just bleeded the old brake fluid w/ new and now the paddle sometimes feels mushy and sometimes feels hard.. is it an indication of air in the brake system? tks~~

 

A "spongy" pedal is the principal symptom of air in the lines. A sometimes-spongy pedal is a puzzling symptom. It could be a bad master cylinder.

You didn't say what prompted you to bleed the brakes. Was there a malfunction or did you do this as preventive maintenance.

Does your Maxima have ABS?

 

i bleed the brake b/c i changed new pads.. and after 47k miles.. the fluid turned black. i don't think the brake master is bad.. i hope not... hmm.. i guess i'll rebleed the system... tks for the prompt response!!

 

You didn't have to open the brake lines to replace the pads. That makes me think you allowed the brake reservoir to go dry during the bleeding process. Another bleeding should resolve this problem.

 

well, i partially rebleed the system, and now the feel is much firmer then before. and the paddel doesn't travel as deep as before, however, it feels soft in the beginning than becoming harder. is this normal? it's not the same hard feeling as u pump the brake w/out the engine running, it's softer.. the car brakes fine, but doesn't have that solid brake feel... hmm.. still air in the system?? tks~~~

 

Well, you know how the pedal felt before you changed the pads. That's how it should feel now. Did you bleed all four calipers?