1985 L Series Touring Wagon Leaking brake cylinder

beazley · Post by **beazley** » Wed Jul 11, 2012 2:30 pm

I recently acquired an '85 L series touring wagon which I am looking to get roadworthy again.
I have a problem with the left hand side brake cylinder leaking a lot, causing the brakes not to work unless you pump them once before each brake operation.
To me this looks like the brake holder for hill starts (???) like in the liberties but I am unsure as this is my first L series and have only dealt with gen1,2's lib's.

Just wondering if there interchangable with any other models before I go looking for one as I got quoted 270 for a rebuild which is more than the car cost. Or if theres anywhere online that sells rebuild kits.
Thanks.

steptoe · Post by **steptoe** » Wed Jul 11, 2012 5:29 pm

next time ...eh? where is Silverbullet Sam ? An L Series in Adelaide for less than $270 ! ... next time I wreck one I will keep it - you are correct, it is the hill holder.
I wonder if it an be bypassed with a few special hoses made up ?

Gannon · Post by **Gannon** » Wed Jul 11, 2012 5:41 pm

Yeah if you dont require a hill holder, simply ditch it and replace it with a "T" piece.

You may have to do some searching to find a metric brake fluid T though.

tambox · Post by **tambox** » Wed Jul 11, 2012 6:11 pm

Or put a set of L series auto, front brake hoses, from the wreckers on it.

Silverbullet · Post by **Silverbullet** » Wed Jul 11, 2012 7:15 pm

steptoe wrote:next time ...eh? where is Silverbullet Sam ? An L Series in Adelaide for less than $270 ! ... next time I wreck one I will keep it - you are correct, it is the hill holder.
I wonder if it an be bypassed with a few special hoses made up ?

He must have known someone

Thanks for the pics, never seen a hill holder mechanism before

beazley · Post by **beazley** » Wed Jul 11, 2012 7:55 pm

Silverbullet wrote:He must have known someone

Thanks for the pics, never seen a hill holder mechanism before

Yes it was bought from someone I know.
Just went to wreckers and got a brake master and hill holder from a '96 liberty. Fits perfect and works well enough, yet to bleed it though.
I'm surprised such an old car has a hill holder which is why I wasn't sure, worked pretty well on my liberty before its engine conversion where after it wasn't able to be connected again.

steptoe · Post by **steptoe** » Wed Jul 11, 2012 7:59 pm

Think I have used a hill holder correctly once or twice, think it activated when not wanted, so I have never conncted the cable once pulled. Nice one that you got later model stuff to fit

RSR 555 · Post by **RSR 555** » Wed Jul 11, 2012 9:17 pm

Not sure if they are the same as the Lib ones but they sure like it.

I have an L.Series one if you need it. Cost you postage to SA.

Oh.. Hi and Welcome to AUSubaru

Cheers,
Paul

YouTube · Post by **El_Freddo** » Tue Jul 17, 2012 4:22 pm

I must admit, I love my hill holder - works well! The trick is knowing how to set it up correctly in the first place.

I'll be keen to know how the liberty brake booster goes - I've heard that they can induce brake lock up very quickly in the L series - something to keep in mind as you test it out

Cheers

Bennie

beazley · Post by **beazley** » Tue Jul 17, 2012 9:42 pm

El_Freddo wrote:I must admit, I love my hill holder - works well! The trick is knowing how to set it up correctly in the first place.

I'll be keen to know how the liberty brake booster goes - I've heard that they can induce brake lock up very quickly in the L series - something to keep in mind as you test it out

Cheers

Bennie

I only changed the master and hill holder cylinders, booster is still original. Brakes work great. Havent checked the condition of the discs and pads yet though, still fixing other things in the car to get it back to 100%

Loving the L series though, was going to buy a late model Navara within the next year but I am thinking of restoring this now instead.

Hill holder isn't connected as its missing the split square washer thing that holds the cable from the holder to the clutch.

At the moment has a leak from the water pump so will be doing timing belt and the front seals possibly when i tear it down.

YouTube · Post by **El_Freddo** » Tue Jul 17, 2012 10:39 pm

Ah yeah I didn't read that properly. And the fella that did this mod went with both - the booster and the master cylinder. I hope it's worked out well for you. His words were that it gave good braking feel but could easily lock up if you weren't careful and applied too much leg force. It was the demise of his L series (turbo'd). I'm not trying to scare you, just letting you know the experience of another subi nut.

Good to hear that you're loving the L series. Mine was a $500 "special" - shot engine. I've not looked back since getting it on the road. Needless to say I've worked on some mods that have cost much more than what I paid for the car! But I wouldn't have it any other way

You'll love your L series and if I were a betting man I'd put money on you wanting more power within the year after it's on the road

Maybe time to start a thread in the My car section (member's area of the forum)

Cheers

Bennie