brake pedal soft after new pads and disks

rippling

Member
As title, i have bled the brakes using gunson pressure kit, no leaks the brakes were fine before the pads were changed. any tips? the bleeding was done. drivers rear, passenger rear, passenger front, then drivers front. i ran a litre through the system but brakes still soft. or best to take the car to a garage and get them to do it ?
 
I think youl need someone with vag com to bleed the brakes as without it you cant represurise the abs pump corectly, ,

thought id add , when using vagcom to bleed the brakes , it actually pumps the brakes for you mostly which charges up the abs unit to the correct pressure and removing all the air from the unit, theres no way to make the abs pump run to bleed it without vag com
 
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I think youl need someone with vag com to bleed the brakes as without it you cant represurise the abs pump corectly, ,

thought id add , when using vagcom to bleed the brakes , it actually pumps the brakes for you mostly which charges up the abs unit to the correct pressure and removing all the air from the unit, theres no way to make the abs pump run to bleed it without vag com

Can it be done with a cheepy cable and The free software (lite) or does it require the full package?


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Affraid you cant do it with the cheap lead , full vag com is needed , although im unsure if it can be done with a registered aftermarket cable and vag com lite .. perhaps someone more knowledgable can answer
 
I think youl need someone with vag com to bleed the brakes as without it you cant represurise the abs pump corectly, ,

thought id add , when using vagcom to bleed the brakes , it actually pumps the brakes for you mostly which charges up the abs unit to the correct pressure and removing all the air from the unit, theres no way to make the abs pump run to bleed it without vag com

glad i read this because no one suggested this when i done my disks/pads and rear brake cylinder last week!!!

so does this mean that mine are done incorrectly? although my brakes work they dont have the same response or firmness as my own a2 :/ and i setup my phone to capture a video to see if any bubbles came out when i was pressing the pedal and it did. however, like you say this sounds better and safer to have this done.

now who has vagcom to help me bleed my brakes????

cheers
 
Hi Cammy, I am sure that someone will correct me but I think that it is only necessary to bleed the ABS that way if you have allowed air to get into the ABS unit (if you have replaced it or if you have emptied the whole system during bleeding etc).

If your brake pedal is firm and not spongey and if you have only been working on the callipers and or brake cylinders and so only allowed a small amount of fluid to escape, you may not need to bleed the ABS system since no air has got to it?

I have never had to do that process, but then again I only ever allow a small amount of fluid to escape.

As I say, happy to be corrected.

Steve B
 
I think unless you were very carefull , ie used a hose clamp to replace the rear cylinders so no line presure was lost you may have lost pressure in the abs unit, they are very complex units in how they workand hold brake pressure, in all my A2s the pedal feels roughly the same although the 1.4 petrol seems way sharper , due to the weight id imagine. when i did my tdi conversion last year i had nightmears trying to get a good pedal again, the whole brake system was taken apart and new brake pipes ect so id started from a system with no fluid as such , i used a pressure bleeder as its needed to bleed A2 brakes , although after bleeding again and again with no air coming out of the system i still had a pedal i was not happy with, after using vag com to bleed the brakes the difference was noticable straight away, and freaked me out somewhat during the process being my first time for such things as the pedal goes of its own occord and the noises from the abs unit and brakes while its doing its bleeding was a bit worrying at first but i followed the on screen process which takes some time .
advisable to have clear tubing and jam jars with the pipe ends on the bleed nipples and other in the jam jars on each of the wheels as you have to undo bleed nipples and let the process work , tightening and undoing bleed nipples when instructed , the pump the brake pedal 10 times bit got a bit much after a while lol
 
i have changed front flexi pipes, and rear cylinders on numerous A2's without ever having to use VAGCOM, but never allowed air to enter the master cylinder. Even pushed new fluid through to all cylinders one at a time

I think VAGCOM is only needed if air is allowed to enter the master cylinder
 
Here is a tip to avoid unnecessary brake fluid drainage.


  • I remove the cap on the brake fluid reservoir
  • Put a latex glove over the reservoir it must cover the whole reservoir opening (as a gasket)
  • Put the lid back and tighten it
  • This makes the lid air tight and keep the fluid in the reservoir during the work
  • Remove it when the work is completed and before you start bleeding the brakes
 
It might just be the pads need to "bed in" and will be better once you have done a few miles.
 
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