Jim,
That is the point. If the brakes fail due to ANYTHING related to the hydraulic components, a dual master cylinder will very likely save your butt. What the dual M/C does is split the brakes into two separate systems hydraulically. Generally the are split front/rear but there are systems that split RF/LR and LF/RR, So if a hose were to split, a line leak or a wheel cylinder fail you will still have two wheel brakes to stop the car. They won’t feel like much, and I’ve heard people claim that their brakes failed but if they woulda calmed a tad they would relized the car still stops! The pedal feels low and hard (as it is designed to do so the numb spots behind the wheel KNOW their brakes are NOT working properly) but they work.
Having had the pleasure of brake failures with both single and dual M/C systems I can honestly tell you which is the better of the two ……… and it ain’t the single system. Both times I had failures with the single systems it was at slow speeds and in parking lots, and at vehicle service locations at that. My own 1953 Plymouth at the gas station I worked at part time in 1959 when a brake hose blew and the other on a International Loadstar 1600 with a 16 foot bed and wearing a 12 foot snow plow when a broken tire chain ripped the LR brake line off while plowing the truck up-fitters lot. Lucky we also did brake work there so we did not have to tow it anywhere but I was still extremely fortunate to not hit anything before getting it stopped. Naturally I wasn’t pushing a pile of snow, which will cause a stop if power is removed, when it went.
I’ve had failures in dual systems a few times over the 35 years I worked at vehicle shops and 55 years of driving, only once in one of my own cars. And while it may be a tad of a surprise when the pedal seems to go to the floor the first time it is a very comforting feeling to realize you are still stopping the car.
While I agree there are limits as to just how much can be done to make old cars/trucks safer but for anything that is actually driven in traffic I consider a dual M/C to be a basic necessity.
John Hagen
From: Forward Look Mopar Discussion List [mailto:L-FORWARDLOOK@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Jim
Sent: Monday, August 04, 2014 5:06 PM
To: L-FORWARDLOOK@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: Re: [FWDLK] RB 383 cam
I know it's possible for brake MC to fail but in 50 years of driving I myself have had brakes fail only once and it wasn't the MC, it was a front wheel cylinder and I don't know anyone else who has ever had a MC fail. Wear out enough that they had to pump the brakes, yes, but they knew it and it caused no problems. It seems like a silly thing to worry and obsess over when you consider that the entire old car is a death trap compared to todays cars.
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