veduta

I have been looking at a 1980 911 SC for potential purchase. Nice car, good condition. The owner tells me the brake pedal will not return. I haven't seen it in person yet but was wondering from you experienced lot, what is the worst case scenario for a non returning brake pedal?

Thanks!

Amber Gramps

What else could it be besides a broken pedal cluster spring? Very simple fix.

Peter Zimmermann

Has the owner had the issue diagnosed? Could also be a pedal bushing problem, but it's unusual enough that you should cover yourself by getting a price reduction for the car if you pursue its purchase. Don't forget to read my Pre-Purchase Tutorial at the top of this (911) forum.

Amber Gramps

.....and of course, the spring is NLA.

veduta

Thanks Guy's. Pete, I can almost recite it from memory. If the spring is no longer available, I would imagine you're looking at an entire cluster replacement? I assume there are kits for that?

theiceman

..recycler .. the must be gazzilions of those things lying around ..

Peter Zimmermann

Yep, depending what it needs you can find everything, including bushings, from a variety of vendors. The normal repair process is to expose the pedal cluster, possibly remove and disassemble it, then decide what it needs. The cars are now old enough that many "repairs" turn into "restorations." Hopefully that won't be the case, and you don't encounter rust or other issues.

I've seen calipers in such bad condition that they were at fault, making it "seem like" the pedal was not returning. Ask the seller when the brake hoses were replaced, the required time is 10 years or 100K miles, and if the calipers have been rebuilt/resealed.