Spongey brakes! Nothing I do helps!
12-20-2009, 09:21 AM
#1
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2005
Posts: 148
Spongey brakes! Nothing I do helps!
I been having spongey brakes isssues ever since I got my maxima.
symptoms:
1.when I step on the brakes I can go far down thru what appears to be air befor actually engaging the brakes.
2.Once the brakes are engaged and they are stopping the car My foot can CONTINUE going down nearly to the floor.
This is horrible compared to cars that immidiately engage upon stepping on the brakes. and the pedal remains stiff once depressed.
I spent about 12 hrs altogether inspecting these things, and Im about to change to SS also.
First I bleed all the brakes in the expected order, furthest from master cylinder to closest (RR, LR, RF, LF). changed the bleeders at nissan after fighting with the old stripped bleeders. That didnt change anything.
Then I bled them in the FSM X order. (RightRear, LeftFront, LeftRear RightFront i think). That didnt change anything.
Next I checked the pads and The left rears were low as **** so in changing that I checked the RR piston and made sure its moving in and out easily. It turned Clockwise & Counterclockwise very easily with a tool to grab hold on the notches. Put on new pads, and didnt bleed it cuz I did that **** already last week.
Next I checked the RR. The pads were about 1/3 worn, so they were still fine. THe f**kin Piston tho was a b**ch!! It would not budge when attempting to turn it. additionally the rubber housing on it was stuck to t and could have ripped while turning. After fighting with it, I tried to step on the brakes to push it out and realized that **** was stuck and with excessive force I was able to push the whole piston out. The piston had rust eating away at it right where the rubber meets it. Used sand paper to get rid of it. Put it back in and it rotated EASILY back snug into the housing. Put on New Brake pads and bleed all the air out of there bled that **** about 12x checking the cylinder of course (the piston openning was exposed in the rain for about 20min while cleaning the piston.)
Drove the car around the block in the snow, and the brakes still suck!!!!
Im gonna check the front brakes when the 9inches of snow subsides, but now Im considering upgrading to SS also!!! Its SPONGEY. and after engaging the brakes it STILL GOES DOWN!! is there any specific brand?? Is there another bleeder near the master cylinder?? What else can i do thats affordable???
symptoms:
1.when I step on the brakes I can go far down thru what appears to be air befor actually engaging the brakes.
2.Once the brakes are engaged and they are stopping the car My foot can CONTINUE going down nearly to the floor.
This is horrible compared to cars that immidiately engage upon stepping on the brakes. and the pedal remains stiff once depressed.
I spent about 12 hrs altogether inspecting these things, and Im about to change to SS also.
First I bleed all the brakes in the expected order, furthest from master cylinder to closest (RR, LR, RF, LF). changed the bleeders at nissan after fighting with the old stripped bleeders. That didnt change anything.
Then I bled them in the FSM X order. (RightRear, LeftFront, LeftRear RightFront i think). That didnt change anything.
Next I checked the pads and The left rears were low as **** so in changing that I checked the RR piston and made sure its moving in and out easily. It turned Clockwise & Counterclockwise very easily with a tool to grab hold on the notches. Put on new pads, and didnt bleed it cuz I did that **** already last week.
Next I checked the RR. The pads were about 1/3 worn, so they were still fine. THe f**kin Piston tho was a b**ch!! It would not budge when attempting to turn it. additionally the rubber housing on it was stuck to t and could have ripped while turning. After fighting with it, I tried to step on the brakes to push it out and realized that **** was stuck and with excessive force I was able to push the whole piston out. The piston had rust eating away at it right where the rubber meets it. Used sand paper to get rid of it. Put it back in and it rotated EASILY back snug into the housing. Put on New Brake pads and bleed all the air out of there bled that **** about 12x checking the cylinder of course (the piston openning was exposed in the rain for about 20min while cleaning the piston.)
Drove the car around the block in the snow, and the brakes still suck!!!!
Im gonna check the front brakes when the 9inches of snow subsides, but now Im considering upgrading to SS also!!! Its SPONGEY. and after engaging the brakes it STILL GOES DOWN!! is there any specific brand?? Is there another bleeder near the master cylinder?? What else can i do thats affordable???
