Brake Pedal Feel And Braking Performance
 

A few years ago I purchased a used 2008 Sebring Touring V6 2.4L Flex with 4 wheel ABS disc brakes. Everything worked well at first but then one day I had to perform a panic stop during which the car pulled to one side and there was a slight shuddering in the front end. Later that week I replaced all of the rotors and pads -- the parts were close to needing replacement anyway. I used quality ceramic brake pads. When changing the pads everything seemed normal except for the front driver's side caliper. When I used a C-Clamp to compress the piston, it kept sliding back out. In all of the brake jobs I've done, this has never been an issue. I later read that you're supposed to open the bleeder valve when compressing the piston -- Something I didn't know but would like confirmation on, are you supposed to do this?

Now with new parts installed, the car does better when braking but still has a slight pull and shuddering at higher speeds. After a few weeks of use, there is noticably more wear on the front driver's side rotor than any of the others. I've taken the car to several mechanics all of which tell me everything is normal/fine.

My brake fluid isn't low, it has the right color, and it has been "tested" -- it had zero/low copper(?) ppm.

On colder days the brake pedal is firm. On warmer days the pedal is on the spongy side and can travel nearly to the floor with moderate force. Even on days the pedal can travel to the floor with moderate force, the car can stop from 60mph to 0mph in a reasonable time and distance without maxing out brake pedal travel.

Two days ago when merging onto a highway, the Brake light on my dash came on for a second. I've never seen it on before except when parked with the emergency brake on. Then when turning on the A/C I heard the engine load down and the brake pedal dropped slightly.


Can anyone shed some light on what the issue may be or tell me if there even is an issue?

Sorry for the long post/rambling but I didn't want to leave out a detail that might be the key to solving the problem.

Thanks for reading and any advice you may have.

Try changing the rubber brake hose. I had the same problem and the hose was collapsed letting pressure to the caliper but not releasing it causing the caliper to hang up.

I do agree with his idea, we encountered the same problem as yours, upon replacing the hose all went back to normal.