Bedding in brakes

[shooms]

Hi...

I've noticed whilst the brakes are VERY sharp when dabbing I've had a few hairy moments when coming down from speed to a dead stop on motorways & it didn't stop as quickly as I thought it might & I had to virtually press thru to the brake 'full bite'...

Anyone else noticed this ? Is this normal or just part of the bedding in process ?

[wigit]

shooms vag brakes are also noticiably sharper (over servod) compared to a lot of older motors, you do get used to it

[shooms]

Nice one Andy - it was the hard stop from speed I was a bit worried about - hoping once they are bedded in they stop quicker...

It may be down to the fact that I'm used to my V6 - with a big ole heavy lump up front I got used to coming off the throttle rather than using the brake (the weight of the lump naturally slowed the car down v quickly) & when hauling on the anchors from speed to a dead stop it seemed to be more responsive...

I guess like with anything a new cars characteristics will take getting used to

[wigit]

my missus used to repeatidly try to put my through the windscreen in my A3s given they were a bit sharp compared to her astra, just be careful when you step back in the pug

[Candy Monster]

Hi...

a few hairy moments when coming down from speed to a dead stop on motorways & it didn't stop as quickly as I thought it might & I had to virtually press thru to the brake 'full bite'...

I've noticed this too and dont like it, may change my pads as the brakes dont feel very progressive and underpowered for the car Probably just a case of getting used to it though. My last car was a mini so a bit lighter and a lot different feel to drive.

[Geoff Hibbert]

I've not noticed the brakes but did have a hairy moment when I lifted off in a bend ( I know, I know). It went all twitchy and I had a 5p 50p moment in my trousers!!!

[easybreeze]

The brakes are well sharp... it's quite dangerous when you drive another car as you for forget you need to be more heavy on the brakes - found it quite scary really :oops:

It's not right but you do get used to it.

[thedaz]

I have now done 2000 miles in my 140 GT and have noticed that when braking in a hurry from say 70 ;-) if feels as though you are not going to stop. At first i thought it was due to bedding in but now i am not sure sure. Has anyone else that has noticied this changed brake pads and if so has it made any difference.

[The Don]

I found this too. THe breaks are very sharp during town driving, but on Sunday I was on a motorway journey, and I found that coming to the end of the motorway the breaks seems very soft. I got a bit of a fright as I thought the breaks were failing on me. It seemed to be a case of them getting cold when I was driving for a prolonged period in the cold weather without touching the pedal???


Is this normal then?

[Luke]

I was warned by the salesman when I 1st drove away that the brakes will take a few miles to bed in as well as suspension, tyres etc.
However I seem to experience the same sensation that everyone else has with this car. Its when you brake from 70 approaching a roundabout & you know you need to stop. I press the pedal lightly & get an instant reaction from the brakes biting but than after that the pedal goes very solid & you really have to jam it to the floor before you plough into the car in front. I've done nearly 5000miles in mine now & the brakes haven't changed there characteristics one bit.
I've driven a 2003 skoda octavia that had the same braking characteristic so I think its simply a VAG trend they like but it makes you feel like you've been under sold in the brakes department.

[Chungster]

nothing wrong with the 345mm R32/S3 brakes on mine.

But i did swap the 312mm ones on my GTI for 345mm items cos they were just pants for a performance car IMO.

I'm guessing you've all got either 288 or 312's. Getting better pads might help but its just the Caliper/Disc combo really.

[ChrisL]

I concur with the symptoms described above i.e. very sharp at low speeds but poor response at higher speeds. Well to be more precise - poor response when I progressively brake or perhaps double-dip chiefly when I need more brake than I first thought approaching a junction/sharp bend. I’ve driven enough cars to know this is not due to bedding in nor satisfactory given the car’s performance.

There is an indication in the manual on page 154, the Brake Assist System (BAS) integrated with the ESP. Here it says “DO NOT reduce the pressure on the brake pedal ! The BAS will switch off the brake servo automatically when the brake pedal is released or if the pressure on the pedal is reduced.”

So I have taken the BAS to be the culprit and wish I could independently disable it. Never-the-less, it promotes hard braking in one firm movement which is against all my instincts on progressive braking.

[fun meter]

I just found you have to push the brake harder than you think to stop hard. Initial bite sharp, bit more pedal and not much change to deceleration. I found under heavy consistent braking there bite isnt too bad, but they fade quite quickly once up to a high temperature. To the point where they will really start to fall off. Im planning to get some Ferodo DS2500's to try for track.