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Brake Feel !!!

3K views 22 replies 9 participants last post by  Thanh Nguyen 
#1 ·
Hi everyone. I have a question about the bleeding the brake?
When I washed my E, I usually spray the wheel and the brake part. I don't know it is a good idea or not. Recently, I felt like I have to step further on the brake pedal to apply the brake.
The force is there and Brake assist is still in effect if I step fast enough.
I just felt like the brake pedal is spongy.
Would you think bleeding the brake is a good idea? My E is on 36k right now.
Do you think wash the wheel often will cause the problem to brake line?
I have confirmed that my Gf's Elantra is easy and ease to brake than mine. At the mean time, her brake fluid is darker than mine. My brake fluid is full and clear.
Maybe I should not wash the wheel more often. :unsure: Or maybe I get OCD too much?
 
#2 ·
The wash does not affect the brakes. Unless you use those tire shine chemicals, and got it on the rotors. You can remove your tire and liberally spray brake cleaner all around the front the back of the rotors to remove any residue.

Weren't you the one with slotted rotors?

If you continuously step on the brake pedal, say on a stop, and the pedal sinks to the floor, then you have air in the system and must be bled.
 
#3 ·
Yes. I did upgrade to Drill slot rotor and new ceramic pad. I did the same thing to my gf's car. Her brake works so well even with old fluid.
My brake stops well but the only thing I didn't feel the brake pedal at most comfort.
My brake doesn't reach the floor, it is spongy.

You remind me about the tire shines which I used for a while. I used to Chemical Guys Tire shine gel which I figured out that attracted too much brake dust then I stop using it. It also stain on my wheel also. As you mentioned, I think it maybe the source of the problem.
I will try to use brake cleaner tmr to see it is better or not.
Thank for your response. :wink:
 
#4 ·
Idk, for me the OEM brakes just plain terrible. Feels like the car has more acceleration than it can stop itself. My guy told me going slotted will kill your pads life in half and recommended me to just go drilled.

But try some brake cleaners and check the pads to see if theres any improvement.
 
#6 ·
It is probably because your brake pads are worn out. I dont think spraying your wheels and brakes with water will harm the brakes at all.

Since I bought my car used, I had always thought I had to press the pedal deep to apply the brakes. But recently during a service maintenance, I was told that my pads were down to 2-3mm so I had them replaced and they work like a charm now. I barely touch the brake pedal and the car already starts braking. Check how thick your brake pads are still and hopefully this will help :)
 
#7 ·
Spongy feel usually means air in the lines. Bleed 'em before you do anything else.

That said, it might just be the nature of your ceramic pads. Some of them are designed more for long-term economy/durability than performance. The (cheapo) ceramic pads I installed in my Santa Fe caused a softer brake pedal feel which no amount of bleeding could fix.
 
#8 ·
I too can contest to Hyundai's crappy brakes. I have a 2016 Elantra SE I bought brand new last year, had to replace to replace the tires at 10k miles!!! now here it is 25,700 miles on my car & my brakes feel like crap. I use tire shine a lot & maybe too much brake dust is being drawn to the rotors? $220 for a pad replacement at the dealership, I don't want to do it if just in another 25k miles I'll have to change them again, along with tires in another 10k miles. My feel isn't spongy, just have to push further to stop faster. Let me know what you do & how it works for you!
 
#11 ·
On every Elantra I have driven, I felt like the brake pedal travel was too much. On my current one, the brake pedal goes down at the level of the accelerator before feeling a stop. That's the worst from any other brand of cars I have tried. And this is without saying that the OEM brakes rust too fast and wear too early.
Also after long distance driving I feel like the brakes have lost their power and are misadjusted, so I slam on the brake pedal at a stop and that seems to fix it (placebo effect maybe?)
I have switched to NAPA Premium Ceramic front and back and the brakes feel a bit more secure and less rust-prone but still the brake pedal feeling is awful. The only time where the brake pedal felt great was after a brake service at the dealer, and the feeling lasted 2-3 days and that was it.
On my 2002 Elantra, no technician was able to successfully fix my brake pedal travel.
 
#13 ·
Update: Hi everyone, Thank for your input. I think my problem is from Tire Shine Gel from Chemical Guys. That stuff is really sticky.
I just bought several can CRC Brake Cleaner from O' Reilly. It does do its job.
I don't have time to remove all the wheel, I did spray slightly to the rotor and the pad so the brake cleaner doesn't touch wheel.
After couple times, the brake feel did get better. :banana:
I can confirm that trouble is from the Tire Gel. I noticed couple time the resin smell when the brake get hot. I have new set of brake is 7k already so the brake should be completely broke in.
The residue from tire gel made the surface slippery so I have to step further to stop it. At the mean time, that made me felt the brake spongy.

Anyway, lesson learn. I never used any kind Tire Gel to put on my car.
 
#17 ·
I'm glad that brake cleaner works out for you too. I did spray to Rotor, Pad and Caliper for the third times. It gets better and better everytime. Even though, it is not as firm as my gf's car, I did feel safer and less muscle sore now.
Tire shine really caused big trouble.
 
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#18 ·
Guys, when the Elantra's come off the transport at the dealer's, there are a lot of protective coverings on the exterior. One such protection is the wheel cover shields. Thin, opaque white, 17" diameter, and lightweight plastic. They are removed, tossed to the dumpster.

Ask your salesman/dealer/service guy or gal to save you one of these. Simply lay it over your wheel, spray your tire product, repeat 3 times...then store the cover in your trunk/garage. Zero overspray on your tires.
 
#19 ·
Great idea, Rich but the Hyundai dealer is to cheap to give me that :) ...When I got the car, it was completely covered by dust in parking lot. When I purchased the car, they started to have it washed...I have no idea where it the wheel cover. :grin2:
 
#21 ·
Update:
I gave a shot to Wagner Thermo Quiet pad to replace Z23 Power stop sport for the front. I still kept the Bosch pad for the rear.
I always doubted that Powerstop pad using Carbon with Ceramic is not a good ideas for daily driving. In fact, it is useless for . I'm on 300 miles on new front pad Wagner. Wagner is so much better. It always made my car have perfect stop even before force fully applied.
 
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