ive got an 85 iroc with the 4 wheel disc options. ive had spongy brakes since i got it. within the month ive owned it my brake light (on the dash) has been comming on more and more. it goes away once i hit the brakes hard. car failed inspection for not having the reserve it should....i took the back wheels off and looked around..the pads are fine. on both sides..BUT the pad on the driver side on the inside (against the piston) is not against the rotor. it seems like its gotta way to travel.....i tried drivin around with the e brake on seeing if it seemed better (i read on another post where someone did this and saw their calibers were frozen) but...it didnt prove anything. i took the lid off the master cylinder and when i pressed the brakes it squirted out around the back (up and over the top. if the lid was on itd stay in) should it be like that? im stuck between the fact that this could be my master cylinder or the calibers. any advise guys? im hoping this can be fixed soon since i commute far for work so far everyday..

 

also i forgot 2 mention....there was a brake line put on one side because when the old owner was sellin it someone on a test drive said it pulled to one side. the line was collapsed. ive thought there was air in it this whole time. but...on saturday we bled the side where the new line was put on but...no avail.

 

You need to bleed all four corners - starting with the passenger side rear, working your way closer to the master cylinder. You probably have air in the other lines as well. Could be a master cylinder problem too.

If that doesn't solve your problem, I'd check the rotor and pad thickness. They could both be on the thin side, but not obviously so.

 

i did the master cyl today. i bled the right front back and right back wheels. not the other two. but...ill be doing the pads tomorrow in the back...maybe itll help.

 

ok..update..did back pads....still nothing!!! wtf!!!


so after a new master cyl and the pads still nothing. its a little better since its got new pads but..still its no good. brakes dont lock up at all. on stones, only the front does. back brakes do work though....could it be one or both calipers? booster? basically im at the end of the line here...ive got no idea...

 

I would say it's your master cylinder, especially if you are not loosing any fluid.

 

I don't think it's caliper problem, since the braking is weak on all four corners. I'd suggest checking the brake booster next. It may not have a vacuum leak, but still be bad. Bleed all four wheels again, just to be sure you have all new fluid in the system.

You've done just about everything else.....

 

I'm not sure about the older Iron Calipers but I know on my PBR's there are two possibilities of something causing the pads not to contact properly. Either the piston of the Caliper itself was frozen, or the bolts that the Caliper Carrier slides on to adjust were frozen. I ended up having a frozen Caliper piston on one side and a frozen Caliper Carrier bolt on the other side. The best way to see whats going on is to have the car in the air, wheels off, and a friend pressing the brakes for you while you watch up close and personal ...

I second properly bleeding the system again.