Grabby brakes

[hfine]

Intermittently, I find it difficult to apply my brakes lightly. A gradual pedal results in no brake, no brake, no brake, then strong braking all of a sudden. Gradual stops are difficult. Other times, no problem. I have been back to Honda once so far with no satisfaction.

Anyone with the same experiences or a solution. I read the Brake forum, however, it is all about brake warpage.

Any help will be appreciated!!

[princess]

WHEN is this happening? First thing in the AM? Anytime? Have you figured out a way to duplicate it?

I haven't had grabby brakes, but when the RPM changes in parking lots it wants to GO faster than I'd planned, so I end up riding the brakes.

I'll look it up & see what I find.....

[princess]

does this fit the problem???

[hfine]

[QUOTE]Originally posted by princess
WHEN is this happening? First thing in the AM? Anytime? Have you figured out a way to duplicate it?

I haven't had grabby brakes, but when the RPM changes in parking lots it wants to GO faster than I'd planned, so I end up riding the brakes.

I'll look it up & see what I find..... [/QUOTE I cannot duplicate my brake problem--- it just happens intermittenly. I also get a grinding sound intermittenly.Sometimes in the morning , sometimes during the day. ---cannot duplicate this either. I appreciate your input. Hfine

[BenjiBoy650]

I'd bring it to the dealer immediately. Problems with the brake system could be life threatening, which is absolutely unacceptable on a brand new car. Some fo the 7th gens have had bad calipers, causing a steering wheel vibration (that's what I hear, never experienced it). The problem might be a sticky caliper that's sticking when cold but not when hot because it's expanded. Also could be the ABS system, or maybe even a parking brake problem. Hopefully you're not driving around town with the parking brake on? :)

[princess]

I'm stumped. I haven't experienced it. Maybe others with I4's have. There's nothing showing up as a problem in this area. I also asked to see if my prince has been dealing with something of this sort. He hasn't. I'd suggest going to the dealer & test driving the same model. Maybe it's just the way they feel to you (?):confused: Never know, it's possible. It happened to my mom with a Toyota. She drove 2 others from a lot & they did the same thing as hers. Now she decided that they ALL had a problem!:D

I do know that my car's brakes were something to get used to, they felt soooo different than the '02's. Definately more touchy! But I'm used to them now.:)

Sorry I couldn't be more help. Hopefully some of the others will read this & have some suggestions!:blush:

[BenjiBoy650]

Well you have a good point there princess but he does also mention that it's an intermittent problem. Maybe his imagination just tweaks itself after a few minutes of driving? :scratch:

[princess]

BB650,

We all pay a tad more attention to what's going on within the car at times. Such as when in traffic, you're more focused on the cars around you. When running errands you may notice what you're feeling more. The longer one drives the more likely to go into "automatic mode". I'm not saying it's imaginary at all! Just noticed more depending on what else the brain is being used for. I'm concerned about the growling/grinding more than the grabby stuff. Both can be serious & needs to be checked as thoughly as possible. Unfortunately intermittent also means a booger to diagnose!

hfine, how many miles are on your car??

(By the way in my mom's case she had the master cyl. replaced without any complaint from her dealer. It still felt the same to her. They did it again. The same. Then she drove a couple of other cars. They felt exactly the same to her. What she was feeling was the changes in vacuume during idle & that change made her peddle sink.... normal!)

[zwierhiem]

I know this is a long shot, and doens't address the grinding noise. But it may be possible that you need to bleed the brakes, sometimes air bubbles in your brake lines will cause the pedal to be soft, and you really have to push on it to get braking power.

Edit

I guess the fact that it doens't happen all the time makes air bubbles not seem to be the problem. But maybe still worth a check.

[BenjiBoy650]

AIr bubbles might still be a possibility? Like princess said, maybe it's just that the problem isn't caught later in driving (but is still there). Or could be because when the brake fluid heats up, so does the air, and since it only has a limited amount of space it becomes higher pressure so that it's more like a solid bubble? Iono long shot still lol.

