182 Brakes - poor

[paul18]

I have a 182 that I have owned for four months. I have not had the chance to drive it much but at the weekend I went on a decent journey of around 200 miles round trip. The car has covered only 14000 miles and was registerd in 2006. I found that the brakes did not inspire confidence. They seemed to fade quickly under hard braking, at one point with full pedal force, (I missed a turning) it did not haul up with any conviction.
I'm not looking to upgrade the brakes at this stage. I would like to know if this is 'normal' in others experience or the sign of a problem.
I have driven a 1.2 on the Nuburgring and did not notice any issues with the brakes.
Thanks.

 

[Scott S]

The brakes on my 172 were't as I expected them to be, I changed the fluid and it has helped a lot. Going to dismantle everything soon though and clean the lot up to see if I can make them any better.

Mine didn't fade as such, it was more like they lacked the final bite required to really stop the car quickly.

 

[Lewb]

Hmm, not sure if the 182 brakes are the same as the 172 but my brakes really do perform well, havn't got them to fade noticably ever and they stop the car very fast when needed. Have you checked your discs / pads are ok?

 

[Tom]

Bleed the system, change the pads and discs.

1x2 brakes are brilliant.

 

[Fletcher]

I'd go for this set-up Ferodo DS2500 pads Brembo HC discs, Goodridge braided hoses..

or some 4 pots.

 

[paul18]

Thanks. Even though the car has covered a low mileage the brake fluid is getting on a bit. Perhaps a change of fluid will improve things then.

 

[Lewb]

Thanks. Even though the car has covered a low mileage the brake fluid is getting on a bit. Perhaps a change of fluid will improve things then.

I'd be surprised if it didnt. When I got my clio it had new discs, pads and fluid and was impressed by the brakes - coming from a car with an expensive 4 pot brake conversion.

 

[H182]

Definitely fluid, had mine changed and much better. Still not 100% happy with them though going to get braided lines and maybe performance pads next time.

 

[172cupwizard]

My brakes are sweet, Brembo HC discs and Ferrodo pads. And I dont even have ABS

 

[Tony Hunter]

If they are the standard pads I am afraid they are made of butter and you will need to change them.

 

[Aluco]

I'm not overly impressed with mine, my 1.4's brakes had more bite ! and they fade really quickly on a sprint.

Might have to change the fluid and get braided lines !

 

[Budgie]

I'm not overly impressed with mine, my 1.4's brakes had more bite ! and they fade really quickly on a sprint.

Might have to change the fluid and get braided lines !

Your 1.4 brakes weren't better, they were just over-servo'd.

 

[Aluco]

Your 1.4 brakes weren't better, they were just over-servo'd.

How does that work ? (Genuniely interested) Don't know much about brakes.

 

[Budgie]

The servo amplifies the pressure you press on the brake pedal, to make braking more effortless.

With the same pressure pushed on a 1.2/1.4's brakes, they'll bite harder than a 1*2.

From an equal speed, at the same, high temperature, the 182 will pull up long before a 1.4.

Rally cars, etc who want brakes to have more feel/less reactive brakes (if they're on ice or gravel, so stop them locking up) with be un-servo'd.

 

[Aluco]

Ah right I see, makes sense - cheers.
Do 1*2 brakes need to be more up to temp before they will perform their best ? and the 1.4 would probably be designed to have better performance from cold ?

 

[Budgie]

I doubt it, but the more powerful servo would make the brakes feel sharper from cold..

Also, keep in mind that you'll probably be going faster in your 182 than in the 1.4, so it's all relative, really..

 

[Pep]

My standard 182 brakes were horrendous, had them almost on fire after a fairly hard drive, but not really pushing it.

Upgraded with brembo/ebc/ap fluid/new lines and they were good.

Not a patch on standard dc2 brakes though!

 

[Mark One]

The servo amplifies the pressure you press on the brake pedal, to make braking more effortless.

With the same pressure pushed on a 1.2/1.4's brakes, they'll bite harder than a 1*2.

From an equal speed, at the same, high temperature, the 182 will pull up long before a 1.4.

Rally cars, etc who want brakes to have more feel/less reactive brakes (if they're on ice or gravel, so stop them locking up) with be un-servo'd.

To add to that, if you ever get the chance to drive a lambo or something on a driving experience day, you'll find the brakes on proper sports cars are far less servo'd

 

[Budgie]

Proper brake feel ftw.

Shopping cars and their windscreen endangering servos ftl.

 

[paul18]

I have owned 911s and know what 'proper' brakes feel like. Especially a 993 turbo with the 'Big Red' Brembos.

 

[Henry]

sounds most likely to be aerated fluid. i'd do that first, then pads