[ian.van]

so i did my rear pads today finally after putting it off for so long cuz of the cold weather.... pretty much everything that could go wrong went wrong. but i got everything on and my brakes are still super spongey... my pads were so worn the caliper pistons were pushed out all the way and seized. at one point in trying to free them we did try and compress them with a c-clamp (mistake 1)but i stopped after quickly realizing it wasnt budging....anyways after wrestling with them for forever i finally turned them in with pliers, got the pads all installed went to go pump my brakes and the pedal just went straight to the floor. after topping off my brake fluid resiviour and bleeding my brakes a little i got feeling back in the lower half of the pedal range.. but it still feels quite a bit weak when i first touch the pedal. do i need to bleed my brakes more? and can someone tell me if theres any sort of order i should do my wheels in or special procedures i should follow. also im pretty sure i didnt clip the pads on to the piston, (both pads seperated from the piston right when the calipers came off so i never saw it attached i guess) could this be why i have so much play?

 

[travicon]

my best advice...being that brakes are such an important safety feature...is to put your location in your profile and i would try and find some guys near you that know about brakes. i would never recommend a complete noob jumping into a brake install. its just not safe. ask someone in your area for help

 

[ian.van]

sorry. with all due respect in not a noob, ive done brake jobs on my passat twice, as well as a fair amount of engine and other work on cars, i somewhat know what im doing
im in the worcester MA area btw.

 

[travicon]

sorry for assuming your noobness. ive been around the forums a while, have had 2 mazda 3's and still wont do a brake job without someone i trust as a pro. and i have installed all kinds of thing myself, but brakes i will not do myself. at least not bleeding them. still not comfortable with that.

 

[ian.van]

yeah i hear ya, i am weary of brakes as you said it is the most important safety feature haha i really appreciate your concern though back to sponginess.... any ideas?

 

[travicon]

air bubbles?

 

[mazdaman35]

sounds like you need to keep bleeding. Did you start with the caliper furthest away for the resivoir?

 

[ian.van]

yeah we did start with the rear right wheel but as im sitting here thinking...there may have been a point where air got in the res. when i initially checked the fluid it seemed oddly low (all before bleeding) so i topped it off and i remember at one point again during bleeding seeing the res NOT topped off... so im thinking that little slip up got more air into the system. which would require a full bleeding correct? also tomorrow ill be sure to clip the pads on the piston securely

 

[TehPyrate]

I'm the Worcester MA area as well.. i seem to be having the Same issue.

My rear calipers seized..Both of them. I had brand new rotors, calipers, and pads put in, but I think the mechanic didn't bleed the brakes properly, there may be air in there lines still. I kinda have to pump the brakes to get a "Stiff Brake" feel out of them. Also another odd problem that I"m having is between 10 - 20 Mph there's a clicking noise coming out of my back right .. it sounds like the caliper is clamping and releasing rapidly. Any ideas?

I had to pay a guy $613 dollars to get all this garbage done, he had to bleed my brakes TWICE before I got any response out of the brakes.

I live in Upton MA, but go to College at WPI, if anyone's got any advice that would be awesome..

 

[ian.van]

hey, teh.... after some more thinking and another test drive...i too have a slight shaking/clicking sound coming from the back...i can only assume its from the pad not being completely clipped onto the caliper piston...ill let you know how it goes tomorrow when i try and sort this out