Brakes lack bite
 

I've got a 94 WRX and the brakes are standard apart from a set of Red Stuff Ceramic pads upfront and I find they really lack any bite. I drove my wifes car the other day, a Peugeot 206cc 2 litre :rolleyes: and you merely have to brush the brake pedal and the brakes bite immediately and car is virtually standing on it's nose.

Now I know the brakes on Scooby's are known to be a bit poor but this is my first one and I wasn't sure how bad they would be but I have to say I'd agree they are pretty poor, they work if you stamp hard enough on them but that's hardly ideal.

So I was after some advice on what to do, after a bit of hard braking yesterday I found the brakes were juddering so I reckon the discs are shot, as far as I know they are the originals so not surprising really as car has done 53k miles now. I was thinking of getting Goodridge hoses and then new discs up front but which ones bearing in mind I need to keep cost to a minimum. Or is the lack of bite not going to be improved by simply renewing the discs, do I need to do something else?

Any help greatly appreciated.

could be a number of things.............the early cars are not renowned for having a lot of "bite" anyway due to caliper design, but would think most likely you have old b/fluid or/and worn rubber hoses......................

disc choice will not have a great influence on pedal feel, but the goodridge hoses you mention and a good quality fluid will go a long way to improving matters on a budget.................if you want to get really involved then a later set of 4pot calipers/discs will be a greater benefit...............

alyn - asperformance.com

if the discs were not replaced
or were not machined when the pads were replaced

Chances are better than good that they are done in.

I run the EBC Redstuff Ceramics on my Rally car
they bite just fine on stage ;)

For optimum performance on any pad swap,
you really do need to change or at least machine the discs as well

If you are feeling a judder or chatter under breaking
that is defo an indication that the discs are at the end of their life...

Jamie
SubieGal.com

I suggest do what I did and replace them with a set of 4 pot's off a later model scooby, much better!

I've also fitted these along with new EBC grooved discs to my STI V5 with 4 pots.

I also find that they don't have much bite as you put it untill they've warmed up.

After a few applications they work great with very little brake fade.

Sorry for the belated reply, must remember not to post just before I go away for a few days in future :iamwithst

Thanks for the replies, I've checked the history I've got for the car and can't see that the brake fluid has been changed so it could be the original stuff which would make it 10yrs old now :eek:, so definitely a change of fluid to some dot 5 and the Goodridge hoses. Did a bit more testing and the discs are definitely knackered and have been recommended the EBC discs so I think I'll give them a go. I am tempted to go for the 4 pots off a later model but I can't really afford it as I'd have to buy another set of pads as well as the bigger slightly more expensive discs and of course the cost of the calipers themselves but hopefully I should see a vast improvement with what I've got planned.

Could anybody advise me on the rears, is it worth doing anything with them or are they ok to leave as standard, I'm assuming the Goodridge hose set comes with hoses for front and rear?

The Goodridge kits are 4 hoses, so yes front and rear.

Front does most of the braking, so you'd be better off spending cash on 4-pots (or another caliper) than splashing any serious money on the rears.

You still need to keep them balanced, so just fit some pads to match the fronts.

Stefan

i agree if you got redstuff on the fronts then also put them on the rears

I've just noticed a Group Buy on Godspeed discs which looks like it's still available, has anyone had any experience with these, in particular in conjunction with Red Stuff pads?

And thats a good thing? :idea:

I guess its down to personal preference but I don't want my brakes to bite hard unless I press the pedal hard. I'll take feel and progression over bite any day.

Fair point mate perhaps they're not really quite as sharp as I made out but my point was though that mine barely bite at all :eek:
It requires a LOT of pedal pressure to get any real feeling that the brakes are biting and starting to actually slow you down which doesn't seem right to me.
I would like some feel too but currently I seem to have a case of push the pedal gently and nothing much happens push it really hard and you start to slow down. I was rather hoping to get push the pedal gently and you start to slow down push it hard and you come to a grinding halt very quickly with varying degrees in between, surely that's how it should work :confused:

Well thats no good. Sounds like your brakes are in poor condidtion. I'd renovate the rears also while your at it.

Try Camskill for discs: http://www.camskill.co.uk/products.php?plid=m10b0s546p0

Also make sure that the sliding caliper is actually sliding. Remove, clean and grease the sliding pins.

If your new pads have been roughened by the old crappy discs then it will take a while for them to bed fully with the new discs.

Think you could be right about the brakes being in poor condition and things have taken a turn for the worse today as well. Got in this morning, took the handbrake off and the handbrake light stayed on, handbrake seems to have disengaged just fine and car drives normally, brakes are working (well as much as they ever do).

Can anybody advise what to check to see what is causing the light to stay on? (it's a red light, circle with a ! in it).

Help!

Could be the little float in the brake fluid reservoir. Poke it (gently) with a screwdriver to see if it isn't stuck.

Could also indicate your pads are worn. As the pistons move further out, the brake fluid level drops. If it drops below minimum, then the light will come on IIRC.

Mine came on after my brake hose split. Brakes failed, so it was pretty obvious something serious was wrong. Keep checking your brakes and fluid level.

Stefan

thanks for that, I was wondering about the fluid level, I think I'll pop out at lunchtime and have a look, it shouldn't be the pads, well not the front ones anyway as they've only done about 500 miles.

Right I've been out and checked the brake fluid level and it's fine, approx 1/2cm below the max mark so there's plenty, gave the float a poke (ooerr) and it's moving freely and rises to the top so seems ok.

Anybody else got any ideas cos the light is still on?

Guess what, the lights gone out :D

I suspect the handbrake may just be a bit sticky, will try and take it apart some time to give it a clean up and regrease methinks.