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Subaru Forester Brake Questions
Discuss brake issues with your Forester here.
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Comments
BTW, the car is great, fun to drive and amazingly strong for a 4 cylinder.
TIA
The car slowed just fine, it was only the feel of the pedal that wasn't as sharp as most other cars I've driven.
Doug
Thanks,
Jeff
I have an 01 and have never liked the soft feel of the brakes....BUT I have always made all the stops needed.:)
Would also like to have a 20 gal fuel tank . Note that I have amassed 87000 on the puppy and cannot find a reason to replace this seamless vehicle. I have had zero issues with it.
-Frank
Stage I is for softer stops, so you can coast up to a red light smoothly. Stage II bites down hard for a panic stop. So it's not quite linear.
Look at the stopping distances, though, and they are at the top of the class. C&D compared them to a Porsche 911.
I was rear-ended on a rainy day by a Saturn with no ABS, I stopped in time to avoid a crash in front of me, but she did not (no ABS). Wrecked my bumper and right rear tail light, but her nearly new Saturn wasn't even driveable.
-juice
Back to the brakes:
They do stop the car but I feel like there missing that bite I am used to. I have to press down pretty hard to make the car stop. They need a little more power assist to them. Let's see what they are like tomorrow when I get the car back from the dealer but from what you guys are saying I don't think they'll feel any different.
BTW
Only 200 miles on the car. Any tips on break in period and should I change the oil after that? Should I use synthetic or wait a bit and how often are you guys bringing in your cars for maintenance? My other car has free scheduled maintenance so I hope you don't mind my asking.
TIA
Just wondering how far other pre-06 Forester owners have gone on their brakes and should I consider doing the rears at the same time?
Thanking you all in advance, Ted.
Fronts are in good shape (about 50%) but I am keeping an eye on the rears. They are about 75% gone.
John
I've complained to her several times that her brakes are mushy and that there seems to be little engagement unless pressed nearly all the way down. When brake engagement does occur, it seems to be abrupt rather than gradual. I've criticized her braking a being jerky in the past but am starting to wonder if it's her brakes and not her.
She said she's asked the dealer to look at them twice and that they said there is nothing wrong and that's just the way Subarus are set up. Sounds like a cop-out to me, any thoughts or similar experiences?
You just have to get used to letting the car tell you when the brakes are kicking in, not feedback from the pedal. Just practice gradual pedal action and you'll be amazed at how light a touch you can use to brake. It's actually extremely responsive once you get the hang of it.
Subaru uses a dual-stage brake booster. The first stage slows the car gradually and allows for smooth stops, the second stage give full braking power.
It takes getting used to, but press the pedal hard and stops are very good - the front calipers have twin pistons for instance. C&D magazine descrived their '98 tester as having Porsche 911-like braking.
It's the opposite of Mercedes' touchy brakes. The lightest touch and BAM you get a jerky stop that would startle Emeril Lagassi.
-juice
He wasn't scamming me -- the brake pads were almost all gone. The dealer replaced them today for free, covered under warranty.
My faith in humanity is restored. For a few hours, anyway.
-juice
I've got the parts and a brake installation toolkit that I rented from my auto parts store - but any procedures that anyone could enlighten me on would be appreciated. I know I have to bleed the fluid a bit and I have never done that before.
I'm going to save at least $400 by doing it myself.
Thanks in advance!
:confuse:
Forester is actually easier, becauser the rear strut suspension is not in your way, you have a lot more clearance to work with.
Bleeding the fluid is the easy part. You'll find a rubber plug at the end of the brake line, it sticks out so it's easy to find.
Remove that, use a plastic tube to plug into that, then put the other side in a jar with a little bit of brake fluid in it so that it doesn't suck air back in. I'm not sure what size but I used stuff that I had left over from my acquarium, which flexed enough for the job.
Actually, the place that has Legacy brake install instructions also has brake bleeding procedures. The order is rather unusual, it's:
1. Front right
2. Rear left
3. Front left
4. Rear right
I just did the front pads on my Forester, then bled the system, then bled my Miata, then the front pads on my dad's Outback, then bled those!
Tip: get all your materials first. A quart (not pint, quart) of brake fluid for each car you do. Some anti-squeel compound, the stuff I got was red and gooey. And some high-temp brake grease for the sliders. The plastic tube/hose. A jar. A tool to push the brake piston back in, for me my C-clamp did not clear properly so I recommend the specialized tool. Torque wrench, 14mm and 17mm sockets, and a 10mm closed wrench for the brake lines.
There may be more, but you get the idea, just be prepared. Get a helper. I got a hand pump to bleed the brakes and it did not work well, I kept getting air in the system. So I called my wife to pump the brake pedal the old fashioned way, while I bled them.
