cant stop

[jeffcoslacker]

Originally Posted by accordsforall

Hmmm
I dont have rear brakes.. and havent on either the 92 I used to have.. or the 00 Im driving. And I dont like to make long drawn out stops.. but I have to in order to scrub the excess off.

I was referring mainly to the original poster, but a similar sitiuation can arise from light braking with drum rears too...light application causes the front to bear the brunt, while in the rear only the shoe (single) with the lightest return spring tension will lift off the stops and apply to the drum...in time the opposite side of that wheel cylinder, as well as the entire cylinder on the opposite side of the car will seize and become useless....

My point was only if you were not the original owner, and found the car to be that way as long as you'd owned it...

There's a lot of strange things that can happen, but it's not rocket science, brake operation is pretty straightforward...

If you have a solid pedal, but little stopping power, you are most likely dealing with a mechanical, rather than hydraulic issue. Some strange but not unheard-of problems would include a malfunctioning preportioning valve block or a crushed line where someone put a jack or lift pad under the wrong spot and smashed the line to the rear...

If you take the car out on an open road, get up to speed and make a couple of nice hard stops, then get out and judge the temp of the wheels shortly after the hard stops, you'll usually find your ineffective brake (it's the one or ones that's cooler than the rest...) braking is friction, friction creates heat..if the car's not stopping, the wheel or wheels responsible will not be producing much, but remember rears will always run cooler than fronts, that's normal.

Occaisionally, I've run across a car that had front brakes that were for some reason simply too hard of a compound to work correctly with the rotors...for some reason I've noticed it more on Toyotas than others, but nobody is above suspicion...these pads will emit grinding also that would make you swear you were biting rivets, but on inspection will be like new...sometimes the first indisputable sign of this is when the pads simply won't wear, I've had customers have this problem but are not convinced that replacing near-new appearing pads with new ones will solve the problem, but when, two years and 40,000 miles later, the pads still look like new when they should have worn out long ago, the problem becomes apparent, and they gladly let me replace them, and Voila! the hard stopping and noise are gone!....

[jeffcoslacker]

Occaisionally, with rear drums, the "pads" where the edge of the shoe rests on the backing plate can become so severely grooved that the shoes are unable to fully engage the drum, instead catching on the edge of the groove...this gives a solid pedal feel also, as the shoes are hitting hard against something (the lip of the groove), just not what they are supposed to (the drum), and they are basically useless once the shoe lining wears out beyond the shoe's reach when stuck in the groove...


An easy way to check the rears (always my favorite culprit for hard pedal, low braking effect problems) is simply to jack the rears off the ground and have someone hold the brake like when making a normal stop...I've found lots of cars you could easily turn the rear wheels by hand while doing this...problem found...

[accordsforall]

Hmmmm
I appreciate all of the assistance..

My next question is.. even tho I purchased my 00 from a autopark (bunch of automakers that trade cars back and forth including the make I bought).. is it possible or cheaper to get my brakes checked at another side company.. NTB / NTW, Mineke, other brake companies?

I havent had much luck with.. NTW.. they have a .. non-chalant ness to their work. Almost lost the heart of my 92.. cause during an oil change they didnt remove the old gasket.. and when i started the car.. oil RAINED OUT.

I really dont want to trust my brakes.. to side company.. but I dont want to get raped.. either.


Comments welcome..

[luvmyhonda]

i do know my rear brakes are gripping (how well i dont know) there is no rust on any of the rotors.

and as for where to go...i never go to corporate owned or franchise places. cuz unless u got a ferrari or benz....and you know they gonna do it right, i dont mess with em.

i usualy go to a "shade tree" mechanic. but the ones i goto are word of mouth and have actual shops. i was just baffled by this brake situation cuz it seems like the only time they worked right was when i got it from the dealership

also, how do you know if you need new shocks/ struts?

[00accord44]

"Shade tree" I thought I was one of the few people who actually call them that. There are many indicators that your shocks are worn:

creaking /groaning from the corners during turning
excessive travel over bumps
noticeably harsh ride, more harsh = more damage
uneven tire wear may be caused by shocks also

What are you noticing when you drive? Turn the radio off and hit a few circles of varying diameter. Your shocks may sound fine at one steering angle but have a problem at another angle. Do turns with windows up AND a run with them down (if its not too cold).

[luvmyhonda]

i know im in atlanta, but i dont like my car "leaning and rockin wit it" the way it does. its a very occasional creeking (almost like a broke axle) but mostly it dives in stright line braking, and leans a bit more than it used to. what brand or type of shocks/ struts do anybody recomend? im not tryin to race so no mod stuff lol. i just want it to ride as smooth and gentile as when i 1st got it. i dont want it to be stiff like the accord coupe