12-20-2009, 12:14 PM
#4
12-20-2009, 01:01 PM
#5
your master cylinder os most likely shot. you probably won't find a leak as it is the internal seals that are worn and allowing fluid past them.
replace the master, bleed the whole system, if the pedal stops falling and it still feels spongey then you need a better bleed. some times a pressure bleeding is needed. John had to do that on one of his maxs in order to rid it of a spongey pedal $50 or so at a midas
replace the master, bleed the whole system, if the pedal stops falling and it still feels spongey then you need a better bleed. some times a pressure bleeding is needed. John had to do that on one of his maxs in order to rid it of a spongey pedal $50 or so at a midas
12-20-2009, 03:20 PM
#6
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2005
Posts: 148
your master cylinder os most likely shot. you probably won't find a leak as it is the internal seals that are worn and allowing fluid past them.
replace the master, bleed the whole system, if the pedal stops falling and it still feels spongey then you need a better bleed. some times a pressure bleeding is needed. John had to do that on one of his maxs in order to rid it of a spongey pedal $50 or so at a midas
replace the master, bleed the whole system, if the pedal stops falling and it still feels spongey then you need a better bleed. some times a pressure bleeding is needed. John had to do that on one of his maxs in order to rid it of a spongey pedal $50 or so at a midas
I gotta lookup how the master cylinder works too.
Unless theres a way to bleed the cylinder directly, the conclusion seems to be that its bad. I had dreams about not being able to stop the car. its that bad. Been like that since i bought it.
how much should that service be to replace the cylinder and bleed out the system?
12-20-2009, 03:40 PM
#7
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2007
Posts: 143
same thing happened to me, i had no idea what was wrong for ages. it eventually got to the point where my breaks wouldn't hold the car still in drive. i ended up finding out that it was the master brake cylinder, replaced it with one from the wreckers which fixed the issue, but had a leak down the back of the brake booster. i then stripped both MBC and made a good working unit with parts from both. since then i have had no problems.
12-20-2009, 04:20 PM
#9
your master cylinder os most likely shot. you probably won't find a leak as it is the internal seals that are worn and allowing fluid past them.
replace the master, bleed the whole system, if the pedal stops falling and it still feels spongey then you need a better bleed. some times a pressure bleeding is needed. John had to do that on one of his maxs in order to rid it of a spongey pedal $50 or so at a midas
replace the master, bleed the whole system, if the pedal stops falling and it still feels spongey then you need a better bleed. some times a pressure bleeding is needed. John had to do that on one of his maxs in order to rid it of a spongey pedal $50 or so at a midas
Basically I replaced:
MC
Both rear calipers+Pads
Front Pads.
Worked fine for a while and then it kept doing it, what SOLVED my problem was replacing some of the extremely rusted guide pins that kept on getting rusted and freezing in there.
I strongly suggest you check all 8 guide pins and ensure all are moving freely and are well lubricated with guide pin grease or anti-seize. If the boots are torn, replace them. Do this prior to dealer with the MC as it is a bit of a pain and more fun to bleed as well.
12-20-2009, 04:50 PM
#10
Pedal sinking= leak in system (you'd be losing fluid), or a bad master cylinder. If you're not constantly topping off the brake fluid, then your MC is shot.
Master cylinder is about $50 and 2 hrs of labor to replace. If you have a shop change it, you're looking at (guessing) $250 or so after parts and labor.
Master cylinder is about $50 and 2 hrs of labor to replace. If you have a shop change it, you're looking at (guessing) $250 or so after parts and labor.
12-20-2009, 09:31 PM
#11
Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Nov 2005
Posts: 148
same thing happened to me, i had no idea what was wrong for ages. it eventually got to the point where my breaks wouldn't hold the car still in drive. i ended up finding out that it was the master brake cylinder, replaced it with one from the wreckers which fixed the issue, but had a leak down the back of the brake booster. i then stripped both MBC and made a good working unit with parts from both. since then i have had no problems.
yea with a little effort that **** touches the floor. ugh thats the scary thing, Im sure itll get worse soon. thanks for the info.
Worked fine for a while and then it kept doing it, what SOLVED my problem was replacing some of the extremely rusted guide pins that kept on getting rusted and freezing in there.
I strongly suggest you check all 8 guide pins and ensure all are moving freely and are well lubricated with guide pin grease or anti-seize. If the boots are torn, replace them. Do this prior to dealer with the MC as it is a bit of a pain and more fun to bleed as well.
I strongly suggest you check all 8 guide pins and ensure all are moving freely and are well lubricated with guide pin grease or anti-seize. If the boots are torn, replace them. Do this prior to dealer with the MC as it is a bit of a pain and more fun to bleed as well.
Pedal sinking= leak in system (you'd be losing fluid), or a bad master cylinder. If you're not constantly topping off the brake fluid, then your MC is shot.
Master cylinder is about $50 and 2 hrs of labor to replace. If you have a shop change it, you're looking at (guessing) $250 or so after parts and labor.
Master cylinder is about $50 and 2 hrs of labor to replace. If you have a shop change it, you're looking at (guessing) $250 or so after parts and labor.
