Brake Question
11-28-2015, 11:28 AM
#1
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Brake Question
Hi All,
I have a 2007 Boxster with 55,000 miles on it. Yesterday, I changed my rear brake pads and rotors. I used factory parts and changed out all the associated hardware (springs, caliper mounting bolts, etc.). While the car was in the air, I wanted to test the e-brake to see if it needed adjustment.
The car was in first gear, so I went inside to shift to neutral. Out of habit,
I stepped on the brake pedal before doing this: the problem was that I didn't have the pads installed yet (but the caliper and rotor were in place)!
Pretty stupid, I know. I noticed the pedal was soft fairly quickly, and immediatley released it, having not pushed down very far. I ran over to the caliper to see if I popped out the cylinders: they looked fine (no fluid leaking), and I still had enough space to fit the old pads in (I had pushed the caliper cylinders in quite a bit in preparation for the new pads). I was able to push the cylinders back and fit the new pads in without any problems. While I don't think I hyperextended the caliper cylinders, I'll be keeping an eye on my fluid level, and checking that caliper for fluid leaks periodically.
Anyway, I took the car for a test drive last night. The brakes seemed to engage nice and high, and I had good stopping power, and seemed firm. However, I noticed, that while stopped with the engine idling, I could push the pedal down very far if I used considerable force... almost to the floor. I normally wouldn't have tried testing this but I was concerned I may have let air in the system if I accidentally hyperextended the caliper cylinders. Anyway, is this normal? It's possible the car was doing this before, but I never tried it. Perhaps it has something to do with the ABS? I had to
suck some fluid out of the hydraulic reservoir to accommodate the new pads, but I never let the level go anywhere near the min mark.
Thanks!
Chris
I have a 2007 Boxster with 55,000 miles on it. Yesterday, I changed my rear brake pads and rotors. I used factory parts and changed out all the associated hardware (springs, caliper mounting bolts, etc.). While the car was in the air, I wanted to test the e-brake to see if it needed adjustment.
The car was in first gear, so I went inside to shift to neutral. Out of habit,
I stepped on the brake pedal before doing this: the problem was that I didn't have the pads installed yet (but the caliper and rotor were in place)!
Pretty stupid, I know. I noticed the pedal was soft fairly quickly, and immediatley released it, having not pushed down very far. I ran over to the caliper to see if I popped out the cylinders: they looked fine (no fluid leaking), and I still had enough space to fit the old pads in (I had pushed the caliper cylinders in quite a bit in preparation for the new pads). I was able to push the cylinders back and fit the new pads in without any problems. While I don't think I hyperextended the caliper cylinders, I'll be keeping an eye on my fluid level, and checking that caliper for fluid leaks periodically.
Anyway, I took the car for a test drive last night. The brakes seemed to engage nice and high, and I had good stopping power, and seemed firm. However, I noticed, that while stopped with the engine idling, I could push the pedal down very far if I used considerable force... almost to the floor. I normally wouldn't have tried testing this but I was concerned I may have let air in the system if I accidentally hyperextended the caliper cylinders. Anyway, is this normal? It's possible the car was doing this before, but I never tried it. Perhaps it has something to do with the ABS? I had to
suck some fluid out of the hydraulic reservoir to accommodate the new pads, but I never let the level go anywhere near the min mark.
Thanks!
Chris
11-28-2015, 11:54 AM
#2
What you're probably noticing is that you need to bleed the brakes anyway.
At the point where the rears are gone, it really is time to flush the whole system, if it hasn't been done in the last two years.
This will help the life of your braking system by getting moisture out and take care of your concern at the same time.
At the point where the rears are gone, it really is time to flush the whole system, if it hasn't been done in the last two years.
This will help the life of your braking system by getting moisture out and take care of your concern at the same time.
