jediwebdude

Less than a month ago--March 22--I had new pads AND new rotors put on the front of my 2000 SE, which has only 45,224 miles on it as of yesterday. Since March 22, the car has failed to stop twice in sudden braking situations. Both times the brake pedal was pushed to the floor. Plus, the braking is very rough and vibrates worse than the previous (original) brakes.

I took the car back to where I bought the brakes, Kwik Kar. The mechanic agreed that things didn't feel right when he drove it. So he tells me that I need a new master cylinder.

How is it that the point of poor brake performance (performance far worse than the previous worn out brakes) began when the new brakes/rotors were put on and he points to the master cylinder as the culprit?

I am wondering if how the brakes were installed are a contributing factor. Or the fact that the rear pads have yet to be replaced. Or the brake fluid is problematic.

Any suggestions?

-Phil

foodmanry

iTrader: (15)

Very odd. I have not heard or seen this type of problem on the board yet. I don't know if you need a new master cylinder, but what I can tell you is that a good possibility is the lines were not bled correctly when you had the new pads and rotors installed. Did the brake pedal have a "spongy" or softer feel to it after you had the work done? That would be an indicator of air in the brake lines which in that instance the lines were not bled properly.

As far as the braking being rough and vibrating, well you need to check and see if the guy actually put new pads on. He may have put the old pads on the new rotors, or just turned the rotors and slapped everything back together. There are a lot of shady mechanics out there looking to make a quick buck, and it looks like this guy is one of them. Good mechanics are about as easy to find as a sex-feigning, non-gold digging, good cooking woman,

Good luck, and hope this helps.

optimus1

improper bleeding + coupled with ABS action; the vibration ...

Galo

First, the Maxima's rotors should be cut with a brake lathe that cuts the rotors while they are on the car, which trues the rotors perfectly, even comprehending and offsetting for any deviations- however small- in the hub itself. Go ask him if he did it this way or he did it the lazy, cheap -and incorrect- way, pulling the rotors off the car and doing the rotors on a bench lathe.

Second, have him show u the old pads -or at least, have him pull the 'new' pads and compare their thickness with fresh-from box ones... if they are not new, it will be obvious.

Third, have him purge/bleed the system completely and thoroughly (one full bottle of brake fluid's worth) and drive the car a while. IMHO, a master cylinder failure at 42k miles is about as probable as a guy getting pregnant.