Question about brakes.

[desimunda]

Hi folks,
I had a question about my brakes. I'm not quite sure what's happening.
I have a 99 Civic LX.
When i try to come to a halt from speeds above 55MPH, the car breaks fine for like 30 seconds, but then it suddenly feels like the breaks have given way and seems like it's not working.

i'm not sure if this is common or is it a problem with my brakes.

Could it be over heating or something !

could you guys give me a hint of what might be happening here?

thanks

 

[stolibears]

do you know how old your pads and rotors are?

 

[desimunda]

not really, i bought this car couple months back..
how can we know how old they are?

 

[Scorchsta]

Have you checked the brake fluid recently?

 

[JohnS.]

.

Should find out the condition of your pads/rotors and your brake fluid level. If the level is fine and it still seems like you have to push the pedal far to the floor to stop, you may also have air in the lines which means you'll have to bleed the system and re-fill with new brake fluid.

I'd check your pads/rotors first though since brake servicing is almost too easy on a honda.

 

[desimunda]

thanks friends, i'll try to find out about the pads and rotors.
I checked the brake fluid about 2 days back and it was well above the 'Low' limit.

 

[JohnS.]

thanks friends, i'll try to find out about the pads and rotors.
I checked the brake fluid about 2 days back and it was well above the 'Low' limit.

Do you have to keep filling the cylinder with fluid? Or does it stay constant?

And sorry I didn't ask before, but when you press the brake pedal, do you have to push it down far to start to get braking pressure/power? If so, you may want to consider bleeding the system and refilling with new fluid a few times.

 

[stolibears]

Do you have to keep filling the cylinder with fluid? Or does it stay constant?

And sorry I didn't ask before, but when you press the brake pedal, do you have to push it down far to start to get braking pressure/power? If so, you may want to consider bleeding the system and refilling with new fluid a few times.

yeah, I've got that issue now after replacing my pads, rotors and lines. It's not real bad, but it takes more travel on the pedal then before to get them to grab. I tried to bleed them as I changed lines (in the same order as bleeding RR-LF-LR-FR from the honda service manual) but looks like I'm going to have to bleed again.

Be careful if your losing braking power at those speeds. For now until you figure out what it is, make sure to pump-brake. In other words, slowly pump the brake pedal to slow the car down and keep pressure on the brakes and your self plenty of room if you can help it.

GL!

 

[desimunda]

Do you have to keep filling the cylinder with fluid? Or does it stay constant?

And sorry I didn't ask before, but when you press the brake pedal, do you have to push it down far to start to get braking pressure/power? If so, you may want to consider bleeding the system and refilling with new fluid a few times.

i checked again after reading your answers and the level is quite the same.

i've no idea what bleeding is

when i initially press the brake from about 50 - 60 mph, the brakes apply fine, but then after a few seconds they seem to lose power. it feels as if they have given way. but if i re-apply it works fine.

i'm guessing that is normal but i've never felt that way on other cars.

 

[JohnS.]

Then maybe you have air in the lines...? I'm no expert but I'm pretty sure that if you have to press the pedal down further to apply the same amount of braking power (as someone else that has no air in their brake lines), then you have air in your brake lines.

Bleeding is basically flushing your system completely of brake fluid. That'll get the air out of them if that's your problem. Do it a few times to make sure all the airs out.

But find out some more info from other people. I'm no brake expert.

 

[Jmoto911]

Ya.. thats what my dirtbike does before I bleed my lines after new brake fluid is put in.. Bleed your brakes.

 

[Scorchsta]

Maybe the brake lines are expanding (more than normal)? It seemed to me that if you have air in your lines, you'll notice it right away and not after a few seconds. I'd still bleed the brakes though just for safety reasons.