Mondeo Mk 3 Brake pedal "Burp"

Mar 02, 2011 5 Replies

Since I had it serviced a few weeks ago, and the Main Dealer talked me into an (overdue) brake fluid change, I get an occasional "burp" which can be heard and felt through the brake pedal. It feels as though the ABS might be cutting in for a fraction of a second, usually just as I come to a halt after gentle braking, easing off the pedal to avoid the jolt as I stop.



I mentioned this in the response to the customer satisfaction survey I received from HQ, and was called by the service bod from the dealer early next day. ;-)



I haven't been able to deliberately induce the effect, and I've tried everything short of an emergency stop, and the brakes performed ok.



I'm taking it in on Monday for them to have a look and test drive, but does anyone have any experience of a similar problem? I've suggested ABS sensor or power assist hiccup to them as possibilities. TIA.


Air bubble in the ABS pump/block.

In message , Duncan Wood writes

[....]

That sounds eminently possible.... They claimed that a (boil?) test had shown that "there was water in the fluid before they changed it. Oh the irony!

In message , Duncan Wood writes

[...]

I took it in to the dealer today, no sign of the problem on the 4 mile drive there... After an hour and a free cup of coffee my keys were handed back: "It's fine now sir, we bled the brakes".

I drove a couple of hundred yards and the problem occurred again, quite an unpleasant "burp" as I gently braked. I went round the traffic system and straight back to report it, and they are going to have another look tomorrow.

It appears to happen at the point when I ease off the pedal to stop smoothly, maybe when the power assist is just disengaging?

Changing brake fluid and bleeding brakes was a job I did in my 20s/30s in half an hour, but I'm worried about what they may have done to the power assist or the ABS. This is the local Main Dealer, btw, not a back street workshop. :-(

[...]

So it would have been done by someone aged around 18...

Chris

That's my guess too, but there should be checks. A mate with a Focus had a rather worse experience, when the warranty had expired he decided that he would no longer get it serviced at the main dealer, and instead took it to his local garage, whose owner he was on first name terms with.

He collected the car and within a mile or so he had no brakes, luckily it didn't matter and he was able to slow on the hand brake.. When he limped back to the garage and they checked it the owner was most apologetic, he said "I left this job to the Lad, but I was busy and for once I didn't check his work"...

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