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I recently inherited a 67 Galaxie LTD. The car is in immaculate shape both in and out with
Low miles. I drove the car home today, and found that the brakes are very touchy or grabby. This was at a point to where it felt like I was going to be thrown through the windshield. What directions should I head in getting this fixed ? Any suggestions would be helpful.
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Is it front drums, or discs? You're going to have to get in and service the brakes to make sure they are functioning as intended and the shoes and drums are in good condition. These old drum brake systems can be touchy and it may just be something you have to get used to and build a feel for. They are not like a modern ABS equipped car and require plenty of "feel".
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In my experience with drum brakes (40 yrs.),assuming you have drum, is that if the primary and secondary shoes are reversed, grabbing may occur. Very easy to identify, the larger (shoe with longer wear surface) goes towards the rear. Here is a link explaining how drum brakes work:
Also, if the car was not driven in awhile, rust may have formed on the drums and/or rotors, A little driving should smooth that out.
Last edited by Skillet (August 28, 2017 12:43 pm)
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Lots of cars of the era had touchy power brakes. I would go over everything to make sure the linings are clean and the wheel cylinders are not leaking, also a good tip above on the linings. Grease on the linings can make them grabby, but it will tend to pull to one side and have a shudder to it.
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I owned a 1967 Ford Fairlane GT with power front disk brakes, 4 pistons in each caliper. You had to be very light on the pedal, real touchy.
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Check the linkage to the brake booster to make sure it's working freely and not sticking.
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I grew up driving things like a '62 Oldsmobile, '64 Cadillac and those brakes were extremely touchy. All it took was a toe on the brake to stop them.
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