Soft Brake Pedal - '91 SE

I've noticed in the last few weeks that my brake pedal feels softer than before. The car stops just fine, the pads and rotors are in good shape, and there's plenty of brake fluid. I just have to press down farther to get it to stop. Is this master/slave cylinder related? If so, how do I test it. And how difficult is it to replace/repair this?

Thanks

Bill G '91 SE Auto

182,000 miles
Reply to
Bill G
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Bil

Given that you don't have a leak (inferred from your fluid level being fine), it could just be the side-effects of aging brake fluid. Have you flushed the brake system anytime recently? That is worthwhile to try - do all 4 corners.

Fresh brake fluid can really make a huge difference in the brake-pedal feel.

Also, apologies for my ignorance, but do you have 4-wheel discs or rear drums? I'm not too familar with the 3rd Gens (I am inclined to guess that you have discs all around, but just wanted to be sure).

Nirav

Reply to
njmodi

Well, I've had the car for about 10 years, and 130K+ miles, and I've never changed the brake fluid. I've added a little bit here and there over the years, but never more than a small amount to move the reservoir up to Max. And none recently.

This soft pedal thing is a fairly recent event. I drove the car regularly until this past June, but then hardly drove it at all (once every 2 weeks or so) for most of July/August, and even into the beginning of Sept. It was at this point that I started to notice the softer pedal. I don't know if the soft pedal was just a perception because I'd been driving 2 other vehicles ('96 Contour, '94 Exploder) and had lost some familiarity with how it felt, or that something happened to it while sitting for the better part of 3 months. I never remember it feeling so soft.

Either way, how does one go about replacing the brake fluid? How do I bleed the system afterwards? (if I remember from reading, it's not difficult) I've got a Chilton's and Haynes, so I'll read up on it.

Frak, I hate dealing with fluids!

I have 4 discs. I think all SE's did, but maybe the GXE's had rear drum. I don't know either.

Reply to
Bill G

Bill,

Bleeding brakes is quite simple, but easier with two people. The basic idea is to loosen the bleeder screw on each caliper while your helper pumps the brake pedal. The trick is to make sure that you close the bleeder which fluid is still streaming out and before the helper releases the pedal (thus preventing air from being sucked back into the lines).

Typically I use a clear piece of rubber tubing over the bleeder and capture the fluid into a jar. I keep repeating the loosen/helper presses brakes/tighten/release pedal routine until I see clear fluid (new fluid) coming out of the hose. The color difference between old/new should make that fairly easy to tell.

The other trick is to make sure you keep topping off the master cylinder. After several cycles (of pumping, catching fluid), I top off the master cylinder. You don't want that to drop below the low mark. (Make sure you put the cap on the master cylinder after topping it off, before pumping the brakes)

The order of bleeding is usually fairly important - I don't know the order recommended for your vehicle.

That's all there is too it... I may have made it sound more complex than it really is.. :)

Cheers, Nirav

Reply to
njmodi

on my 92 gxe, i noticed that the brake pedal had much more travel, but i had lost a bit of stopping power.

in my case, i needed rear brake shoes....once those were replaced, the point at which the brake pedal met resistance was back to normal, and the new shoes make a world of difference in stopping power.

replacing brake shoes on the 3rd gens is quite easy as well, just make sure you have the correct size bolts to get the drums off ;-p

hope i could help

andre

Reply to
Andre

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