Power to manual brakes

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QuickDart360

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Just want to ask if there is more than one length manual rod. I vaguely recall someone mention that. Or is it fine to use a manual pushrod from a 1973- 75 duster/dodge dart. My car is a power disc brake 1975 dart sport 360. I want to make more room in engine area and clean up the look under hood. I also read alot of threads where people on here ended uo with a high brake pedal. Please elaborate! Sorry for beating this old horse again!:(
 
Thanks Toluene 56. I found a manual rod for 1973-75 dart on ebay for like $26 and change. The one Dr.Differential offers is pretty trick but I am on a tight budget. So the stock type sounds a little more economical. However, I wonder if it will work ok? I guess my real question is if this manual rod comes in one size for manual brake cars or is there other sizes in earliar model manual mopars?:eek:
 
Just found out that 72 and earliar manual brake pushrods are 6 1/8 in length and 73 and later brake pushrods are 6.50. So it is longer in later models. So I guess it should be ok or would earliar model rod be better?:BangHead:​
 
I think it just changes where the brake pedal winds up sitting. Kind of a preference, unless you drive an automatic w/ right foot for accel & brake (how I was taught) and worry about snagging your foot. If a stick-shift, might matter if you do the right-foot "brake w heel while giving gas and lifting clutch" trick on hills. Those w/ a short left leg might want the longer rod in an early car. Regardless, unbolt your brake lamp switch until installed, then adjust that to sense (but not stop) the pedal motion.
 
Thanks. Brake pedal sits about 3 or 4 inches higher than gas pedal. So even now brake pedal is high but just don't want it any higher than that. I drive with both feet. Left foot brake & right foot gas!
 
QuickDart360 said:
Thanks. Brake pedal sits about 3 or 4 inches higher than gas pedal. So even now brake pedal is high but just don't want it any higher than that. I drive with both feet. Left foot brake & right foot gas!
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So you dont know how to drive. Bummer. ONE foot. IMO.
 
FYI Mopar Tim i have been driving like this since i was 14. Never an issue! DMV even sent my driver license through mail 3 times for good driving record!! So that can tell you if I can drive or not. By the way if you drive stick why do you need both feet? I think whatever works for someone go with it!! But hey everyone is entitled to give an opinion.
 
3" above the gas pedal seems way too much. Insure the brake rod is fully seated in the MC piston, and the rubber bushing at the end is seated on the rod. The gas pedal could also be too low, especially if the connection at the carburetor isn't correct or factory.

I understand that high-school kids in Driver's Ed have been taught to drive with both feet since ~1990's. That is because few will ever touch a stick-shift, and they didn't even teach stick when I took it ~1974. One can react faster w/ 2 feet, but downside is someone might "ride the brake" or push both feet in an emergency. Some say that in most modern cars, the brakes can stall the engine, which wasn't generally true w/ drum brakes which would overheat sooner and fade.
 
QuickDart360 said:
FYI Mopar Tim i have been driving like this since i was 14. Never an issue! DMV even sent my driver license through mail 3 times for good driving record!! So that can tell you if I can drive or not. By the way if you drive stick why do you need both feet? I think whatever works for someone go with it!! But hey everyone is entitled to give an opinion.
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I dont care, IMO if you cant drive a stick shift, you dont know how to drive. And how are you going to drive and shift if you are using the wrong foot to operate the brakes?
 
Caterpillar loaders, 3 pedals, left side is clutch brake, next to loud pedal is the service brake with the steering column between the 2 brake pedals. You learn real fast to stay away from the clutch brake when gravity is involved. The first bit of that pedal disengages the drive, zero engine braking and no brakes, applying more pressure engages the brakes while keeping the drive disengaged. The right side brake pedal is ALL brakes. Keeping in mind on an articulated loader, the less engine RPM you have the slower the hydraulics operate, including the steering. Then there is that bigass hand operated brake on the front of the machine, drop that sucker you stop pretty quickly.
 
Whatever! I don't care what you anyone thinks of how I drive. It works for me and that's all that matters. If you don't like it that is only your problem. I know for a FACT I can drive very well thank you. You drive however you wish. I will do it my way! I'm out!
 
QuickDart360 said:
Whatever! I don't care what you anyone thinks of how I drive. It works for me and that's all that matters. If you don't like it that is only your problem. I know for a FACT I can drive very well thank you. You drive however you wish. I will do it my way! I'm out!
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Little old ladies all over this country go decades with nothing but auto-renewals of their drivers licenses. That doesn’t mean they drive “very well”.

You should care what other people think about your driving abilities. If you can’t take advice or constructive criticism, your driving skills will never improve. And they can obviously improve.

