Brake bleeding disaster
The dangers of cheap parts.
I’ma firm believer in replacing brake fluid at the manufacturers’ suggested two-year interval, brake fluid being cheaper than disintegrated hydraulic seals or a failed anti-lock pump at £1000 a pop. So the time had come for a full bleed all round for my 2007 Volkswagen Polo Bluemotion.
Applying gentle pressure on a 7mm spanner to undo a rear wheel cylinder nipple, I could feel it beginning to move, followed by a rush of horror as the nipple came away in my hand. Yes, snapped right off. One glance at the nipple showed that it was a mass of white-ish corrosion, the result of a mere two years’ exposure to the elements. The original nipples and cylinders had been perfect after seven years and 90,000 miles.
The only good news was that the nipple had not turned in its thread and the system was still sealed tight. This is the first time in 50 years of car maintenance that this had ever happened.
Although not a desperate situation, a new wheel cylinder was sought pronto. Unfortunately, a look on the websites of two national suppliers, who were also the closest to hand, showed just one brand name each, one of which was the failed item. Further study of the photographs on each site showed what appeared to be the exact same item, albeit with a different brand name.
So, as the closest and slightly cheaper one was also the same brand as used two years ago, I bought another of the same. The photograph above right shows the old and new side by side; apart from the visible corrosion, it is easy to see the rounding-off caused by a correctly-fitting spanner.
Changing a wheel cylinder is usually a quick job. New unit bought, jack up, support, wheel off, splined key into the single bolt holding the cylinder on and… nothing. It wouldn’t budge.
We sprayed it with penetrating oil and left it for an hour. Nothing. A small extension was added to the splined key and we tried again. Nothing, except a fear of possibly tearing the splines in the bolt head. More penetrating oil was sprayed and we left it overnight. In the meantime, I found a bolt that fitted the new cylinder in case I had to cut off the seized bolt head.
After two days of applying penetrating fluid, the bolt reluctantly unscrewed. The only thing that was no trouble was the metal brake line, presumably because its threads had been lubricated from within by the brake fluid.
Needless to say both the cleaned-up original securing bolt and the top end of the nipple’s thread had a touch of grease added. Never have I come across the need to grease these parts, but it was obviously necessary when using what might be termed parts made from mediocre-quality materials.
We all know that basically you get what you pay for – a better design, better workmanship, higher quality of materials, longer reliable working life, a more peaceful ownership. But, leaving aside the extortionate pricing of cheaply-produced goods, where does ‘value’ originate?
Market values
In the end, it’s the market that dictates the value of any commodity. The number of items sold has to reach a balance with the profit demanded by distributors and sellers, and how much the end buyer is prepared to pay. The quality of the materials used usually only contributes a small amount to the total cost. Thus a sealing rubber may be made from poor-quality material and disintegrate after little use, but if the parts are in high demand then the price may be inflated to capitalise on this.
Whereas the original manufacturer has to develop the item and ensure that it’s fit for purpose, other suppliers simply pay for a licence to produce duplicates, often of lower quality, while certain rogues simply copy to fit moreor-less, with even less regard for quality. While most legitimate companies will comply with a basic legislated quality in the country of destination, this is generally somewhat lower than the original manufacturer’s specification. The box that sellers need ticked as a bare minimum is ‘Spare parts of matching quality, EEC block exemption’.
In the case of our bleed nipple, we bought one at the lowish price of £16 from a major supplier. Subsequent research on the web located well-known and respected brands for between £8 and £13. The VW main dealer price was £33.61 – given that these would likely last more than three times as long as the one we used, our cheap replacement suddenly didn’t seem much of a bargain.
Moral: Less doesn’t always mean more. Don’t go for the very cheapest. And let us hope that this warning will not provoke a price swell at the bottom end, making such products appear to be better. I mean, would you really be happy to drive with brake pads that had a factory gate price of just 30p?