[FC] A Greenbrier Recruit

[Vairtec Corporation]

Andrew Sego wrote:

> Although they are all almost equally important I'd look over the brakes VERY CAREFULLY.

Bingo.  And one of the places to start is with what the Corvair 
community calls the "hard-harder" test.  Get in the van, parked safely 
at home, and push with both feet on the brake pedal, as hard as you 
can.  Then, grab the steering wheel so that you can push harder.

It is quite likely that you will rupture a rusty brake line when you do 
this.  MUCH better to do this when parked in your own driveway than to 
do it on the road when you really needed to STOP!

The puddle of brake fluid under the van will give you a hint as to where 
the failed line is located.  But if one failed, inspect them all.  If 
one did not fail, inspect them all anyway.

Aside from this, a neglected car will require attention to all aspect of 
the brakes, including the wheel cylinders, which I will bet are rusty 
with moisture in the brake fluid.

The good news is, there is nothing truly unique about the van's brakes, 
so if you can do a brake job on any car you can do a brake job on a 
Greenbrier.  Rear wheel cylinders are slightly oddball, but that's why 
God gave us our Corvair-specific vendors.

Do not be seduced by the urge to "upgrade" to a dual master cylinder.  
Such a conversion has its merits, but is worthless if the rest of the 
braking system is not top-notch.

--Bob Marlow
1964 Greenbrier
1963 Rampside
Corvanatics member since 1978