Protege 929 Master Cylinder Brake Upgrade

Hey, guys. For those of you who don't know, the 929 master cylinder upgrade was done on a bunch of FD/FC RX7's, and works on the Protege! It's an upgrade that increases the diameter of the bore on the master cylinder from 15/16th's to 1 inch. It doesn't sound like much, but it makes a pretty significant difference, as explained below.

As far as I know, I'm the first one to do this mod. It was discussed elsewhere on the forum, but I did it, and wrote up a little how-to. This mod makes pedal pressure much firmer, so less slop, and it makes it so it takes a little more pressure to stop at the same speed, but if you lay on it, it stops MUCH harder. A little more effort for a MUCH firmer pedal feel. I love it.

The donor 929 was a 1993 model, with ABS. You need the ABS version to make this work, as far as I know. I've not tried it with the non-ABS version, and my Protege ALSO has ABS, so I don't know if that makes a difference, either. I do know that other years of 929 share the same MC, though. Anyway, here's my howto.


Tools:
- 10mm, 12mm Long Socket
- 10mm, 12mm, 14mm Short Socket
- Socket Extension (3" - 6")
- 10mm Flare Nut Wrench
- Phillips & Flat Head Screwdriver (Decent sized)
- MC Bleeding Kit

Chemicals:
- 1L of Brake Fluid
- 1 Can of Brake Parts Cleaner
- 1 Bottle Permatex Red High Temp Sealant

If your MC is USED:
- 2 Copper Crush Washers (Same as on original 929 MC's banjo connection)
- Replacement O ring/Re-use OE O-Ring from original MC

1) Take some time to look over the new master cylinder, and whatnot. Go ahead and take it apart, so it's just the master cylinder, the rubber bushings underneath the reservoir, and the banjo bolt adaptor on the side. Before you go ripping stuff off, remember that the reservoir is screwed in place between the two outlets underneath. Tug upward with even pressure; It takes a LOT of force to separate these two components. Once you've done that, unbolt the banjo bolt (14mm), and, if the MC is new, rotate it so it points upward, then snug the bolt down nice and tight. If it's not new, unbolt the banjo bolt, remove both of the crush washers, and replace them with the new ones. DO NOT SKIP THIS STEP! Mine was used, and I ended up having to pull it off after the fact and re-bleed the MC, because it was pissing fluid out from beneath. Once you are done with that, make sure all the connections are tight, and continue to the next step.

2) Go out to your car, and start removing the intake piping from the throttle body forward. I had a CAI, so it was pretty easy for me to do, but shouldn't take terribly long anyway. Once you get that removed, remove the battery; This may take some doing, as you have to wiggle it and shift it around to get it out from underneath the strut tower brace, but it can be done with patience. You can remove your brace if you'd like, but I opted not to; You would have a LOT more room without it, and it would probably make your life a lot easier. Once you have everything that would be in the way out of the way, continue.

3) Put a towel underneath your work area, and be VERY careful to not spatter brake fluid everywhere. It WILL screw up your paint, and badly. If you do spatter some, wipe it off ASAP. Remove the two brake lines from the current master cylinder; These require the 10mm flare nut wrench, so you don't strip the lines. Seriously, if you only have a 10mm plain wrench, don't try this. It'll end up messing up the lines, as I learned long ago. Once they are loose, push them to the side carefully... The lines have a lot of flex, but don't bend them TOO much.

4) Once the lines are out of the way, more or less, unbolt the two base bolts for the master cylinder. These are two 12mm bolts, and I used a long socket with extension to get them out. You probably don't need to do that, but it made it a little easier for me to reach, so it was worth it. Once both are removed, place them aside in a clean, safe spot.

5) Unplug the electrical connector atop the reservoir. Place it to the side, and keep it in mind. Don't forget to plug it back in when you're done.

6) Now comes the fun part! Pull the master cylinder forward, and give it a firm pull; Don't pull rapidly, just pull steadily. Don't be surprised when you hear the hiss of air from the brake system de-pressurizing. This is normal, and it should pop free once you get the pressure released. Pretty simple!

7) There's one hose still connected to the reservoir, and that goes to the clutch master cylinder. That's why we need to re-use this reservoir. Drain the res as much as you can into a cup, using a brake bleeding kit, turkey baster or whatever you'd like. This is just to minimize mess. If you don't much care (Remember how I told you to put a towel underneath where you were working? Well, this is going to be a big reason why) then start removing the res, giving it a wiggle, and a nice, firm tug now and again. Seriously, take your time, but this piece, just like the other, is LODGED in place. Very, very tight. So pull hard, and don't be afraid to use leverage if you can wedge a screwdriver in there to help pry the thing up. Don't bend it too much from side to side, though, as you don't want to break the res. It'll eventually pop out, and make a huge, huge mess, all over that towel.

8) Once this reservoir is off, you can take a break, and go get a drink. Hehee. Once you're done that, however, bring out the other master cylinder and get the other one out of there, storing it somewhere safe (And swapping the O ring from one to the other carefully, if you have to. It's the little sealing ring at the back of the master cylinder.) Take a moment to take your bottle of brake cleaner, and spray down the mating surface of the master cylinder and where it will be placed against the brake booster (The big bulge that you're bolting this thing to) and wipe everything down, making sure there aren't any bits in the way, and everything is as clean as could be.

