer an opinion, I make it clear that I'm not stating facts.

Good luck,

Bruce
--
Bruce Young
'93 940-NA (current) — 240s (one V8) — 140s — 122s — since '63.

Use correctly sized line wrenches to avoid stripping the line nuts. Well worth the small investment--good tools always pay for themselves.
--
'84 "285" rice-eater with lotsa hp & performance goodies

Since you have to re-bleed all the calipers anyway, be sure to drain, or use an old baster from the kitchen, and remove as much fluid as possible from the master cylinder. This is a messy job and I have done it three times. I used rubber latex gloves the last time and it made a difference. Yes, a new or rebuilt junction box is best. Good wrenches and be sure that when you start to loosen the nuts BE DEFINITIVE, not uncertain. Remember, lefty-loosey and righty tighty. Not a hard job, just a big pain. Save big bucks and diy.

I would not replace the junction block with a used one. Chances are the brake system hasn't been maintained on the car and it won't be any better than your bad one.

Start soaking the block and lines with PB Blaster or Kroil. Wire brush the fittings before applying the penetrant and apply it daily for a week. Use a high quality line wrench on the fittings and simply loosen them all before taking any of them completely off as you may find several that won't come off with out having to be replaced. Good luck.

Randy

i am sick of hearing this nonsense about not replacing a brake junction box with a second hand replacement. for starters, the brake junction box is an expensive part anywhere from $44 to $160 dollars so this automatically warrants finding a cheaper alternative providing this can achieve the same function. since there are only two o-rings as a posswible cause of the failure i cannot see any logic in replacing this with a brand new part when you can replace it with a $5 dollar part from a boneyard. i mean if safety was an issue we wouldn't be rebuilding calipers let alone master cylinders would we.

i pulled a second hand one from the boneyard the other day. pulled the thing off with little trouble, the lines never even looked like giving me trouble. the o-rings looked ok but i replaced them and then rebuilt the thing in about 5 minutes. reinstalled the thing, bled the brakes, and cured not only the leak but the brake-failure light. the brakes work fine now.

i would recommend getting a swecond hand one. having a discerning look over all the internals and if there is no ovious cause for failure (threaded bolts, rust, etc) then just replace the o-rings) and save yourself $150.

chez

>i am sick of hearing this nonsense about not replacing a brake junction box >with a second hand replacement. for starters,

You seem to have a lot of pent up anger... why not just let it out, tell us what else makes you sick and if it makes you feel better don't hesitate to call me stupid while you're at it. I'd tell you what makes me sick and what nonsense really means, but I'm afraid it would just make you a lot more angry than suggesting someone purchase a new car part.

If you live in a friendly climate where used brake parts are good enough for your car I am happy for you. Perhaps it was your attitude I found distasteful.

Hey rstarkie,

Thank for the suggestion. I hope CHEZ is alright. That much bottled up anger could come out all at once, maybe even on his car, ouch. Anyways I the pick-n-pull and found a 88 245 that just had A LOT ($700+) of brake work done. How did I know about the brake worn you ask? I found the worl order and reciept from Peppboys in the glove dates two months ago. They replaced all four rotors, all four calipers, rubber brake lines, & the brake junction. Of course I snagged that brake box right up and I'm taking a quick break before I go out to put it on the Bertone. I totally understand your point about getting NEW brake parts and usually I do just that. But this time I'm strapped for cash and was just shooting in the dark. Here in Southern CA these junk cars hold up very well so good parts are very common, sprakling new parts is the real treasure. I was going to grab all the parts that were recently replaced but I may have to come back on Monday after I talk to the wife. Thanks for your time.

Sincerely,
--
Julio Meza

1979 264GL B27F 123K --> BW55->M46, CLS, IPD Sway, 81+ Dash, Gauges

1979 262C B27F 159K --> Restore Project w/Possible V8

1984 245DL 209K -->Wifemobile

A very lucky find for you! I occasionally find new parts on a car and wonder if they were the last owners effort at having someone fix a problem and it all went bad.

Sounds like that will work for you. Even in you fair climate I would soak the lines and fittings with PB Blaster or Kroil for a very long time before going at them with a quality line wrench. Good luck.

Randy

rstarkie and nickjvr,

i just don't see the point in spending money on new parts when you don;t have too. have you had a look at the junction box. maybe you should pull one apart and have a look inside. there is not much too it. and you might ask yourself why you would even consider spending that amount of money for two o-rings. but it is up to you. perhaps then you would have some spare cash!

anyway, sorry to upset you but at t he end of the day you found what you were looking for and you didn;t waste your money with new parts. so i am happy that you were able to do that.

chez

I understand your point Chez. I picked up 2 BJB for $3 each at the junkyard. One of them went on the 262C and works great. The other BJB is for me to take apart to compare to the bad one I pulled out. If I can learn how to keep some of these parts in good shape for pennys then it is just more in my pocket. Thanks for the advice and I will see if I can get these other BJB to work so I can have a back up in the future.

Sincerely,
--
Julio Meza

1979 264GL B27F 123K --> BW55->M46, CLS, IPD Sway, 81+ Dash, Gauges

1979 262C B27F 159K --> Restore Project w/Possible V8

1984 245DL 209K -->Wifemobile

hi,

well i didn't mean to offend anybody. i just had spent ages scouring the board about bjb and the final result was the same as the hayne's manual - replace the bjb with a new one if it is defective. but, i think if you can pull a good one from a yard you are winning. i am happy you managed to get what you were after. and now you 262 bertone will be much better for it.

bye for now,
chez