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brake pedal height help

Posted By: yellow70charger

brake pedal height help - 08/21/13 03:03 PM

Help , I have a 70 charger 4 speed with power disc brakes the pedal seems low to me (see pic) as it will not engage the brake light switch it seems this rod is too short (see other pic) Is this rod to short? or is the clutch pedal to high?

Attached picture 7822221-CLUTCH.jpg
Posted By: yellow70charger

Re: brake pedal height - 08/21/13 03:07 PM

pic of rod

Attached picture 7822227-ROD.jpg
Posted By: yellow70charger

Re: brake pedal height - 08/21/13 03:12 PM

angle pic of pedal

Attached picture 7822233-clutch2.jpg
Posted By: RapidRobert

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/21/13 03:22 PM

Quote:

Is this rod to short?


Yes that one is way too short.
Posted By: yellow70charger

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/21/13 03:36 PM

do you know where i could get a correct one?
Posted By: VoodooCLD

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/21/13 04:38 PM

I was under the impression this was because of the power brakes which puts the pedal at a much lower position than the clutch.

I have the same issue, and was just gonna leave it. If there is a good fix, then i'm interested as well.
Posted By: stumpy

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/21/13 04:44 PM

I always thought that was normal pedal height for power brakes and the brake light switch is adjustable. Do you have the rear brakes adjusted to where they bearly contact the drums? That will bring the pedal up some.
Posted By: John_Kunkel

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/21/13 06:34 PM


Pedal height mismatch is common with power brake/stick shift combos, it's because the brake pedal ratio is lower with power brakes.
Posted By: yellow70charger

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/21/13 09:27 PM

adjustabe switch should do it then( to solve brake lights), and be happy with it or may two heim joints and adjust/trim thread to make it a adjustable height.
Posted By: 71birdJ68

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/21/13 09:36 PM

As long as it doesn't bottom out on the floor, its ok. If you read the service manual it tells you that power brake pedals are further down than manual pedals.Thats so you can keep your heel on the floor and not throw every body threw the windshield.
Posted By: yellow70charger

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/21/13 09:39 PM

that makes sense thank you for the responses i guess i'll leave it and get the switch
Posted By: 71birdJ68

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/21/13 09:41 PM

Also there is measurement for the switch. Look in the book.
Posted By: ademon

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/21/13 10:10 PM

Also the low brake pedal helps with a 4 speed on a hill when you have to tap dance the three pedals on take off!
Posted By: Lefty

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/22/13 01:02 AM

Quote:

do you know where i could get a correct one?




Dr Diff has them. http://www.doctordiff.com/62-70-adjustable-master-cylinder-push-rod.html
Posted By: Supercuda

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/22/13 01:18 AM

Quote:

Quote:

do you know where i could get a correct one?




Dr Diff has them. http://www.doctordiff.com/62-70-adjustable-master-cylinder-push-rod.html




That's for a manual brake setup I believe.
Posted By: stumpy

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/22/13 01:20 AM

You could just try adjusting the switch that's already there.
Posted By: VoodooCLD

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/22/13 04:25 PM

Quote:

As long as it doesn't bottom out on the floor, its ok. If you read the service manual it tells you that power brake pedals are further down than manual pedals.Thats so you can keep your heel on the floor and not throw every body threw the windshield.




Hahaha! This made my morning.
Posted By: 71birdJ68

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/22/13 08:08 PM

If you notice, power brake pedals are about even with the gas pedal. They did that for a reason. Manual brakes, you have to use your whole leg, so you need the extra leverage to get the job done. Power brakes, the booster is doing the work.
What amazes me is back in the day, everybody knew this.Now, its forgotten.
Posted By: John_Kunkel

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/22/13 10:17 PM


I don't think the power pedal height is by design, as I stated earlier, it's just a consequence of the different pedal ratio for power/manual (as the pedal ratio decreases the pedal drops).
Posted By: 71birdJ68

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/22/13 10:20 PM

Read the service manual.
Posted By: TJP

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/22/13 10:25 PM

I don't recall any of my 4 spd cars having that much offset between the brake and clutch,
I looks a bit excessive to me
Posted By: 71birdJ68

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/22/13 11:42 PM

It didn't matter if it was a 4 speed or auto. If it had power brakes the peddle was close to the floor compared to manual. And it matter what brand it was either.Mopar, GM, Ford.
Posted By: TJP

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/23/13 03:39 AM

Quote:

It didn't matter if it was a 4 speed or auto. If it had power brakes the peddle was close to the floor compared to manual. And it matter what brand it was either.Mopar, GM, Ford.




Politely Disagree, A little offset, MAYBE!!! That much as shown in the pic is too much IMO. BTW I do restorations for a living (GM, Ford, Mopars etc )and one of my pet peeve's is just this subject. Along with several others.
IMO Either the clutch pedal is too high or the brake pedal is too low. The car would not leave my shop that way,
Posted By: 71birdJ68

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/23/13 05:20 AM

Ok, now this is out of a 71 service manual, but it should have been the same for most all years, it talks about power assisted application of the cars brakes,I quote " This provides lighter pedal effort in combination with reduced pedal travel, bringing the brake pedal height down to the approximate height of the accelerator when at closed throttle conditions." Now you could be right about clutch pedal. Who knows what parts are in that car now.Wrong clutch rod? That brake rod could be wrong,he needs to check everything against part numbers, but the point is, power brake pedals are supposed to be close to the same as the gas pedal. I don't remember if that rod is adjustable or not, if it is it would give a little movement on the pedal.If his brake light switch will adjust out, then he is ok.
Posted By: John_Kunkel

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/23/13 05:31 PM


Here's a pic of my old RR and the pedal height that seems typical of those I've seen.

Attached picture 7824776-Interior02.jpg
Posted By: hemi71x

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/23/13 06:21 PM

If it helps you any, a picture of the pedals, in the 71 Hemi GTX 4 speed car that i used to own.

Attached picture 7824829-Picture073(Small).jpg
Posted By: TJP

Re: brake pedal height help - 08/23/13 07:24 PM

Could be the angle of the picture as well IE: #3
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