teves brake system accumulator

[Guest Lee_M]

so, is i started to whine about in a previous thread - regarding my 16v while i got the brakes working just fine, i do want to replace the accumulator, which i STILL haven't figured out how to remove. i did the pumping-the-brakes 25x while engine off method, etc., etc., to depressurize the system but i still can't seem to get any of the accumulators on ANY of my many TCs to turn.

i have 4 of these cars of my own (currently), plus the one i sold to a friend, and newly added parts car: i can't loosen any of the accumulators.

i've looked at the various posts here, and several other forums, including the reatta forum, reattaowner site, and even the autozone "how to..." on this subject. while many have said they have had no issues, most everyone who posted did say they had heard of some owners of these systems had impossible, or nearly impossible to remove accumulators.

i've tried big wrenches, strap wrenches, a chain-strap wrench, oil filter wrenches, with and without wood blocking, sometimes i used heat, but always with a firm grip on the tall (AL?) stalk that supports the accumulator. but never have i had any luck getting this thing removed.

i guess the yellow 1989 16v and royal cab 1989 8v are the two cars i am a little concerned about - they seem to have slightly weaker braking action for a given amount of brake pedal pressure, as compared to the 1990 models.

i've wondered about the AL stalk and the accumulator - if the accumulator is steel, maybe i am fighting some galvanic interaction between the two. or do i just need more wd40, PB blaster, or propane torch heat, or???

[Guest Jim_McNally]

I have changed the accumulator on both of mine. Both 89 build dates, both still had original accumulators. One lived most of its life in NJ, the other California.

One of them (I think the NJ one) came off easily with a chain-vise-grip. The other one took my biggest pipe wrench with a 3 foot pipe on the handle for leverage. In both cases I had two spanners (one high, one low) on the hex stalk, with a piece of 2x4 blocking and shims in the gap between the wrenches and the firewall so it could not turn. The second was easy after it initially broke free. Neither one had any corrosion on the threads (I still have both the old ones).

Others on the forum have more experience with this than I do (Hemi?) and may have some other suggestions.

Jim

[Guest Lee_M]

jim,

so it sounds like i need to go with the archimedes lever principle here. with one of them i did do the blocking, as you have described. i also used a pipe wrench with an 18in pipe extension. i thought that was going to work until the wrench slipped and i ended up comically bouncing first off of the car, and then onto the ground... at least my family and some friends said it was comical.

anyway, so it sounds like i am approaching it correctly - i just need a longer lever, and further place to stand.

thanks for the reply.

[sctc]

I have changed a couple of these out on my TC's and found the easiest way was to remove the accumulator with the stem together from the pump body by using a wrench on the stalk, then get the stalk in a vise and a wrench on the bottom of the accumulator where the hex is and loosen it from the stem.

Be careful when going back together not to cross thread the stem into the body and make sure the "O" ring is in place.

[Guest Lee_M]

thanks sctc,

sounds like something to try as well

[Guest Luckyguy]

What size is the O-ring My car takes a few [30] seconds to rebuild pressure after being off for just a few minutes thinking maybe a weak o-ring?

[Guest Jim_McNally]

Probably not the o-ring - the accumulator operates at 2500psi, and if the o-ring was bad you'd probably get a gusher. Unless you've got a visible leak of brake fluid somewhere it's more likely a very slow internal leak in the master valve unit or the pump itself.

Jim.