cold weather break problems
 

Hi this is my first post here on the network so bare with me and my spelling.
My problem is this i live in minnesota and i noticed when the weather drops below 0 or negive -10. I cold start my car it is like really hard to press in the break pedal. i have to use all my weight to get my car to stop. the best way to decribe this is it is like not having power steering but in the break pedal this is really dangerous because my car wants to go forward when i put it in drive.
But once my car warms up the problem goes away. also in cold weather my window tend to frost alot on the inside witch is annoying as well. feeback would be much apprehated like to get this done in the summer and not this winter.

Re: cold weather break problems
 

First thing I would do is flush all old brake fluid out with new, as it's possible you have a bit of water in the lines, freezing at night. Start by sucking all old fluid from the master cylinder (I use an old turkey baster) and refilling with fresh fluid, then bleed each corner until nice fresh fluid shows up in bleed hose. I'm sure others will chime in with their suggestions.
As far as the inside windows freezing, is it possible you have some water on the floor, under carpets, etc? Also check the spare tire well under the trunk floor for water. Lots of folks have had problems with leakage finding it's way in via tail light gaskets or missing/misrouted sunroof drains.

Glenn

Re: cold weather break problems
 

Might be the formulation of your brake pads thats making them useless at low temps. The EVO8 I had was kinda dangerous in 32degree temps as the tires and brakepads were more like blocks of wood than engineered friction devices. Which makes sense given a design goal for proper operation at high temps during agressive driving.

So if you don't know what kinds of pads are on it, might pay to start researching for some cold weather pads

Also you need to check your brake booster and its lines. Water/sealing issues can make for a hard pedal.

Re: cold weather break problems
 

I've experienced this issue. The brake pedal doesn't move when pressed. It's not the pads. Bleeding the lines is your best bet.

Re: cold weather break problems
 

flush in dot 4, it boils hotter than dot 3, dot 5 doesn't work with abs

Re: cold weather break problems
 

bleeding the breaks with dot 4 sintentic would probable would do the trick, what is best and easyiest procedure to blead the break or to drain the master clinder, break boost would that be the culprit.

Re: cold weather break problems
 

Checkout this thread
http://www.subaru-svx.net/forum/showthread.php?t=56626
Should answer your questions.

Re: cold weather break problems
 

Cold weather break.

Re: cold weather break problems
 

it's not the best way but the easiest way to bleed in new fluid is to gravity bleed it. turn a bottle of brake fluid up side down on top of your reservoir or just watch it and keep filling it up. crack open the bleeder at each wheel and let it drip out a small hose into a water bottle until it runs clear.

Re: cold weather break problems
 

I've never tried this, but possibly a good way to bleed them alone. What kind of time are we talking about, for say the RR corner?

Glenn

Re: cold weather break problems
 

you probably want to let it drip for a good 5 minutes, less time in the front but the rears will drip really slow.