Spongey brakes

Allowed the brake fluid reservoir to run dry while bleeding....Oops.

Tried bleeding it and it did not work. So I took it to the dealer for spongey brakes. They just charged us $150 for bleeding the brakes and did not fix the problem. I figured they would at least do a techstream bleed but I don't think they did that. They wanted $120 to check the calipers.

My next step is to bleed the master and if that doesn't work I'll just replace it and see what happens. I did try the brakes on a newer buddy's Tundra. Tbh I'm not that impressed with the feel. They seem kinda spongey from the factory in comparison with my other cars.

 

Get a power bleeder

Motive Products - 0101 Round Universal Brake System Power Bleeder

$73 Motive Products 0101 Universal Power Bleeder 2-Quart Tank with Hose and Round Adapter

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00CJ5DWKO

 

Aren’t you the guy who recommended someone put the $12 brake pads from RockAuto on their truck?

I second Shanet’s recommendation as well.

 

Use your left foot for brake, and all the spongy peddle feel will be gone…

 

Yes and they are still working fine on my other truck. lol... different issue.

edited: and those were $7 Raysbestos pads. "Wholesaler closeout" discount. They actually feel better than any pad I have tried so far.

 

I already have a Gunson Eezibleed and a Mityvac and I don't really feel like buying new stuff...I don't have the adapter for the Tundra MC though. Did you have to buy one or did you make your own?

 

I do not but here is an option

ARES 18003-43mm Master Cylinder Adapter - for Use with Toyota and Lexus Master Cylinders - Use with Brake Fluid Bleeders

$50 ARES 18003-43mm Master Cylinder Adapter - for Use with Toyota and Lexus Master Cylinders - Use with Brake Fluid Bleeders

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07JPJSBKW

 

Looks good but kinda expensive. I may try to make my own out of some plumbing caps I have laying around before buying this....This inflation thing is a bitch.

 

Yes I was thinking of swapping them out with braided hoses or something like that. Currently pondering if I should do a rebuild on the calipers or just buy new ones.

 

Dumb question, but does the rear parking brake adjustment have any effect on brake pedal feel? I know they are separate systems so no right?

 

Update: I did a quick line lock test and it seems to work fine when I block the front calipers...So maybe the front calipers are bad and the master cylinder is still good?

When I blocked all 4 calipers I was able to push the brake pedal down a little bit and then it stopped. Held it there for a minute and it did not sink any further.

I expected the pedal to not move at all and be rock hard. . Maybe I'll repeat this test on the 4runner to see how a normal car is supposed to feel.

 

Rebuilding is what I recommend, I rebuilt mine and it was super cheap getting all the seals from the dealership. I don't remember the exact price, but maybe 20 bucks or less. Sure beats buying 3 new OEM calipers, I rebuilt all 4 of mine in a day.

 

And one could paint them a pretty color at the same time!

Painted and decal-ified some calipers many years ago. Might try it again with the tundra when I get bored.

 

That's a good point. I wish I could have painted mine when I had them off, but I couldn't get them clean enough with just a wire brush and brake cleaner

 

Do it. Rebuilding is easy and powdercoating looks great. I didn't swap in braided lines and wish I had. That slight spongey feeling is normal. You're just noticing it now because you're looking for it. I did the same.

 

For what it's worth, my punk, kid ass did NOT do a thorough job cleaning the calipers on my Infiniti I30 before painting. I didn't even remove the caipers from the knuckle (even tho I was pretty comfortable with brake work).

Used a brush on enamel system which came in whatever color desired and even the small brush. Looked fantastic and held upto cleanings for the 6 years I had with that vehicle.

Event the high temp decals were flawless for the duration.

 

@COTundie I may have to take a crank at painting my calipers next time I need to do my brakes, 6 years is plenty long for me. I'm just gonna paint then black to are the brake dust easier to clean off

 

You might’ve gotten air in your ABS module. Besides doing a bench bleed on the master cylinder I also recommend when you bleed your brakes to not let the pedal go to the floor and keep it in the typical stroke pattern of the throw of the brake pedal. If that makes sense. I threw a chunk of 2 x 4 under the pedal when I bled mine. I would suggest going down a bumpy road or gravel and getting the ABS to kick in. Do this several times and then bleed the brakes again. This is the Poormans method of a techstream ABS bleed lol

 

I tried to remove the front brake caliper pins and it is rusted stuck....So much for the 30 minute brake caliper disassembly I planned on. This is going to suck. Last time this happened to me the pin mushroomed and I had to cut it off and banged the living crap out of it with heat. I'm not doing that shit again. Can't Toyota replace these with pins with oil impregnated pins or something?

 

Ended up buying New calipers, Rotors Pads, rubber hoses. Total: $680....So that got out of hand or pretty quickly. I didn't rebuild them because I wanted to be sure that it was not contributing to the spongey brake problem. Rockauto would have definitely been cheaper than the local parts store. $40 for a duralast brake hose! I still need to buy new brake line tubes that go to the calipers....Or reuse the current ones that are stripped....New England sucks btw. Besides that the original calipers were beautiful for 2008 part.

 

I was also suprised that there is a seal for the brake fluid port between the two parts of the calipers when you split them in two parts. It sends the brake fluid from one side of the caliper to the other side. The rebuild kits do not have that seal.

 

Well the cylinder and piston is fine, but a much more experienced mechanical person did suggest that I replace it. He's kinda OCD tho.

 

Installed new front calipers, pads, rotors, brake tubes, hoses, and bled...There is definitely an improvement in feel. Pedal test with engine off is noticably more firm. Not sure if I'm satisfied though. I may still do the master cylinder since it's old. I think that'll be next spring though. With this and two other project cars I have to maintain. I'm beat. Prob gonna take the advice and buy a motive bleeder

Anybody need a genuine OEM caliper rebuild kit? Bought it but never used it. I guess I can use it when the remans crap out on me.