pulls to right

can someone please tell me why when i hit the brakes my mav wants to pull to the right

 

you have a wheel cylinder locking up or the brakes on the oppsite side are bad...

if it pulls left....check the right front wheel, brakes, wheel cylinder. the wheel cylinder is what pushes on the brake shoe that presses on the drum to stop the car. if the wheel cylinder gets stuck or rusted it wont put pressure on the shoes, . this causes the car to turn in the direction of the good brakes, since the bad side isnt braking that wheel..


it also could be as simple as you need to bleed the brakes on the bad side... do this first...drive it...if it still pulls...take off the hub and drum... and check the brakes...
if everyting looks ok on the brake hardware.....suspect a bad wheel cylinder

 

It could also be as simple as adjusting them properly.

 

I would do the following first Take the drums off and check for leaking wheel cylinders. Then if all looks good try readjusting them as mavaholic suggested. If you still have a problem machine the drums and check to see if the wheel cylinders are actuating on both sides. I would crack the bleeder and pop the cap on the Master Cylinder if fluid drips from them in a steady stream you can rule out a collapsed hose. If all these things check out fine then look toward the suspension. Worn out tie rods ball joints or control arm bushings. Sometimes even a tire can cause this so swap your frt tires from side to side. Good Luck

 

all good points, but remember swapping modern/radial tires on the same axle should only be done for short-term test. assuming same tire sizes, it may be safer to rotate front/back on the same side.

 

Drum brakes will always pull a little. Mine pull to the left on some days and to the right on others... It usually goes about 90% away after they get some heat in them.

And whats wrong with swapping tires around?

 

Since when did ford start putting drum brakes on 1977 mavericks .

 

Could be a loose tierod end as well.

 

His profile says '77 Maverick, which means it would have disc brakes. The problem is either a caliper hanging-up, a bad front tire (or tires), or front-end alignment...

 

My bad, I saw the other guys post about takeing drums off and figgured he must have drums. Didn't pay no attention to his profile thing.

 

But...but... that's a 'gravity feed bleed' isn't it? There won't be a 'steady stream' of brake fluid coming out, will there? Maybe a few drops then it will stop.

<----Inquiring mind