Brake Pedal Failure

[coach 2]

I seem to remember brake pedal failure in older posts does anyone have any information, is the upgrade to forged pedals needed?

[edwardb]

If you're speaking about the Wilwood pedal box, there were a couple failures several years ago. Some broke above the pivot. Didn't happen to me, but saw it in several forum posts. Wilwood pedal boxes sold for several years now are the upgraded forged pedals. Here is a thread from the other forum with info and pictures. http://www.ffcars.com/forums/17-factory-five-roadsters/278380-wilwood-clutch-pedal-broke.html

[coach 2]

Thank you so much I have a older 33 Hot Rod and think I should upgrade to the forged pedals before I mount the body. Also just to let you know I bought a Chevy Sonic built in Lake Orion great little car.

[edwardb]

Thank you so much I have a older 33 Hot Rod and think I should upgrade to the forged pedals before I mount the body. Also just to let you know I bought a Chevy Sonic built in Lake Orion great little car.

Yep. Lake Orion GM Assembly is a big operation and employer here. Drive by it all the time. They're tooling up for the new Chevy Bolt that will also be built there. Full on electric.

[ram_g]

Edwardb's reference is to Wilwood clutch pedal failures, not brake. Important distinction! AFAIK I have not heard of brake pedal failures, even of the old style pedals.

The clutch pedals broke because they were (originally) designed with a twisting moment upon clutch actuation. No such issue with the brake pedals.

[edwardb]

Edwardb's reference is to Wilwood clutch pedal failures, not brake. Important distinction! AFAIK I have not heard of brake pedal failures, even of the old style pedals.

The clutch pedals broke because they were (originally) designed with a twisting moment upon clutch actuation. No such issue with the brake pedals.

Agreed. I too am only aware of the clutch pedal failing, as shown in the link I attached. Also agree it seemed to be related to the mod FF did adapting the hydraulic clutch setup to a cable drive setup. The original design had the cable offset from the pedal pivot which apparently contributed to the failures. For some time now (couple years?) the cable setup is changed to pull in line with the pivot of the clutch arm, which is a definite improvement. Not an issue in any case if using a hydraulic setup like the Wilwood pedal box was originally designed for. Personally, seeing the difference between the new pedals and the old, I'd probably change them out anyway. They are much more robust and it's interesting I guess that the newer design has been the standard ones supplied by Wilwood for some time.