mikemareen

why does it feel like the rotors are going to break when i step on the brakes ? it feels like the brakes are so weak and the tiny HS is so heavy.

does anyone else notice this ? I understand there is a recall on this issue but lexus has sent us nothing in terms of service campaigne.

Magellan55

No problems for me. The brakes feel nice and sturdy, moderates easily, and I've had no problems hauling down from high speeds in panic stops on the highway. I can't really tell when it transitions from regen to friction either - pretty seamless. Maybe your car has a problem?

Canesguy

No brake problems whatsoever on my car . Some people just like to come to our forum and "diss" our car, not just in one place, but on a few threads.


"is it me or do the brakes feel very inadequate ?"

It's you.

hyperme

My brakes are fine. Don't use them much, but when I do, no problem.

JamesDemo

No problem with the breaks as a matter of fact I love the regeneration and the wining noise they make. The creation of all that energy and put to use in the car is quite ingenious and when I think of all the cars that waste all that energy just in one day - one week - one year could definitely save some serious power so 2

mitsuguy

iTrader: (2)

try this - go out and find an empty space of road, get the car up to about 45-50 mph and press the brake pedal as hard as you can...

does the ABS engage pretty quickly?

if the ABS engages, the brakes are doing as much as they possibly can to slow the car, but the tires are the underlying issue... if the ABS doesn't engage, then you either need to press harder on the brakes, or there is something wrong with the vehicle... doing this repeatedly will overheat the brakes and the brakes will fade, but as a first stop, I imagine the ABS will engage immediately...

acheparev

I had an issue the other day. I was going about 30 mph and a truck pulled out in front of me. I braked, but while braking must have hit a pothole and my breaks completely let go. A moment later they engaged again, but was a bit startling, I had the break pressed down the whole time, but wasn't applying too much pressure, just breaking normally. Is this supposed to happen or is my car affected by the break recall? I got it in May, which is after the recall, so I assumed it was fixed.

Everyone in my car noticed that the breaks had let go. I'm just worried cause I drive in NYC (full of potholes) that it could lead to an accident. Never had this issue in my 2008 Volvo C30.

mitsuguy

iTrader: (2)

Most likely they didn't let go completely, they just reduced pressure to avoid going out of control. When an ABS equipped car senses that one wheel has stopped spinning, but the other three are still moving, with the brakes applied, it sees that as a high friction situation with the other three and a low friction situation with the one wheel, so, what it does is release the pressure all around a slight amount to keep the car moving - this helps the driver to maintain control of the vehicle, and in a real accident type situation, it lets you steer around a potential problem... Unfortunately it can lengthen stopping distances ever so slightly - especially in really low traction conditions like snow, ice and dirt roads, although in those conditions, you maintain better control of the vehicle versus it plowing itself right off the side of the road...

The brake recall, IIRC, was just to update the software so that if you pressed the brake and gas at the same time, the engine wouldn't still try to accelerate...

dedas1

Hey, I think I know what you are feeling during braking. Recall when Toyota was big in the news with its acceleration issues. All kinds of stuff was coming out of the woodworks about Toyota and Lexus. Well, about that time, a Prius driver in a 2010 model was on the news here about her car brakes failing at around 5 mph during a stop, esp after hitting a bump, like the railroad tracks. This was reportedly a normal transition from normal braking to regen. The switch results in a slip feeling for about 1-2 secs, but no loss of braking. There was so much complaining about it and so much media hype, that Lexus has its brake recall back in the late winter early spring for the HS, since it was similar to the 2010 Prius ( there are lots of blogs on this site about it the brake recall). I noticed it also when hitting a bump, pot hole or railroad track during slow down on braking. Will, when I had my recall, I asked the saleperson (who also was a Toyota mechanic for 20 yrs prior) what was the deal. He said they were reprograming the change over from the 5 mph to around 20 mph. I now sense it more slowing down and hitting bumps at that range and don't worry too much and cautious about going too fast and needing to brake suddenly at the higher speed. It makes more sense to have it lower speeds so you don't have as much force and momentum at the slower speed, but Toyota caved to media and pressure to change it. So, hopefully this helps explain that you are likely sensing is a normal transition while braking.

dedas1

Oh also, I think the brakes otherwise are great in this car. My privious Acura Legend had great brakes too, but the HS is superb. I barely have to touch them and the car is stopping. In fact they are too sensitive and need very little pressure to stop the car. Our Chrysler was dangerous. The car never felt like it was going to stop and Chrysler knew that the brakes in the van was too light weight for the car, but too cheap to redesign and change them. Our Honda Odyssey has good brakes too, but need more pressure compared to the HS. Our RX has good brakes but the HS is still better. If you sense needing to apply too much pressure and still sensing that you are not stopping, you should have the dealer look at it. Although the HS is a small car, it is a weighty car for its size and but still should not take that much pressure to stop.

mikemareen

well then something is wrong with our HS, something is very wrong.

it is not sensitive at all and I have to press it in over half way to get a SUDDEN breaking resistance. Our 2003 previa has better brakes.

something is wrong.

In fact, we are seriously considering trading it in or having lexus give us some kind of compensation as a trade in or buy back.

the car has no power, but that is fine and acceptable because it's a hybrid...but it also has shiddy brakes and when you add those two together; you get a horrible feeling with a car.

KGenaidy

In a previous vehicle I experienced similar issues. There was air in the brake lines.

You might see if you can get the dealership to bleed the brake lines and see it it improves.

I suspect if you say it's a "safety concern" ... they'll get right on it. Just a suggestion though.

Also ... you might ask to drive another HS at the dealership... to compare the brake modulation. If it is quite different get the service manager to drive both with you ... this might point out the issue and help you get some resolution.

Magellan55

Right - first step (after maybe asking the forum if it's normal ) is to go to the dealer and have it looked at. Jumping right to asking for compensation is a bit premature, unless of course you've already had the dealer look at it and tried the good suggestions KG mentioned above.

tonyscv

Yes... do yourself a favor and test drive a different HS and compare the brakes. The HS' brakes certainly *feel* different because there are two braking systems - the regenerative brakes for "lighter" stops and then normal friction brakes kick in when additional stopping power is needed... but they by no means feel inadequate or mushy as you describe.

YotaCarFan

Slightly OT --
Is it normal for the brake pedal to make a raspy squeak when sharply pressed or quickly released? It sounds like air escaping from the pedal area. I assume it's just a pressure release for what appears to be a pneumatic system charged by an electric air compressor, but want to see if others have the same experience.