DizzyEdge

Hey guys, I got a 4th gen a few months ago, and one of the first things I noticed is I seemed to have to apply more pedal pressure to get the same kinda of braking as I had got from my 3rd gen. But since my 3rd gen was lowered.. immensely (like 2"? or more.. it was some bad amateur job), and might have had modded brakes, and didn't have ABS like this one does, I didn't think much of it. I just know that in the 3rd gen if I was going parking lot speeds I could just rest my foot on the pedal and just that weight would introduce a bit of drag.

Anyway, last night someone pulled out in front of me and I was also distracted a bit and I slammed on the brakes. It probably took me about 3 seconds to stop, from a speed of maybe 30-35 mph, and maybe the 2nd to last 20% of that time my ABS activated, then stopped the last 20% (Dry pavement, although it was about 0 F so possibly a touch of frost). I wasn't exactly timing the event so that 3s is a guess.
What I'm wondering, if during hard hard standing on the brakes braking, only during 20% of the time did the ABS activate, would that be a sign that my brakes are weak? To me that means that if I hadn't had ABS I more or less wouldn't have been physically able to lock my wheels, indicating weak brakes.
They don't feel 'spongy' per se, but still. Perhaps I should find a bare stretch of road and try to activate the ABS..

Thanks, for any input, I'm rather concerned.

TunerMaxima3000

iTrader: (4)

simple man, think about the weight diffence between the 3rd and 4th gen.

It's possible that the brake fluid is old and needs to be changed / you need to service the brakes.

more than likely you're just not used to the car man

take er out for a rip and get used to it!

dgeesaman

iTrader: (10)

I would bleed the brakes completely and put in a better brake pad.

But it still comes down to traction - if your ABS was engaging, your brakes were not the part that caused you to stop slowly. Consider the conditions and your tires again, very closely.

Dave

max ride 41

iTrader: (4)

ya ya, what they said. i did the same thing going about 15 mph, felt like the brakes were shot and i only ended up doing front pads. use ceramics too, you'll get a better smoother brake feel once they brake in ( brake in, get it?? ) don't freak every time the abs kicks in, it saved me at least 3 times from rear ending the car in front of me. and, check your master cylinder fluid for color and to see if its low. if its not clear, then change it.

andrei3333

Making the ABS kick in on completely dry pavement is not that easy, you have to stand on the brake pedal for that to happen, but in the rain and especially as you say, in a condition with slight frost and cold weather its not a surprise. ABS is very sensitive and i think its not at fault here, your pads are fine, dont touch them cause they obviously locked to the rotors for the ABS to kick in.

I would be more worried if you stomped on the brakes and the pads did not lock and ABS would not kick in.

What kind of condition are your tires in ? Tires are one of the most important parts of a car, they are the ONLY thing that keep you sticking to the pavement. If you are really worried then find an empty parking lot and try the brakes at various speeds and report back to us....

PS: you could also have a seized caliper or two which do not function. Your braking distance will obviously increase if this happens. Remember to lubricate the slider pins on all the calipers at least once or better yet twice a year.

KRRZ350

iTrader: (29)

Another possibility to all of the ones listed above is that the pads & rotors are glazed over. When that happens the brake pads don't really wear much (or create friction & actually stop well) and instead of wearing down they will eventually crack & crumble into little peices. Nissan pads & having your rotors turned ftmfw.

Regardless, do a REAL full brake inspection............ Pull the wheel AND caliper and have a look at the inboard & outboard pads. Keep an eye out for uneven pad wear, cracking pads/glazed rotors, frozen guide pins, etc etc................

andrei3333

^ hey KRRZ350 long time no see. can you clarify something for me ? its related to your post

What do glazed rotors look like compared to normally functional rotors? I am using carbon pads in the front and cheaper metallic pads in the back and the back rotors look different from the front ones.

The front ones looks darker and more "muddy" and they dont reflect much of anytihng. The rear ones look like a mirror i can see myself in

KRRZ350

iTrader: (29)

hahaha, I was thinking the same thing when I saw your post!

They look darker and more "muddy" and don't reflect much of anything. Almost looks like a super thin see-thorugh layer of caramel glaze. But the rotors will always glaze over to a certain extent. The most common cause of this (there are several) is contamination. IE: not fully cleaning the anti-corrosion coating of the new rotors, or getting fluid or grease on them.

DizzyEdge

Thanks for the tips guys, I'll follow the advice. Tires are good, around 70% all around, so I'll take a close look at brakes, especially the surfaces, and bleed.

NmexMAX

iTrader: (22)

Which is?