front and rear pad change... air in brakes? bled 3 times, still not perfect...

[mazdaisland]

We changed the brake pads on our 2003 Mazda Protege 5, it was very frustrating, and my partner decided to remove the calipers to install the brake pads (never get a ford guy to do mazda!). We bled the brake lines, brakes were still soft, so we bled the valves on the caliper. Brakes were better but were still soft. Bled the valves again! Brakes got better but are still not as stiff as they should be. We did use the proper brake fluid, dot 3, very minimal air came out on the third bleed. I pumped the brakes 25 times and held the pedal down each time. Is this normal to have to repeat this process??? I am not sure if there is another problem and should take it to a mechanic. However I have recently moved and am pretty mistrustful of mechanics, since some seem to try to take advantage of people's misfortune and lack of direct knowledge. I have also seen online there can be a ABS RESET, that can only be done by a mechanic/dealer. Any help would be appreciated as I'm broke, unemployed and very frustrated with something that's supposed to be straightforward.

 

[MazdaSpeeder]

Did you retighten the allen screw on the rears? It's possible that you have a master cylinder problem...that's my guess based on your info. Did you bleed them in the right order? (RP, RD, FP, FD)?

 

[mazdaisland]

more info...

When the rears were done, my hubby took off the parking brake, and no did not tighten the 5mm allen screw, he thought this would only affect the parking brake. As we were adjusting the brake with them and did not want the parking brake too tight. Is this the screw you are referring to or is there another screw to consider?

 

[o.g.sk8er]

mazdaspeeder is correct.

lift the rear of the car so the wheels are off the ground.
tighten the 5mm allen screw till the wheels willnot turn.
then, back out the screw just enough to where there is a slight drag of the wheels.
to adjust the parking brake, remove the cover around the brake handle inside the car. there is a 10mm bolt. tighten that one as well to your liking.

hope this helps

 

[MazdaSpeeder]

In my experience, that makes a difference in pedal feel. The rears don't self-adjust like the fronts, and having the allen key backed off too much will result in soggy pedal feel and a parking brake that doesn't hold. Try tightening them up and see if that solves your problem.

 

[k-train04rl]

also when bleeding make sure u start with the brake that is the farthest from the master cyl first and work your way to the closest last. if not bleed in proper order, air can still be in the lines.

and visually inspect the master cyl for signs of leakage. if you have bleed properly and adjusted the screw on the rear, and no visual master cyl leaks or leaks anywhere, you may have an internal problem with the master cyl valves and therefore that may need replacing.

There also should be a bleeder valve in the master cyl, but i dont think you need to worry about that unless u swapped that for a new one.

 

[mazdaisland]

thank you

Yes, did bleed all four starting with the farthest wheel first, By the time I got to the driver's side front, there was a fair amount of air. Took off the back wheels and adjusted the screw, rear brakes work great now. Still checked for fluid level in the master after taking the car out all day yesterday!

Thanks everybody for your input, I greatly appreciate all of your advice!