I have an 01 v6 accord ex. My brakes have gotten progressively worse over the last few months. The brake peddle goes almost to the floor and I can't stop quickly, I have to have plenty of room to stop. Once I'm stopped the peddle doesn't sink to the floor and my car doesn't start rolling so I'm not sure what's wrong. Could my MC be going bad or something else? How can I tell if its my MC or something else? Fluid level is good, not loosing any. Any ideas?

 

pull the wheels and do a brake inspection first, check for leaks at calipers/wheel cylinders. if the pads/shoes look good, and no sign of leaks, then you may have a bad m/c.

 

wouldn't a bad m/c show a loss in fluid level? or if its leaking won't the fluid level decrease?

 

No, the brake master cylinder seals can leak internally. It can leak back into the brake reservoir when it loses pressure.

 

thanks for clarifying this sir. so, how will we know if we do have a bad m/c?

pedal pressure? loss in stopping power?

ndiehm I don't mean to hijack your thread i just want to clarify stuff and maybe this will help everybody in the future

 

First check that the brake fluid is at the proper level. If it is low, then you may have an external leak in the system.

A bad master cylinder when the seals fail internally will feel like there is little to no brake pressure when you push the brake pedal. The pedal will go to the floor. The pedal will feel very spongy. The problem can be intermittent.

 

if i keep on pressing the pedal and the pedal gets harder to press does it indicate my m/c is still good?

im just wondering why my brakes on the accord dont have that "bite" ( small rotor and caliper in the front and drum brakes in the rear) or is it normal for this kind of brake system?

the difference is really worlds apart when i switch on driving either my bimmer or the evo.

thank you sir

 

No worries about the hijack. I'm just trying to figure it out too. The pads and rotors are good, what am i looking for if there is a leak? Well there be fluid by the calipers? If it were an internal leak would I still be getting some pressure build up? Enough yo make me stop? The peddle is spongy but only goes ab 3/4 to the floor.

 

your master cylinder is bad... After you replace the obvious, it still has the problem.. THEN look at other areas..

Brian B

 

Since I just bought this car about 5 months ago, I didn't have any service records but was able to track down that a new MC was put in back in Feb of this year. I know it could still be bad but it shouldn't be in 7 months. The brakes were bled back when I bought it, so I am stuck of what it could be. Thoughts? Suggestions?