im wondering why in the world my brakes suck so bad... ive heard that were supposed to have amazing brakes ... my ford ranger can stop in a shorter distance than my beloved 7..

does my brake system need to be completely flushed?

also my brakes lock up if i press to hard... i though i had abs??

im adding a single to my car and want to be able to stop the car with the extra power...

any advice on what can be done to improve my braking system as is?

 

An FD in the USA was likely produced between 12 and 16 years ago. If you don't know the history of your car, it could be that it has never had the brake fluid flushed.

Additionally, if you experience lockup, then your ABS system is malfunctioning.

You need to take the car to a competent mechanic to get your braking system brought back to working order before you even consider any other changes to the car.

 

No you won't. Tires stop the car.


danameisoj,

You need to examine a few things:

1. What kind of pads are on the car and how worn are they? I would suggest getting either Bonez Stage I pads from RX7.com or some Carbotech Bobcats. Both are great pads for the street.

2. Check your rotors. If they haven't been changed, I would go ahead and change them out. You don't need super expensive, slotted, drilled rotors. Some blanks from Tirerack.com will do just fine.

3. I would also suggest going ahead and getting SS brake lines.

4. Brake fluid flush. This is a must. I would recommend getting ATE (Super Blue/Gold). It's a high performing fluid by not as hydroscopic as a race fluid.

5. Lastly, tires. If you can lock up the tires, your braking system is working. Tires are what stop the car. What kind of tires are you using? Are they worn?

 

im on brand new toyo t1-r's 225/35/18 up front .. 275/35/18 rear

ill be doin just about all the abouv mentioned . that should take care of things .. the only thing that bothers is the abs situation

 

I think something is seriously wrong with the car if you can lock up those brand new Toyo's, yet still get outbraked by your truck (aside from your ABS problem). Like WVRx7 said, get it checked.

 

To get back to basics, the FD was and still is one of THE braking champions.
Ever.
60 - 0 in 110 ft. is something few cars can do even today.
So yes, you have some serious problem(s) going on.

 

I agree that my FD can outbrake anything I've ever driven. Maybe I haven't driven the right cars. The thing that annoys me is the ABS. I absolutely hate ABS. If it's malfunctioning (like in my 01 Blazer), I'd say let the ABS go and drive without it. You get much better feel from the brakes without it anyways. As far as the ranger stopping quicker, sounds like you need a good old revamp of the brake system (fluid, lines, rotors, etc). Spend about $500 to get a solid braking system, since it's probably petty compared to what you're looking to spend on the rest. I don't like the argument of guys having $10k or $20k into the engine and body, yet they haven't looked at the brakes. It's a key system, treat it as such. Oh, and good luck with it!

 

You need to do some reading. A quote from one of the many brake sites:

If he can already lock the tires, there is nothing a "big brake kit" can do better beside dissipate heat (which isn't his problem).

 

MontegoRx: There are only a handful of factory cars that can outbrake an FD, even today. (911 turbo comes to mind)

red94rx7: The braking distance is usually limited by tire traction. Bigger brakes are more resistant to the heat of repetitive hard braking but won't have much effect on a simple braking distance test.


(Mahjik, you beat me to it)

 

Maybe a bad question, but is ur Master Cyl. ok? I had mine replaced to the tune of 230 bucks for the cylinder alone (way too much for a piece of plastic). Mine still feel sqishy too, so time for SS brake lines.

 

First off if you can lock up the tires, then why do you think something is wrong with the brakes?? IMO if you can lock them up on the street then they are working fine although new fluid wouldn't hurt.

Second if you can lock them up the ABS is not working right.

Third if you can lock them up and hold them on the edge of locking up I seriously doubt you can outbrake your FD with your truck, if so I'd like to see that.

 

If your brakes are locking there's your issue.

Is the ABS light on? If it's not verify that the bulb is good. It should light for a few seconds and then go out when you turn on the key. If it stays on there's an ABS problem.

I had an ABS problem not long ago and in my case it turned out to be the ABS computer in the trunk. My car is raced on sticky race tires so any braking issues are compounded. My car was blowing the ABS fuse on occasion for seemingly no reason. Finally it would blow the fuse as soon as it was replaced and the ABS light stayed lit. I also found that the brake bias went nearly 100% to the front. Without any rear brakes the fronts would lock very easily and the car could not slow at a very high rate at all.

Given that I was blowing fuses I insisted it must be an electrical problem and the ABS ecu is the only electronic part of the system. I replaced the ABS ecu and all was fine again. What the ABS ecu has to do with the brake bias I'm not completely certain. My best guess is the ecu failure somehow shutdown the rear brake ABS solenoid so no brake pressure could reach the rear.

Opening up my old ecu showed burnt traces on the board inside. The ABS ecu is basically an amplifier and it looks like the output devices may fail over time (just like they often do in audio amplifiers).

 

while we're on the subject of poor braking, i recently did a complete brake job on my fd. new rotors, pads, ss lines, fluid. but even before that, something i've noticed is that whenever i depress the brake pedal i can hear fluid gurgling through what i believe is the MC.. anyone ever had the piston in the MC wear out? the only other cause i can think of for the gurgling might have something to do with the ABS.