I'm back... And, we're finally on the road... :-)

[Oiseau DeTonnere]

Hi all,

Been out of here for more than 6 months, for those who remember, I have a '57 that got shipped from the US to here (Switzerland) and it would not pass the official inspection last October because it had disc brakes mounted. So after a lot of different option explorations and some time off for other stuff, I decided the most reliable way to get it passed would be to change it back to drums...

Managed to order all the necessary parts (many thanks to the great people at CASCO, especially Jason in sales/service!) - got them installed and was finally able to pass the inspection last Thursday. More stories on all that later.

I will now be going through all the different threads here to catch up. This car still has a lot of major problems, so I will be in here more frequently from now on I think... Will post new threads on the various subjects that come up.


Cheers, --Oiseau

[ICON 1956]

You had to put in a ton a work to reinstall the drums from disk's. Did you have to replace the master cylinder from dual to a single?...

[Oiseau DeTonnere]

You had to put in a ton a work to reinstall the drums from disk's.

Yep...
Over $2500 worth of parts - new drums are already $150 apiece, plus shoes, cylinders, springs, levers, hoses, etc. New front hubs (+ bearings, seals) as those were also gone. The backing plates are not available as aftermarket, but found those from Hills and another private person. They had to be cleaned, bead blasted and painted. While we had everything apart we also replaced the rear wheel bearings - which was a good thing as they were in bad shape and might not have been changed since the car was new. New hard lines in the rear as well as the rear parking brake cable. 100 lbs. of stuff shipped overseas. I won't tell you how much I had to pay for labor here... Far more than the cost of the parts.

Did you have to replace the master cylinder from dual to a single?...

No, we left the dual master in. The inspection guys did not seem to care about that at all. It seems to be fine so far. The brakes seem to work OK - still wearing in a bit, but you can definitely skid the tires if you step on it hard. Not sure how long they'll hold going down a mountain yet...

[ward 57]

I guess I'm asking the obvious But why did the disk brake conversion not pass inspection? I would think that upgrade would pass with flying colors as it is a better system.

[ICON 1956]

It makes no sense going back to drums. The mountains are beautiful there. Driving down hill after a scenic ride can be be dangerous. The drum pads wear out faster than disks. Don't forget the heat build up as for the brake fluid what DOT are you using? Dot 3 or 4 ? Dot 4 has a higher temp for heat than Dot 3. Why I'm asking this, Because I just changed mine brake fluid my car uses Dot 3 , You can read Gil's Baumgartner article on the web about the difference on brake fluids.
https://www.ctci.org/gilsgarage/change- ... ake-fluid/

[Oiseau DeTonnere]

It makes no sense going back to drums.

OF COURSE IT MAKES NO SENSE! It makes no sense at all... Do you think I actually did this voluntarily? Spent a huge amount of cash and time to have an inferior braking system?

As I think I might have explained in one of my previous posts (last year) there was simply no other practical way to get the car licensed and on the road here other than do do that. The inspection people acknowledged that the discs were better. They simply said "Please present us with an original Ford motor company certificate saying that these particular brakes are certified for this car. If you can't supply us with an official Ford document, the car can't pass. Sorry, we admit that this is not logical, but the rules are the rules, no exceptions. No certificate, no pass."

This despite the fact that I traced the original calipers etc. and they are all of course certified individually for other (more recent) cars. And some of the parts were even original Ford parts with the Ford logo on them. Didn't matter at all, they just looked at all my research and part numbers and said, "Yeah, but there's no certificate for those brakes on THIS car."

I live in one of the nicest countries in the world and I wouldn't trade it for anywhere else, but as with any place, there are bad spots and crazy incomprehensible rules/customs. You have to take the bad with the good. The auto inspection here is one the 'bads', it's kind of a state-run mafia, which, in the name of "safety", is very strict on cars being in perfect condition and original. It really is just a disguised system designed to keep the auto mechanics and new car sellers in business and at the same time tax the consumers.

Anyway, that's just the way it is. This particular car should never have been sent over here - it would have been fine if it stayed in the US. Unfortunately the person who inspected it for me neglected to tell me about the brakes and I didn't find out until too late. Even then we all had hope we could convince the authorities here to listen to reason. We were wrong.

[ward 57]

I wonder if SAAB and or Volvo had some influence on those standards. Those cars were known for their legendary safety. So sorry to see them go out of production.

[ICON 1956]

I did not want you getting angry thoughts. I feel for you. You went through a lot of expenses and labor to switch everything back. We us posted on the restoration on your car...

[T-Bird Bob]

Hello Oiseau!
Also happy to see you back on the road.
From experience: You don't need to be worried about your drum brakes when cruising the vineyards of Lavaux. I tested it with my '55 and it works.
The torque converter seems also to be somewhat tight, so you get some engine braking even with the ford-o-matic.

Regarding the inspection, I feel you. These "experts" only know very little, and depending on the day they test something or not.
When I imported my car, they tested the brake fluid: turns out DOT3 (non existing over here) will show up as "high water content" on their test all the time - but it was new! So I had to change perfectly good DOT3 brake fluid to DOT4.

This week I had to inspect a car that was off the road since 2016. Testing brake fluid? No. (BTW, I changed the brake fluid anyways, because if you have old fluid with a lot of water it can rust brake components from the inside - ask me how I know).

Anyway, here is a meme showing their "expertise":

Have fun and hopefully see you around!

Bob

[ward 57]

OMG, Car Czars that know nothing about cars but rules in a dusty old guidebook. British cars are known to be rust buckets and VERY temperamental but pass muster. I could go on but we know the dill.

[Oiseau DeTonnere]

You don't need to be worried about your drum brakes when cruising the vineyards of Lavaux.

Yes, but what about coming down the Grand St-Bernard pass (2649 m/8100 ft.) after having popped over to Aosta for a real Italian espresso?

[T-Bird Bob]

Hello Oiseau,
Well, I understand the desire to pop over to Italy for espresso, wine and just in general. I never did drive mountain passes, also because I have no power steering!
I would be really happy if you could test this for us!

Maybe there is someone here from Colorado or so that can tell us how drum brakes and mountain passes work together?

Have fun!

Bob

[ward 57]

There is always the option of downshifting to 2nd and use the engine to help brake.