Hey all. '03 WRX with lots o' miles. First off, I know I'm due for a fluid change and it's on my to do list this spring when the garage is comfortable again. Lately I've noticed that when I first apply the brakes it's kinda soft. If I do a slight press, then reapply quickly it's much firmer on the second one. Kinda like an old car when you have to "pump the brakes". I figured that's not the worst thing since I'm almost always in a position to stop gradually (aside from unforeseen emergency of course). Yesterday and this morning I've noticed that even pumping it once or more doesn't do the trick now and it's still kinda soft all the time. Still stops okay but not nearly as firm as it should be or I'd like it to be. Last night I checked the fluid level, thinking maybe the pads are finally wearing and it made room for fluid. Fluid was full to the top, so it definitely wasn't that nor is there a leak. Is this a case of total fluid failure or something mechanical? Luckily I've got a backup or two so can leave the car on the stands for a few days if need be. Thanks!
Flush the fluid, look for moisture when you bleed. had this problem in the race buggy, contaminants in the fluid attract moisture
Got the SS lines put in last night. Gonna swap fluid/bleed tonight. This is the stuff I got: Apparently they don't/can't sell the blue colored stuff anymore.
So did the bleeding tonight. Old fluid was pretty gnarly. Too brown to see through it. Bled until fluid coming out seemed totally clean. Pedal felt rock hard after bleeding (with engine off still). Did a test drive around the loop up here. Seems like the brakes all work solid, stops pretty quickly from a moderate pace. Only thing is the pedal still isn't as firm as I think it should be. Should I just roll with it and forget about it or investigate further? Not really sure where to go from here.
How did you go about bleeding it? Sometimes a vaccume bleeder can really help getting out that stubborn air. Another thing that helps with pedal feel if you dont already have one is one of the master cylinder braces.
When looking up the bleed order online I found a thread on Nasioc about gravity bleeding. Sounded like a good idea so I gave that a shot. Started on the front right and it seemed like it was working. Said to wait 10-15 minutes per corner but the first one took like half hour or more. Went to the left rear next. Sat there for a while and nothing would flow, so I recruited the wife to help me do it the "traditional" way. Still nothing out of the rear, but ended up being a fully clogged bleeder screw (both sides on the rear, actually). Anywho, finished bleeding with that method until the fluid was clean and not visibly pushing any more dirty stuff out.
Update for anybody curious. I had noticed that my left rear rotor had a pretty decent amount of surface rust on it when I did the lines earlier. I knew something was amiss but didn't really focus on it for some reason (probably just in a hurry to get lines on and done with). It came up in conversation with a friend the other night and he said same thing happened to him and his rear caliper slides were all stuck. That would make sense while the pedal is soft (I think...) since the piston is pushing out but not really getting the resistance from the other side that it deserves. Right? Bingo. Finally pulled it back apart today since it's nice out. 1 of the 4 between both calipers moves "freely", and even then it's a PITA. The other 3 are just stuck. Of course everything is rusted to sh!t back here too because MN. So since my dust shields were conveniently almost rusted completely off, I peeled them the rest of the way off to make room for an H6 rear upgrade. Looks like I need rotors anyway now (unless I get them turned) so figured now is as good a time as any to just go "big". While I'm in here, should I bother with the parking brake shoes? It definitely doesn't look like any fun...
I would. But if you don't mind the whole "pull it apart-put it together-pull it apart-put it together" thing, then you should be fine! It helps me remember when i did an install better too when i only have one date to remember instead of multiples.
Re-greasing the slide pins is often overlooked during brake service, but very important! As far as the parking brake shoes, I'd inspect how much material is left on the shoe. You probably want more than 1-2mm (just guessing on that). Otherwise just make sure that the shoes are properly adjusted [there is a little adjuster wheel, and a inspection/access hole in the brake rotor. Put the rotor on, remove the rubber grommet from the inspection/access hole, turn the rotor until you can see the adjuster wheel through the hole, and use a flat head to turn the adjuster wheel until the shoes are touching the rotor (aka, you won't be able to turn the rotor). Turn back the adjuster just slightly (1/8-1/4 turn maybe?) and you're set. If the e brake handle still has too much travel, adjust the cable at the base of the brake handle].
Definitely fail on my part. Replaced all rotors and pads when we first got the car cuz it had some pretty wicked wheel shake in the front. Don't remember doing the slides on any of them, so not sure if we did or not. Most likely not judging by the evidence. I'll check out the fronts while I've got it up in the air (again). Thanks for the parking brake tips, too!
Finished up my "H6" upgrade today. Pedal is considerably better and there's definitely a noticeable difference in the bite overall. Feels like a decent improvement over what I had (could partially be due to the rears not working 100% before, but still satisfied).
Another update, for the hell of it. Got lucky recently and scored a $100 gift card at the @GrimmSpeed open house / Subaru party a couple weeks ago. Ended up scoring a master cylinder brace for free! Installed it this weekend and hot damn what a difference it makes. I could tell the first time I touched the pedal that it was significantly better. Actually feels like what I would assume a "sports car's" pedal should feel like, and finally got that feel I was looking for. Not sure if my 14 year old, high mileage firewall is really that flexy or what.
Swing by sometime. I want to see how it mounts. I have most, if not all the pieces of one uninstalled.
Pretty easy, actually. Disconnect fuel filter bracket and ac line bracket from the strut tower. Brace goes against the tower, between it and the brackets. 3 bolts from those brackets and one more in a previously unused hole hold it in place. Then you just adjust the stop to be pressed up against the master cylinder. Pain in the butt? Yes. Definitely helps to have a second set of hands. And with the amount of things in that tight little area it makes for some awkward angles and good hand crampage.
I have put a number of these in...just want to see what parts I might be missing to install on Kim's car.
I never said I wouldn't stop by. We gotta clean the cobwebs out of the Ambassador tent. It's almost camping season!