[hfine]

Originally posted by princess
BB650, I have 8500 miles on my car. good idea, Iwill ask to drive another LX 4. Thanks for the input. hfine

We all pay a tad more attention to what's going on within the car at times. Such as when in traffic, you're more focused on the cars around you. When running errands you may notice what you're feeling more. The longer one drives the more likely to go into "automatic mode". I'm not saying it's imaginary at all! Just noticed more depending on what else the brain is being used for. I'm concerned about the growling/grinding more than the grabby stuff. Both can be serious & needs to be checked as thoughly as possible. Unfortunately intermittent also means a booger to diagnose!

hfine, how many miles are on your car??

(By the way in my mom's case she had the master cyl. replaced without any complaint from her dealer. It still felt the same to her. They did it again. The same. Then she drove a couple of other cars. They felt exactly the same to her. What she was feeling was the changes in vacuume during idle & that change made her peddle sink.... normal!)

[hfine]

Originally posted by BenjiBoy650
I'd bring it to the dealer immediately. Problems with the brake system could be life threatening, which is absolutely unacceptable on a brand new car. Some fo the 7th gens have had bad calipers, causing a steering wheel vibration (that's what I hear, never experienced it). The problem might be a sticky caliper that's sticking when cold but not when hot because it's expanded. Also could be the ABS system, or maybe even a parking brake problem. Hopefully you're not driving around town with the parking brake on? :) I felt it might be a sticking caliper as you do, but if one came on before the other wouldn't the car pull to the side? So far i haven't experienced this. I did stop using only the parking brake and it stopped smoothly. Thanks for your input. hfine

[BenjiBoy650]

I didn't think of the pulling to one side, but you're probably right. However, there have been cases of defective calipers causing vibrations on the car, I've seen that on other forums for sure. No mention made of the problem except that the entire right front caliper was replaced under warranty. I guess under certain circumstances, you could have a sticking caliper that didn't pull but I can't think of a situation where that would occur.

[Inspector1]

Another situation with brakes that usually slips everyone's mind when it comes to sticking calipers, Possible brake hose restrictions. I have seen this on numerous occasions when the tech working on cars twist or hang calipers by hoses in that it damages hoses internally and goes unseen. The smallest restriction can create problems similar to a faulty or sticking caliper. You can also have a fluid contamination issue also.
Unfortunately I am afraid that brake problems may plague the 7th gen for years to come, due to multiple repairs early on in life.
Fortunately Honda has a reputation of taking care of long term problems unlike many other manufacturers.

My 2 cents
I1

[princess]

hfine,
Had you had any work done on your car before this started?? Even a tire rotation? A Minor service? Anything??

[hfine]

The grabby brakes and the grinding noise all happened before I had any service . Infact my first service was for the brake problem.I was told that there wasn't any thing wrong.The second time was for the the recall items and they forgot to check the brake problem. I have to make another appointment.

[princess]

I'll continue to check the bulletins & campaigns for you. If I see something, I'll pass it on. Sure hope they figure it out for you! Intermittent stuff can really be hard though.

I had a sound several years back. It only did it at one sharp intersection. It took a while, but when my prince FINALLY heard it, he know exactly what it was. My rear struts were just starting to wear out. That car had nearly 200K at the time.

Let us know what they find!:) So we can all get educated!

[hfine]

Several months ago I wrote about the problem I was having with my brakes.....the problem has been corected after three tries.thanks to someone on the forum that told me about a service bulletin pertaining to my brakes. They cut the rotors and replaced the brake pads. Thanks for your help. Hank

[benjamming]

Thanks for the update! :)

[vikram]

I have the same problem with my car. Its got about 3500 miles on it. Also, when should I take it in for the first service.

Thanks,
vik

[cjmac49]

My 06 I4 brakes are touchy at slow speeds. It takes very little pressure on the pedal, at low speeds, for the brakes to engage.

Stopping from speed is no problem - quick response, good feel quick stops with no fade. I went through a recommended process of stopping from 60 mph to 5mph to 'set" the pads without noticeable difference.

The car has 4,500 on it and will be going to the dealer for the first service. I'll ask them to look at the brakes while its there.

I moved to the accord after driving a van and my everyday vehicle is a company dodge pickup so the great braking action of the honda is much appreciated.

[princess]

still no bulletins..... :dunno: