Excessive Brake pedal travel before "bite"

[ljsommar1]

I live in SE Pa but most brake shops should be capable of this. The shop I used was just a franchise Meineke. I have a Vida setup but am not very proficient with it ,so no help from me there. I think the idea is to have the ABS valves open while breading. There are many
others on this site way better than I, to help with this.

[justanotherhumanoid]

So, finally, success. I swapped the master cylinder and also re-bled the brakes while cycling ABS using VIDA, as suggested in other posts on this forum. I believe it was the master cylinder, as I first tried bleeding the brakes again while ABS cycling, with minimal change, if any. As chrism suggested, it did seem that I got better grab with a sudden application of brake than a slow one, so that fits as well. So, end result is that it was the master cylinder.

The pedal feel is markedly improved and while it's not as "hard" or digital a feeling as in a lot of vehicles, it is much more reassuring than the soft and uncertain engagement point it had before. Application is smooth and progressive starting at about 0.5-1" of travel. I thoroughly tested them and am quite pleased with the result. The "R" brakes are insanely satisfying to stomp on, it feels like I could stand the car on its nose if I wanted to. I don't think I'd want the pedal any harder than it is now.

It only took swapping out every component except the brake booster and ABS module (but I'm glad it wasn't either of those).

Some pics of R brakes installed and (finally) feeling good, too:

[Willber]

Check that your vac lines to the brake booster and inlet manifold are OK and replace the OEM clamps with hose clips, this improved brake feel on mine as must have had a tint vac leak.