Im gonna take a look at the seals that were mentioned earlier within the MC. replace what needs to be replaced. Im damn near sure its the MC or maybe a brake linke Im overlooking. gonna trace all the lines closely just to make sure.thanks for the info org. once this weather gives me a chance Ill start goin in.
12-21-2009, 01:09 AM
#12
Are you sure you're not leaking any fluid? If its not leaking then you more than likely have:
-Bad Master Cylinder
-Air in the system still ( make sure your calipers have the bleeders on top part of caliper and not bottom)
-Frozen guide pins
12-24-2009, 09:04 AM
#15
Member
Join Date: Jun 2003
Posts: 173
I been having spongey brakes isssues ever since I got my maxima.
symptoms:
1.when I step on the brakes I can go far down thru what appears to be air befor actually engaging the brakes.
2.Once the brakes are engaged and they are stopping the car My foot can CONTINUE going down nearly to the floor.
This is horrible compared to cars that immidiately engage upon stepping on the brakes. and the pedal remains stiff once depressed.
I spent about 12 hrs altogether inspecting these things, and Im about to change to SS also.
First I bleed all the brakes in the expected order, furthest from master cylinder to closest (RR, LR, RF, LF). changed the bleeders at nissan after fighting with the old stripped bleeders. That didnt change anything.
Then I bled them in the FSM X order. (RightRear, LeftFront, LeftRear RightFront i think). That didnt change anything.
Next I checked the pads and The left rears were low as **** so in changing that I checked the RR piston and made sure its moving in and out easily. It turned Clockwise & Counterclockwise very easily with a tool to grab hold on the notches. Put on new pads, and didnt bleed it cuz I did that **** already last week.
Next I checked the RR. The pads were about 1/3 worn, so they were still fine. THe f**kin Piston tho was a b**ch!! It would not budge when attempting to turn it. additionally the rubber housing on it was stuck to t and could have ripped while turning. After fighting with it, I tried to step on the brakes to push it out and realized that **** was stuck and with excessive force I was able to push the whole piston out. The piston had rust eating away at it right where the rubber meets it. Used sand paper to get rid of it. Put it back in and it rotated EASILY back snug into the housing. Put on New Brake pads and bleed all the air out of there bled that **** about 12x checking the cylinder of course (the piston openning was exposed in the rain for about 20min while cleaning the piston.)
Drove the car around the block in the snow, and the brakes still suck!!!!
Im gonna check the front brakes when the 9inches of snow subsides, but now Im considering upgrading to SS also!!! Its SPONGEY. and after engaging the brakes it STILL GOES DOWN!! is there any specific brand?? Is there another bleeder near the master cylinder?? What else can i do thats affordable???
symptoms:
1.when I step on the brakes I can go far down thru what appears to be air befor actually engaging the brakes.
2.Once the brakes are engaged and they are stopping the car My foot can CONTINUE going down nearly to the floor.
This is horrible compared to cars that immidiately engage upon stepping on the brakes. and the pedal remains stiff once depressed.
I spent about 12 hrs altogether inspecting these things, and Im about to change to SS also.
First I bleed all the brakes in the expected order, furthest from master cylinder to closest (RR, LR, RF, LF). changed the bleeders at nissan after fighting with the old stripped bleeders. That didnt change anything.
Then I bled them in the FSM X order. (RightRear, LeftFront, LeftRear RightFront i think). That didnt change anything.
Next I checked the pads and The left rears were low as **** so in changing that I checked the RR piston and made sure its moving in and out easily. It turned Clockwise & Counterclockwise very easily with a tool to grab hold on the notches. Put on new pads, and didnt bleed it cuz I did that **** already last week.
Next I checked the RR. The pads were about 1/3 worn, so they were still fine. THe f**kin Piston tho was a b**ch!! It would not budge when attempting to turn it. additionally the rubber housing on it was stuck to t and could have ripped while turning. After fighting with it, I tried to step on the brakes to push it out and realized that **** was stuck and with excessive force I was able to push the whole piston out. The piston had rust eating away at it right where the rubber meets it. Used sand paper to get rid of it. Put it back in and it rotated EASILY back snug into the housing. Put on New Brake pads and bleed all the air out of there bled that **** about 12x checking the cylinder of course (the piston openning was exposed in the rain for about 20min while cleaning the piston.)
Drove the car around the block in the snow, and the brakes still suck!!!!
Im gonna check the front brakes when the 9inches of snow subsides, but now Im considering upgrading to SS also!!! Its SPONGEY. and after engaging the brakes it STILL GOES DOWN!! is there any specific brand?? Is there another bleeder near the master cylinder?? What else can i do thats affordable???
http://forums.maxima.org/showthread....=1#post7352105
If you find the solution to yours, be sure to let me know. I'm stuck at this moment.
12-24-2009, 06:40 PM
#16
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