Brake warning light

WHAT DID YOU DO WITH THE WHITE WIRES THAT GO TO EACH OF THE FRONT BRAKE PADS?? IF ANY OF THESE ARE TOUCHING/CHAFING TO GROUND, YOUR BRAKE WARNING LIGHT WILL COME ON! IT ALSO SOUNDS LIKE YOUR PROPORTIONING VALVE,(THE BRASS BLOCK UNDER YOUR MASTER CYLIDER) MAY BE "PRESSURED" TOWARDS THE "FRONT" POSITION,(SINCE YOU REBUILT THE FRONT CALIPERS)THIS WILL ALSO CAUSE THE LIGHT TO COME ON; AS IT IS IT'S MAIN FUNCTION TO WARN OF SUCH AN IMBALANCE! ALSO THIS SINGLE WIRE COULD BE TOUCHING THE GROUND. YOU CAN TEST FOR THIS, BY SIMPLY DISCONNECTING THE SINGLE WIRE---(I SAY "SINGLE" WIRE, BECAUSE THE "PAIR" OF WIRES GOES TO THE BRAKE "TAIL LIGHT" SWITCH),---IF THE WARNING LIGHT GOES OUT THEN YOU KNOW THE PROBLEM IS IN THE PROPORTIONING VALVE! AND IF THE LIGHT DOES NOT GO OUT, THEN THE PROBLEM HAS TO BE ELSEWHERE, PERHAPS THE WIRING. CHECK IT OUT, AND GOOD-LUCK! MARLIN.

[This message has been edited by MARLIN JACK (edited 07-15-2002).]

[This message has been edited by MARLIN JACK (edited 07-15-2002).]

There are no wires to the pads or calipers. Warning light was not on until I changed the calipers.
Could I still have air in the system? Is there any special bleeding procedure?

MY '74 HAS THE WIRES, BUT ARE DISCONNECTED(NOT USED), AND I MADE SURE THEY WERE TAPED AND INSULATED FROM GROUND! PERHAPS YOUR YEAR OF PANTHER DID NOT COME WITH THEM! OR IF THEY DID, COULD SOMEONE BEFORE YOU HAVE "TUCKED" THEM UP IN THE WHEELWELL OR INTO THE DASH REAR, UNTIL YOU "DISTURBED" THEM WHILE WORKING ON THE CALIPERS? THE OTHER QUESTION: YES! AIR IN THE SYSTEM WOULD CAUSE THE PROPORTIONING IMBALANCE MENTIONED EARLIER. BLEEDING? I DON'T KNOW FOR SURE,(I WOULD HAVE A BUDDY PUMP IT UP, HOLD THE PEDAL SOLID, AND THEN LOOSEN THE CONNECTION FOR THE FRONT BRAKES AT THE P. VALVE. YOU MAY ALSO HAVE TO INCLUDE THE REAR BRAKES. YOU MUST USE A "FLAIR NUT" WRENCH!) FOR THE PROPER PROCEDURE, WE NEED THAT ANSWERED BY A HIGHER LEVEL PANTERA EXPERT! THEY'LL BE ALONG SHORTLY! GOOD-LUCK WITH IT! REGARDS, MARLIN.

Early 72 has two warning lights. If yellow light is on that is pad wear. If red light is on that is either emergency brake set or shuttle switch tripped. To reset shuttle you bleed the side opposite the one that lost pressure and apply brake pressure until valve resets. I have had good luck resetting by just hitting the brake pedal hard a couple of times after all bleeding complete. You can also just remove the wire from the shuttle switch. You will know when you have lost brake pressure by the loss of pedal.The shuttle is not a valve by the way and does not block the flow of fluid to the brakes, regardless of what the EXPERTS will say.

WELL THE "SHUTTLE" IS AND IS'NT A VALVE EXACTLY! WHEN EITHER THE FRONT OR REAR SYSTEM FAILS IT SHUTS OFF THE FLOW TO THAT SYSTEM. SINCE THE FLUID IS LOST ALREADY IT KIND OF WORKS TOO LATE. BUT IT DOES MAINTAIN THE WORKING HALF OF THE BRAKES. AND LASTLY I DO NOT THINK OF MYSELF AS ANY KIND OF AN "EXPERT", NOR AM I EVEN CLOSE TO BEING ONE! THAT NOTE WAS MENT AS A HIGH COMPLIMENT TO MY OTHER FRIENDS ON THIS FORUM, WHO HAVE MY HIGHEST RESPECT, AND WHOM I, MYSELF, CONSIDER TO BE "EXPERTS". THEY HAVE BEEN WORKING HARD ON PANTERAS MANY MANY MORE YEARS THAN I EVER WILL. I, ON THE OTHER HAND, HAVE BEEN IN "LOVE" WITH INTERNAL COMBUSTION ENGINES SINCE I FIRST HELPED MY OLDER BROTHER ASSEMBLE A V-8 CORVETTE ENGINE FOR HIS 55 CHEVY!(IT WAS EITHER A 283 OR A 327). THE YEAR WAS 1959, AND I WAS 8 YEARS OLD! I INSTALLED THE PLUG WIRES CORRECTLY THE FIRST TIME. NO BODY ELSE KNEW WHAT THE FIRING ORDER WAS. BUT I DID! BECAUSE I HAD JUST FINISHED COMPLETING THE MODEL, "THE VISIBLE V-8", REMEMBER THAT ONE? IT WAS BASED ON THE CHEVY SMALLBLOCK! AND NOW I'AM BUILDING, PROBABLY, MY TENTH OR ELEVENTH ENGINE, 42 YEARS LATER! BELIEVE OR DON'T! ALL THE BEST, MARLIN.

Marlin,
This subject has come up before and others have tried to perpetrate the myth that the shuttle valve closes off flow to the side that loses pressure. I've cut open several of these valves and they all are machined down on the ends so that fluid will pass right on by.
Forest

THANK- YOU FOREST! I STAND CORRECTED! ALL THE BEST, MARLIN.