DO NOT let the fluid level go low while you're bleeding it, else you have to start all over again, and I mean all 4 corners all over again.
-juice
-juice
:surprise:
Given the amount of steep hills in San Francisco, one of the most congested cities in the US, all stop-and-go driving, all the time, perhaps you are. :P
I am thrown off by the mechanics statement, however. Either one has a leak, or doesn't. Any kind of a leak can lead to you, or someone else, being killed, because one cannot know when a "small" leak will expand, and leave you without break fluid. :sick:
Given that most of San Francisco is nothing but steep hills, this isn't something I would agonize over very long!
Anything mechanical has a predictable life within certain operational parameters. When parts are constantly pushed outside of those "normal" parameters, failure can occur sooner. Likewise your clutch assembly will fail sooner there than someone living in, say, Kansas, due to the extreme amount of shifting one does where you live versus Kansas, or another mostly flat locality. I am surprised he didn't say your pads needed replacing as well....
It only took me six months of living in Piedmont, and commuting daily into the city, to realize my next car would be an automatic.
Leaking brake fluid means you have no brakes at all!
-juice
Well, not really...
A small leak will gradually deplete the fluid, and depending upon how fast it leaks, wouldn't be noticeable at first, then the brakes would turn very mushy and the pedal would travel a great deal in stopping. At that point, you are very close to not having any breaking ability at all...
But yeah, it didn't just "give" suddenly, it was gradual, but I would not want to lose any brake pressure.
-juice
While the car was up on the lift, the tech and owner of the tire shop both stressed the urgent need for rear brakes & rotors, going so far as to say that if I didn't do it today, the calipers could fail, etc (I have not heard squeaking or grinding, and the brakes feel fine). Quoted cost was $220. The hard sell made me uncomfortable & I declined. My questions:
don't front brakes ususally need to be replaced before rear brakes?
assuming I really do need new brakes, should I have the dealer do it, or shop around (Midas, Meineke, etc.)
I've got the Subaru Added Security Gold Plus Plan. I'm assuming that this will not cover brake pads & rotors, will it? If not, what should I expect to spend?
Thanks.
Go to Meineke and Midas, and get a quote and evaluation. Two would be more than enough, added to what you already have. If the majority agrees, you are pretty safe in having the work done, and with brakes, safe is really better than sorry, eh? If you are a Triple A (AAA) member, they usually have a list of approved places for work, that won't rip you off, and have shown to have good work.
34,000 miles is almost three years of the average drivers mileage (36,000), so IMO not an abnormal mileage for replacement. Many owners need to replace their brakes every two years, so that shows you have used restraint in your braking application.
It took me by surprise. At 55k the rears have about 1/3rd left, fronts are about a half.
Generally, yes, the front pad material goes faster. But look at the size of the fronts vs the rears. That's the difference.
John
(Aside: I can't believe anyone is "lighter on the brakes" than I am.)
Owen
I just stuck with OE - quiet and durable. My front pads laster over 80k miles, the rear brake shoes are still original (90k plus)!
-juice
I wonder what I"m doing wrong? At 27K the dealer told me that I would need new brakes by 30K front and rear and also that my original Geolandars were about shot.
I always try to fix things myself because I like to understand how everything works, but this usually results in a minor catastrophe followed by an eventual (and sometimes expensive) happy ending. This usually involves plumbing...
In this case I'll probably have another shop confirm that the pads are shot and then have someone do it.
Any reason not to go with Goodyear, Meineke, etc.?
Dan
Is it better to downshift an automatic transmission on the downhill?
You make a good point. I do lots of hill and mountain driving, and people tend to brake, going around right turns than they need to, simply because it is a hill, and they are going down. It is a human fear, I believe, that causes this. Some outgrow it. Most don't it seems.
Transmissions cost a fortune. Clutches are also expensive. So I'd stick with using $17 brake pads as opposed to using $400 clutches or multi-thousand dollar trans.
I'm with you on this!
-juice
You must be driving junkers, to give advice so contrary to what professional drivers recommend doing...... :P
I would like to change the pads myself. I'm generally pretty good at things like that although I've never done brakes before.
Can anyone recommend a particular repair manual for my Forester or should I just follow the generic instructions on changing brake pads on any car?
Also, any particular merchant recommended for buying the pads? I guess I'd go with the Hawks based on Juice's post unless anyone has other suggestions.
Again, thanks a lot. I really appreciate getting help from you guys.
Dan
I think I'll change my brake fluid since it's about three years old, but I learned a lesson about trusting the particular Subaru dealership I go to.