9) Press the reservoir still in the car into the new master cylinder. Push carefully, but this is going to be even harder to push in than it was to take out. Once you get the old reservoir pressed into the old master cylinder, make sure one sits totally flush against the other to prevent leaks. Once you've done that, put some Permatex sealer in a small ring around the base of the master cylinder, just where it presses against the brake booster. Don't use too much, as it'll get gross, and may interfere with the plunger in the brake system. Just a thin layer. Truthfully, it's probably not even needed, I just wanted to be sure it would seal right, and without any problems.

10) FINALLY. Place the master cylinder in place, and push it down as far as you can get it into the brake booster, making CERTAIN that the little rod in the booster slides into the little cylinder on the end of the master cylinder. Once everything is lined up, thread either 12mm bolt from before onto the threads, and bolt the cylinder down, nice and snug. About 20lb/ft should be fine, if you're using a torque wrench, but you can probably get away with estimating. Just don't over tighten it. If the cylinder isn't down all the way at first, you'll have to tighten a few threads, then switch bolts, trying to tighten them evenly, just so it rests properly in place.

11) Shift the brake lines around a little bit; The rearmost one is bent at an angle that is not quite parallel to the ground, but close. This brake line needs to be bent until it is parallel to the ground. Be careful, and take it VERY slow, making sure not to bend it too much. These lines can be damaged and kinked pretty easily, so make sure not to do either such thing. The other one doesn't need to be adjusted, but rather it just needs to be put into place, and tightened down, which brings us to the next step.

12) Tighten both brake flare fittings down using your fingers as much as you can, then tightening down to 15lb/ft of torque using the flare wrench; Just estimate, but again, you don't need to tighten the hell out of these. Just snug them nice and tight.

13) Fill up the brake res once everything is tightened down. Up to the top, 'cause most of this will be gone once you even finish bleeding the first brake.

14) Have a friend press the brakes, firmly, and stand up front. Listen and watch for air AND fluid leaks. If none are detected, then continue. Elsewise, fix the damn leaks! Jeez. =)

15) Install the intake (This may take some effort to get away from the banjo bolt, as the bolt is somewhat tall) back into the bay, and the battery, in whichever order you'd like.

16) Start the car. Have your friend pump the brakes, nice and hard, so you can try and spot leaks. Once you have booster assist, you're pushing more pressure, so best to be sure. No leaks? Good. There are? Fix 'em.

17) Shut off the car, and start bleeding the brakes! Keep the reservoir cap off of the master, and move to the passenger side rear of the car. Bleed that brake first; pump the fluid 15 times or so, 'till the bubbles stop, then refill the master cylinder. Then the drivers side rear, refill the master cylinder, then the passengers side front, refill the master cylinder, then, finally, the drivers side front, each of these ones pumping about 10 times each to force all the circuits clear of brake fluid. You're done with the brake bleeding at this point. Now bleed the clutch to make sure, if you're as anal as I am, then, do a final fill of the master cylinder, and install the cap, and make sure you plugged in the electrical connector on the top of the reservoir.

18) Clean up, and make sure everything is in order around the car, then start it up. Check for lights to make sure everything is okay, then take it for a short spin, getting used to the new brake feel. You'll have to exert more pressure on the brake pedal, but it won't move very far in comparison if you did everything right. Just take it easy for a little bit 'till you get used to the feel. It'll change within the first few times of driving, too, so take it easy for a little bit. I triggered ABS the first few times I broke hard, so it's working pretty well. =)

Enjoy your new, firmer brakes!
 
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That, alas, I could not tell you how much you could get one for... From everything I've found, all retail sources are 135 - 220 dollars, or so. Mine, I got for cheap, due to the fact that a friend with a 929 provided it for me. =)
 
ok here is a pic of the one they sent me. is it the same as yours? my stock one doesn't have both lines coming off the pasenger side it has 1 on the paenger side and 1 off the top. also i have not banjo bolts? did they send me the wrong one? what else do i need?
 

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No banjo bolts, eh? You'll need the banjo bolt, and a right-angle adaptor, with a pair of crush washers... It's definitly the right MC, but it's missing some rather important hardware... Not sure where you'll find the angle adaptor, or the banjo bolt, but I'm sure they're out there somewhere... You'll also need an o ring for the back of the MC, but we can scavange the one off of your current MC.

I'll take a look at the local Autozone and Pep Boys to see what I can find, but since I don't have a MC other than the one on my car, I can't pull the bolt and get a match for it that easily. Best thing would be to bring the MC with you and have them try and match it up.
 
Okay, folks... I found the part numbers and whatnot for the master cylinder's banjo bolt, crush washers and pipe joint from the dealership, as I'll be doing up Bill's MC either this weekend or next. If you're in the same situation, and got a bare MC with no banjo bolt or anything, these are the part numbers for the individual pieces and the list prices:

W023-43-504 Pipe joint 21.36
W023-43-505 Banjo bolt 9.00
9956-21-000 Washer 2.50 (Need 2)

Enjoy!
 
I wondr if this will work on a Non ABS car if you used a Mastercylinder from a non ABS car . I like the idea of better braking .
 
It should work on a non-ABS car without a problem. The MC's are actually the same for both on the Protege, but the 929 MC for the non-ABS version of the 929 WON'T work at all... Ask Bill, he got one by mistake this last time around. =/

Hmm... Maybe I should message TheMan about this, eh, for his FAQ?
 
As a note, folks; I now know that the non-ABS version of the 929 MC DOES NOT FIT. The fittings it uses are different. However, the ABS version should work fine on all Protege's, with OR without ABS. =)

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