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HELP!! Engine Off - Firm Brake Pedal; Engine On - Spongy Brake Pedal S60

posted by  FairwayFatty on  Sun Aug 17 07:32 CST 2008
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last visit: Mon Sep 1 01:29 CST 2008
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Greeting grup;

Was a member a few years back with my old 740 and forgot UN/PW....anyway

I see a lot of posts on brake bleeding but I did not find a similar condition. 01' S60 was shimmying when beaking at hiway speeds. I faced my front rotors off min. to clean (now 25.2mm) and put new pads on. Bled brakes 3 times using the sequence recommended. Shimmy is gone braking is great but pedal is not quite there.

Problem: When engine is off the pedal is very firm with minimal travel. When engine is on pedal is immediately "spongy". 2 pumps and it feels good. I dont understand whats going on. Only suggestions I have seen is to buy a pressure bleeder (Motive Bleeder).

Any ideas as to fix this without the $50+ for a bleeder? I do not see any leaks anywhere. Caliper cyls are clean with no leakage and no signs of leakage anywhere and no bubbles.

Any ideas?

Thanks FF








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    HELP!! Engine Off - Firm Brake Pedal; Engine On - Spongy Brake Pedal S60

    posted by  FairwayFatty on  Sun Aug 17 10:16 CST 2008
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    last visit: Mon Sep 1 01:29 CST 2008
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    Klaus,

    There were no springs. there were wire clips to hold tension on the floating )outer) pads which I replaced in the same position they were removed (they really only feasibly go in one way) Other than that there were clips built onto the rear of the inner pads which again, only go into the caliper cylinder.

    I do not know if this is newer or older S60 other than that it is an '01 model as posted. Does anyone know why the pedal is firm when engine off then when engine on the power assist makes the pedal "spongy".

    Thanks FF








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      HELP!! Engine Off - Firm Brake Pedal; Engine On - Spongy Brake Pedal S60

      posted by  KlausC on  Mon Aug 18 08:39 CST 2008
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      last visit: Fri Oct 24 10:15 CST 2014
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      Sorry, I should have been more specific, "spring clip".

      When the engine is off, the brake pedal will pump to hard as a rock. If you leave your foot on the pedal and start the engine, the brake pedal is supposed to lower by about an inch. That is the engine vacuum boosting the brakes.

      If your pedal slowly sinks to the floor with the engine on, then there is a real problem with either the MC or a leaky line.

      Klaus
      --
      I still miss my 164 and my 854T. Just driving a V70R :)








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        HELP!! Engine Off - Firm Brake Pedal; Engine On - Spongy Brake Pedal S60

        posted by  FairwayFatty on  Mon Aug 18 23:49 CST 2008
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        last visit: Mon Sep 1 01:29 CST 2008
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        Thanks Klaus,

        I've looked over the MC and each line at the manifold and at each caliper and can find no signs of leakage .... is there a sure fire way to find a leak?

        Also, everything was fine prior to replacing the pads so I'm not sure why there suddenly would be a leak. FF







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          HELP!! Engine Off - Firm Brake Pedal; Engine On - Spongy Brake Pedal S60

          posted by  KlausC on  Tue Aug 19 04:17 CST 2008
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          last visit: Fri Oct 24 10:15 CST 2014
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          You mentioned in your first post that you bled the lines after putting on the new pads. I wonder if it is possible that air got into the lines during the process. The bleeder nipple has to be closed while it is still leaking fluid and the reservior cannot get too low. This is why I prefer using the pressure pump Vs the helper method.
          Because you have good pressure after the 2nd time you push on the brake pedal, that kind of eliminates the MC as a problem or leaks in the system.
          Air, dirty slide pins, or misaligned/loose spring clips are all I can come up with.

          Klaus
          --
          I still miss my 164 and my 854T. Just driving a V70R :)








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    HELP!! Engine Off - Firm Brake Pedal; Engine On - Spongy Brake Pedal S60

    posted by  KlausC on  Sun Aug 17 09:05 CST 2008
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    last visit: Fri Oct 24 10:15 CST 2014
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    If you have a "newer" S60, some folks have put the caliper springs back on incorrectly and have had the same results - spongy brakes.

    Klaus
    --
    I still miss my 164 and my 854T. Just driving a V70R :)







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