You say it “works for you” because you’ve never driven anything that required you to work three pedals at the same time. Heck, it doesn’t even seem you can think of a situation where you’d need to work all three pedals at once. Which is really just sad, because that means you’ve never done anything really exciting in a manual transmission car before.

If you can’t heel-toe the brake and throttle at the same time (one foot controlling both pedals), then you can’t really trail brake through a corner on a good track in a manual transmission car. Because you’ll need your left foot to work the clutch while you shift, brake, and control the throttle more or less simultaneously. And we haven’t even covered slipping the clutch to induce a rear wheel drift. Yes, you can drift a car without one of those nifty rear brake only levers, but not if you left foot brake.

And it’s not really our problem if we think you can’t drive. You’re the one missing out, not us.
 
I will no longer comment to these foolish and childish attacks. I made a specific question concerning pedal rod for power to manual. As the title states! Never did I ask for drivers ed 101!! Ok?! If you will only comment on that, please feel free to help.
 
oi81b4uu812b4 said:
LoL,
80% of the American Iron race series cars were automatics. This bickering proves nothing.
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As are most semi trucks these days. And all the members of the general motoring public thinks they’re “great drivers” because high functioning traction control algorithms and computer aided driving functions make them oblivious to what’s actually happening when they drive. But if their equipment craps out or isn’t applicable to the situation they’re in, they crash.

If you want to learn and understand just enough to get by, you’ll probably find you just get by. If you take the time to learn and truly understand, you’ll do better all the time because you better understand the capabilities and limits of your equipment, and are a lot likely to not find yourself up crap creek if the technology you’re depending on quits.
 
I used to work w a guy that was always driving with brake lights on & I told him he was lowering his gas mileage, he insisted he wasn’t dragging the brakes. I told him he probably was, but even if he wasn’t, most vehicles won’t let the TC lock if the brake switch is engaged.
Of course I’m referring to a vehicle new enough to have a lock up converter here.
 
BillGrissom said:
I think it just changes where the brake pedal winds up sitting. Kind of a preference, unless you drive an automatic w/ right foot for accel & brake (how I was taught) and worry about snagging your foot. If a stick-shift, might matter if you do the right-foot "brake w heel while giving gas and lifting clutch" trick on hills. Those w/ a short left leg might want the longer rod in an early car. Regardless, unbolt your brake lamp switch until installed, then adjust that to sense (but not stop) the pedal motion.
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This is a beauty post. So many kids who learn to drive (and my wife) could not possibly comprehend what you typed.

Bravo good sir!
 
QuickDart360 said:
Just found out that 72 and earliar manual brake pushrods are 6 1/8 in length and 73 and later brake pushrods are 6.50. So it is longer in later models. So I guess it should be ok or would earliar model rod be better?:BangHead:​
Click to expand...

QuickDart360 said:
Thanks. Brake pedal sits about 3 or 4 inches higher than gas pedal. So even now brake pedal is high but just don't want it any higher than that. I drive with both feet. Left foot brake & right foot gas!
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If only there was a way to figure this out...

The master cylinder mounts to the firewall. You’re using the same pedal. Measure your current pedal height from the center of the push rod bolt to the firewall. See what that measurement is. The bottom of the cup on the manual master cylinder (where the pushrod fits) isn’t that far off from the firewall. I’m pretty sure it’s less than the difference between those two push rods.

Soooo, that means if you measure a little less than 6” from center of pedal to firewall along the push rod with the power set up, you want the 6 1/8” rod. If you measure much more than 6”, you want the longer one.

And really, the required pedal height depends on the bore of the master cylinder and the brakes being used anyway, because that will determine the stroke needed on the pedal to fully engage the brakes. Which is why they make adjustable push rods.

The danger with going to a shorter push rod is the pedal hitting the floor before the brakes are fully engaged. Keep in mind that spot will be lower if the brakes are smoking hot, so you want them to fully engage even if they’re working hard because that’s when you’ll really need it. So sitting in the driveway you want some extra space to the floor.

If that longer rod will raise the pedal, the danger is the time lost going from one pedal to the other -slowing down your reaction time to engaging the brakes. And comfort, but whatever. Stopping is more important and the ergonomics of these cars is a little lacking to begin with.
 
Thanks 72blunblu!:) Sorry for all the drama really wasn't directed @ you. Just wanted a simple or not so simple answer to my dilemma. Will be getting both rods! They aren't so expensive. The booster actually is costlier than the 2 rods. May try the one that corresponds to my cars year. For now the booster is working good. Just not sure when I throw in the 292 purple cam! AJ mentioned before when he had this cam booster worked for him! So I guess we'll see!! Thanks again.:thankyou:
 
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