Ok, general question here. I might be paranoid, but noticed with my new rotors and ceramic pads that the first couple of stops were almost frighteningly quick. After that, the pedal began to feel spongey as I heated them up during the "break-in procedure". Now today I have decent braking ability, but I'm still seeing increased pedal travel and some remaining spongey feeling. If I want to stop properly quick, the pedal goes right to the floor with what I feel is abnormal ease.
Now, I'm new to ceramic pads, and I know drilled rotors have a bit less surface area -- but is it typical for a new set of brakes to be especially grabby at first and then get really "mellow"? Is it at all likely that I've gone and boiled my brake fluid?
Edited 1 time(s). Last edited Friday, March 30, 2007 7:50 AM
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It sounds like you need to flush your brake fluid.
yup flush the system probley got some water.
Sounds like a good idea. I might not get it done right away, but I can't even remember the last time the system would have been flushed or even bled.
On a side note -- just got the car back from alignment. I had some serious toe-in corrected, and I didn't even realize it was possible for a Cavy to feel this nice on the road! Shallow ruts and pothole are actually smoother now than with stock suspension. Wicked, is all I can say.
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Sounds like you just need to bleed your breaks.
Geeky wrote:Sounds like a good idea. I might not get it done right away, but I can't even remember the last time the system would have been flushed or even bled.
On a side note -- just got the car back from alignment. I had some serious toe-in corrected, and I didn't even realize it was possible for a Cavy to feel this nice on the road! Shallow ruts and pothole are actually smoother now than with stock suspension. Wicked, is all I can say.
You should get it done as soon as possible. If there is water in the lines it could cause damage to other components.
A follow up -- a few weeks later, I still haven't done anything else about this brake "issue", however:
The brakes continue to feel soft, but the initial travel before they begin to work (which seemed excessive before) has slowly reduced back down to zero -- so they are reacting right away. I've decided a better way to describe them now is "subtle". They come on much more smoothly, and I realized that it's much the same sort of feel that I've noticed in my boss' Cadillac. Perhaps this is typical of these "silent" ceramic pads.
I was still considering booking the car in for a brake flush, since it seemed to my I still had to push the pedal much further down for hard braking. To test this, I went back out on an empty stretch of highway to see whether my stopping power was up to snuff. Boy, was it EVER.
With my stock brakes, an emergency stop on dry pavement was pathetic. The rear brakes would lock up first, and the ABS would try to compensate by cycling them. This resulted in my head rhythmically bouncing off the headrest as the car lurched inelegantly to a stop.
With my new brakes, the front/rear bias is perfect. Stomp the pedal, and the front tires lightly squeal in complaint as every ounce of grip is applied, while the rears silently stay in line. ABS doesn't get involved. I'm sure it's stopping significantly shorter than before. I'll probably still get the system flushed next time it's convenient, but I'm certainly not worried in the meantime.
Edited 2 time(s). Last edited Thursday, April 19, 2007 3:33 PM
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I just did a flush on mine this weekend. The only expense was a 9 dollar "one man bleeder bottle" and a bottle of brake fluid. Couldn't have been easier. I just kept pumping the brake and adding fluid till it came out clear. I don't recall how much a professional brake flush costs but I think I got it just as good.
Also I took the calipers off and pushed the brake a little to extend them out. Then I pressed them back in with a C clamp and found that this freed up a little additional crud.
I'd say do it yourself. Just make sure not to get air in the lines. Thats why I got the little bottle. The worst that happens with the bottle is you suck a little old fluid back in.
