Spongy Brake after Changing Pad and Shoe

[hyperthread]

Hi guys,
This is somehow related to my post --> 240bucks Brake Pad Change

So after changing the shoe and pads, my brake pedal seems to be spongy. I drove like about 10-15 miles and it still the same. I tried braking hard from 45 mph and it seems doesn't "break it in".

Do I need to bring it back to the shop that I went to?

***EDIT***
Sorry, if I looked like I am spamming but I figure out that this is the different topic already.

 

[riceandpho]

With the key out, pump the brakes 40 plus times, check the brake fluid level and add fluid if needed, then u should be able to reset the pedal problem. This should be a sticky, the resevior say to do this before adding fluid.

 

[hyperthread]

Thanks riceandpho! I will try this tomorrow first thing in the morning.

I kind of feel hungry when I read your name!

 

[hyperthread]

Wait a minute, is this a process of bleeding the brakelines? i am not mechanically inclined to bled brakes...

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

You can try pumping the brake pedal as noted but thet may not fix the problem. You may have to take it back and have them rebleed the front brake calipers.

If you pump the brakes 15-20 times with the car off and the pedal does not pump up and get very hard to press, you probably have a bit of air left in the system in the front calipers.

 

[Sungod]

There is a possibility that they didn't properly bleed your brakes. The easiest way to tell that is if your pedal goes to the floor. Air will compress which allows for further travel of your pedal. Repeated pumping will push more fluid, but doesn't allow the air to escape. The only way you can do that is to open a bleeder. Since you repalced your calipers, it is possible they didn't get all the air out. The way you can tell this is with the engine off pump the brakes a few times to bleed off the booster. Wait a few mins then pump the brakes. If the pedal goes to the floor, you have air in the system. If the pedal is firm, you are ok. When you start the engine the pedal will be softer because of the power assist from the booster.

It is not uncommon to be a little over sensitive to your brakes after major work. I did the same on my F150 after changing the calipers. I was convinced there was something wrong and that my pedal traveled more after replacing the calipers. I even swaped the master cylinder. It wasn't until I drove another truck that I realized the softer pedal was in my head and was really the result of the booster.

 

[hyperthread]

It is not uncommon to be a little over sensitive to your brakes after major work. I did the same on my F150 after changing the calipers. I was convinced there was something wrong and that my pedal traveled more after replacing the calipers. I even swaped the master cylinder. It wasn't until I drove another truck that I realized the softer pedal was in my head and was really the result of the booster.

Thanks Sungod. I think I am a little bit over sensitive. I brought back my car in the shop and they test drove it with me and they think it is fine. I can also feel that the brake is strong and normal as I was on the passenger seat. The ABS also works when we tested it on a road with some snow and ice.

The owner-mechanic says that we should wait for a day at least and drive around as normal for the brake pads to bed in. I only drove the car for about 30-40 miles so I guess you are really correct about me being over sensitive.

He also explained to me that if the pedal pushes way back down again after a stop that means that I really have an air in my system. I am not experiencing that so you think I am OK?

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

Thanks Sungod. I think I am a little bit over sensitive. I brought back my car in the shop and they test drove it with me and they think it is fine. I can also feel that the brake is strong and normal as I was on the passenger seat. The ABS also works when we tested it on a road with some snow and ice.

The owner-mechanic says that we should wait for a day at least and drive around as normal for the brake pads to bed in. I only drove the car for about 30-40 miles so I guess you are really correct about me being over sensitive.

He also explained to me that if the pedal pushes way back down again after a stop that means that I really have an air in my system. I am not experiencing that so you think I am OK?

Yea you are ok. The braking performance and bite will get better as the pads bed in over the next few days. by the time you go through a tank of gas you will be good. Expect some extra brake dust during this process.

What they told you was accurate. I think you confused brake "numbness" (normal after a pad change and rotor resurface) with sponginess (air in the brake line, pedal going to the floor, etc.)

 

[hyperthread]

Yea you are ok. The braking performance and bite will get better as the pads bed in over the next few days. by the time you go through a tank of gas you will be good. Expect some extra brake dust during this process.

What they told you was accurate. I think you confused brake "numbness" (normal after a pad change and rotor resurface) with sponginess (air in the brake line, pedal going to the floor, etc.)

Thanks LargeOrangeFont! I think I am happy now. I will just wait for a few days and will let this group know!

 

[hyperthread]

Hello everyone,
After driving for about 150 miles last Sunday, the brake pedal feel still feels the same - spongy, and mushy.

I returned it to the shop today and had them re-bled the system. I got the truck back now and test drove it and it works great now. It's not spongy or mushy anymore! Now I am really happy and also they didn't charge me with rebleeding the system.

:banana:

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

Great, there was definately a bit of air in there then. If they would have charged you for that they were ripping you off. They should have fully bled the system as part of changing the calipers.

 

[hyperthread]

I read somewhere that spongy/mushy brakes were also caused by incorrectly installed calipers. Somebody said that the rotors where installed the other way around. Is this possible?

 

[LargeOrangeFont]

I read somewhere that spongy/mushy brakes were also caused by incorrectly installed calipers. Somebody said that the rotors where installed the other way around. Is this possible?

No, the only thing that would cause it is on the 4 piston front caliper is air in the line. Since there is no slide (like the rear), there is really not a wrong way to install it as long as the mounting bolts are tight.

Although some rotors are side specific due to the shape of the internal cooling vanes, ours are not side specific, and even if they were swapping them would not change the braking feel.

 

[Sungod]

I read somewhere that spongy/mushy brakes were also caused by incorrectly installed calipers. Somebody said that the rotors where installed the other way around. Is this possible?

I think what you are saying is that if they put the left on the right and the right on the left. This would put the bleeder at the bottom and not the top. That is pretty much impossible because the brake line wouldn't match. You would have to be an extreme novice to make a mistake like that. Not to mention ultra creative to get it to work. Even if you could you would have absolutely no pedal at all because all the fluid would drain out as you tried to bleed them.

That is a frequent mistake with shoes getting the trailing and leading shoes reversed and there might be a few vehicles out there that you can make that mistake, but yours is not one of them.

 

[Champ306]

These brakes suck bleeding. I had serious fits after caliper rebuild. Hated it. Follow manual too. Dealer found no air. Said it was normal feel of electric assist brakes. I disagreee but they do work. Just feel lame. But ive been in some new rentals tgat have the same squish to foor. But work dandy. Best of luck.