Almost no braking power after changing brake pads and bleeding the brakes 95 dodge

W

Wes

New member
neon non abs? I recently changed my brake pads on a 95 dodge neon after they were changed out I took it for a test drive, the front driver side wheel started to smoke and smelled awful. I assumed it was a seized caliper so i replaced it from autozone with a new one.

After I got the new caliper on the same thing happened. A friend of mine told me it could be the brake line going to the caliper sometimes they will be damaged even though they look fine. I replaced that at autozone as well and got that on today and that seemed to fix the problem with the seized up caliper now I have almost no braking power at all. I tried to bleed the brakes several times and the pedal goes to the floor. When I have the car up on jackstands and put the car in drive and then push on the brakes it will stop but its nowhere near safe. I have checked all the bleeder valves to make sure they are tight, it doesnt have abs on it. when the car is off i can pump up the brakes no problem and it gets hard to push but as soon as i start the car the pedal hits the floor. I dont really have anymore money to sink into this car right now or i would try to replace the master cylinder.

Any help anyone could give would be great. Im not sure what else to do

Could someone tell me if the car is turned off and the pedal gets firm after i press down on it a few times could it still be caused by air in the system? a friend of mine said that if there was air in the system it would be soft when the car is off and on. is this true? i am hoping im just bleeding the brakes wrong or something and there is some quick easy fix. know my luck though its probably the master cylinder

The caliper i got was
Duralast Reman / Brake Caliper - Front
For your 1995 Dodge Neon 2.0L SFI SOHC 4cyl
Part Number: C424
Weight: 6.15 lbs
Warranty: Limited Lifetime
Notes: Driver side

The Brake hose i got was
Brakeware / Brake Hose - Front
For your 1995 Dodge Neon 2.0L SFI SOHC 4cyl
Part Number:70656
Weight:0.7 lbs
 
Simply sounds like you still have air in the lines. When the engine is off, pressing on the brake petal multiple times will pressurize the Master Brake cylender causing the brake petal to firm up, not reaching the floor anymore. As the engine is on the pressure is released and the petal will go back to normal operation... and in this case go to the floor as you compress air within the system.

Research online (one link provided) on proper ways to bleed the brakes and try again.

Testing the brakes via vehicle on blocks and running the tires will not be an effective test. In that case your only applying enough force to stop rotating a spinning tire, not 1 1/2 tons of car going down the street.
 
after you got done bleeding the wheels did you refill the master cylinder? also did you bleed the brakes the right way? you start on the right rear then the left rear then you go to the right front then the left front. but if were just working on the front then the front wheels is the only ones you need to bleed.
 
it's not the brakes or the master cylinder, it has power brakes and you probably bled the system with the engine off. with the engine off the pedal feels firm but when you start the car the pedal goes to the floor. Re bleed the brakes with the engine idling and you will notice a huge difference in pedal feel
 
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