timoiii Posted March 16, 2003 Report Share Posted March 16, 2003 Gang, Any ideas why I would have incredibly soft brakes before and after bleeding? Did all four after upgrading rears this week. There is a tremendous amount of pedal travel before the brakes begin to engage. In fact, I can push the pedal full distance with out the pressure of the brakes getting high enough to stop me from hitting the limit of the pedal travel (do you understand - that may be a little unclear). Nothing has changed from the way the brakes would travel before I bled the brakes. Something to note is I can pump the brakes when the car is off and the pedal travel will decrease with each pump. Then when the car is turned on, there goes any real resistance. Someone please help me. I don't want to careen into a semi this weekend. Oh I should note that there are no leaks that I have been able to detect. Thanks Timo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robby1870 Posted March 16, 2003 Report Share Posted March 16, 2003 The brakes gettin harded to press when the car is off is normal. However, your other problem......hmmmm.....mine have always been a little soft, but I think that is because the caliper is farther away from the rotor than other cars. Like, mine are soft because the caliper cmpresses a little with not resistance, because it hasnt touched the rotor yet. That maybe your problem. If you had the front calipers off when you bled them maybe you compressed the pistons a lot to get the caliper back over the rotor and it kinda remained that way. I would go to an open road and see if they work, if you are worried. Dont get going to fast, but like 30mph and slam them and see what happens. Thats what I would do. Robby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulo57509 Posted March 16, 2003 Report Share Posted March 16, 2003 What you describe when the engine is not running is normal. The brakes are soft because there's still air in the system. After I got done with a rear caliper replacement, the only way I got the brakes to get firm was to flush/bleed using a power bleeder. I opened each bleeder screw starting at the ABS modulator to each caliper until clean fluid ran out. IMO, w-body brakes always feel crappy, but using a power bleeder made the brakes feel 100% better than before. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timoiii Posted March 16, 2003 Author Report Share Posted March 16, 2003 I think I got a little post-trigger happy. The brakes seem to be working fine now. I did the 30mph test and the car stopped fine for the speed. I also drove the car for a couple of miles on the hiway where I would need to periodically brake but not stop. The pedal is not near as soft as it was before and immediately after I did my brake upgrade and front and rear line bleeding. I went through a bottle and a half of brake fluid before the lines were clean and without bubbles. Man, I love those cheap bleeding kits! I just was nervous, because brakes ain't like having a burnt out interior light. You guys are great! Thank you for your time. Timo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robby1870 Posted March 16, 2003 Report Share Posted March 16, 2003 Glad its working fine now. Robby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian P Posted March 17, 2003 Report Share Posted March 17, 2003 What you describe when the engine is not running is normal. The brakes are soft because there's still air in the system. After I got done with a rear caliper replacement, the only way I got the brakes to get firm was to flush/bleed using a power bleeder. I opened each bleeder screw starting at the ABS modulator to each caliper until clean fluid ran out. IMO, w-body brakes always feel crappy, but using a power bleeder made the brakes feel 100% better than before. Where did you get this power bleed system, and how much did it run you? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paulo57509 Posted March 17, 2003 Report Share Posted March 17, 2003 What you describe when the engine is not running is normal. The brakes are soft because there's still air in the system. After I got done with a rear caliper replacement, the only way I got the brakes to get firm was to flush/bleed using a power bleeder. I opened each bleeder screw starting at the ABS modulator to each caliper until clean fluid ran out. IMO, w-body brakes always feel crappy, but using a power bleeder made the brakes feel 100% better than before. Where did you get this power bleed system, and how much did it run you? I purchased a new one like this off of a seller on ebay. http://www.handsontools.com/store/show_product/?product_id=2801 I forget how much I paid, but it wasn't any where near what appears above. IIRC, it was less than $100. I also ordered a KD adapter set on order to fit the bleeder to the MC. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Upgrade Posted March 17, 2003 Report Share Posted March 17, 2003 Keep in mind fellas, before you even touch the brake pedal after you replace the calipers and before you bleed the brakes you have to pump the ebrake to draw up all the slack in the brakes. I bleed my brakes in my 90 Lumina 5 times all with a power bleeder with no luck. Then I read the manual word for word and found the proper sequence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chinski Posted March 18, 2003 Report Share Posted March 18, 2003 The air bubbles like to break up into little tiny bubbles if you pump the pedal fast, makes for harder bleeding. Mine were soft at first too, seemed to work it self out some after a while. Sounds like yours did too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1trucavalier Posted March 18, 2003 Report Share Posted March 18, 2003 did you check the seal on your brake fill res? Mine gave the impression that it was on but in the rear the rubber was hard and not giving a good seal and was just slightly leaking in the back where you can't see it making it slightly spongy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timoiii Posted March 19, 2003 Author Report Share Posted March 19, 2003 Mine actually has a screw on cap with a rubber seal. The seal is in excellent condition. The brakes are no longer soft. In fact, they seem to be just right. Timo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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