Calle and others,
Thanks for the information.  I ordered a master cylinder from
Volkscafe.  Hopefully, I'll get a chance to change it this weekend and
still get out to the beach.

Van wasn't drivable this past weekend either since I had to trace a
failure of the fuel pressure regulator which was causing 60psi
pressure in the fuel system.  The problem would occur only after
driving for 5 to 10 minutes.  I swapped out the fuel pressure
regulator and fuel pressure appears to be steady at 29psi now.  One
problem down, several more to go.

-- Craig

On Mon, 15 Nov 2004 19:40:45 +0100, Calle Fallberg
<calle.fallberg@telia.com> wrote:
> Craig !
> 
> You probably have a master cylinder leak, it�s not that hard to change the
> cylinder the PITA could be to get the air out afterwards with bleaders
> that�s stuck ....
> Do the job ASAP, when the seepage has started it often get worse rapidly and
> you will never forgive yourself if something or somebody get in your way and
> you run into them just because you hadn�t the time to pump fifteen times to
> get the pressure up enough to stop your vehicle !
> While you�re at it, change the brake fluid if you haven�t for a while too,
> the fluid absorbs water wich will damage your pipes in the long run and the
> water might cause air in the system too if your brakes get hot !
> 
> Good Luck
> Calle
> 
> 
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Craig Oda" <craigoda@GMAIL.COM>
> To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
> Sent: Monday, November 15, 2004 6:53 PM
> Subject: brake pedal going to floor
> 
> > When I am stopped at a light and press my brake pedal, it will go down
> > to the floor.  It does this very slowly and will move down a bit
> > faster when I apply more pressure.  If I pump the brake up, it will
> > get hard and offer good resistance.  This will also occur sometimes
> > when braking hard.   This problem has been with me for a year and is
> > recently getting more noticeable.  I've bled my brakes several times.
> > There is no drop in brake fluid level.
> >
> > I suspect that fluid is leaking from the master cylinder into the
> > brake fluid holder.  If this is the case, should I just replace the
> > master cylinder?  How long a job is this?
> >
> > What's the real danger of  my current brake condition?  The van always
> > stops and offers good resistance on the brake pedal when I pump it.  I
> > intend to fix this, but I'm just deciding when to do it.
> >
> > Thanks.
> >
> > Regards,
> > Craig
> >
>