I have a 99 LX with 68K. Car rides great but brakes are a bit soft. The dealer says there is still plenty of wear left on the pads. Does anyone know if new pads or any other type of service would make these brakes less mushy and more tight? Any thoughts would be most appreciated. Thanks.

 

Hi - I recently got a '99 with 74K on it. Both my father and I initially thought the brakes felt soft (or squishy as he put it). After checking with a number of people - including the mechanic who did the inspection and owns another LX - apparently that's how the brakes are supposed to feel. (My father and I are used to driving small, german cars with very responsive, tight brakes.)

That said, if the brakes really aren't working this is not the issue, but from your description of them as 'soft', I figured this is what you meant.

Hope this helps you decide either way.

 

you could pull the pads to see how evenly they are wearing. If uneven, you could have cailper or rotor problems. Do have have any vibration on braking? that could indicate other problems as well.

 

Also replace the break fluid if it was not done recently. Could be as simple as the old fluid/water/vapor block.