The vehicle experienced sudden loss of brake pressure: [I have submitted one previous complaint, but I cannot find it here. Since this problem has yet to be resolved (at least 18 months after it was first reported) I would like to post my complaint again.] on two (2) separate occasions I have lost almost all braking force when attempting to stop abruptly on smooth, dry_ pavement. In both instances I hit the brakes quick and hard, let up momentarily, then reapplied. In both cases it was on the second application that the pedal went to the floor and the car seemed to be almost coasting freely. Luckily, in both instances I had an escape route. The first failure was on northbound georgia ave., approaching a red light. The weather was mild, pavement clear, dry and smooth. Speed upon initial brake application was approx. 45 MPH. (another northbound driver pulled in front of me without warning). Tires were bridgestone re730's. Brakes stock. The second time was on northbound I-270 at exit 31. Again, the weather was mild and the pavement was smooth and dry. Speed upon initial brake application was approx. 65 MPH. (a driver entering I-270 abruptly merged across 3 lanes into lane 1 doing all of about 25 MPH). Tires were firestone sz-50ep's. Brakes stock. After the second incident I installed new front brake pads, hawk hp-plus. Not that I thought they would help with the ABS problem, I just wasn't happy with the performance of the stock pads. During the installation I bled the brakes and found a lot of _air_ in the system. By a lot, I don't mean little bubbles, I mean a 2-3 inches of air in the clear bleeder tube. Since that time I have had no further problems. The ABS does continue to be very sensitive, activating even on slightly rippled pavement when braking moderately from 25-30 MPH. At least when it activates, the pedal stays firm and the braking force only declines slightly.
2002 Subaru WRX brakes complaints
Page 4 of 4: complaints 71 to 80 of 80, newest first, as owners wrote them.
Consumer states, vehicle's ABS is ineffective on slippery and gravel surfaces. Dealer notified. Please provide additional information. Ts
When this car hits a bump under braking on dry pavement. The ABS system can kick in on what feels like all 4 tires. It stays on after the bump until the driver releases the brake pedal and reapplies the brakes. During the time the ABS is active the braking system does not slow the car down much. This has almost lead to two rear end accidents reported to dealer. They would not reproduce. This has happened many times during ownership with multiple types of tires and rims. Dt
Approaching a stop light at 30-35mph on rough, bumpy pavement, the brake pedal went down to the floor completely, and the car took 2 or 3 times the normal distance to come to a stop. There was no reason the ABS should have activated. This is a well documented issue amongst subaru drivers (see http://forums.I-club.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=102893&perpage=25&highlight=brake failure&pagenumber=1) that has potentially lethal results. Many people have reported this to the federal safety agency... Could you let me know what the status is of these reports, and what action the federal safety agency plans to take to resolve this problem? Thank you. Note: your form seems to be parsing the entered information re: failed parts incorrectly. No airbags deployed, nor were there 35 fatalities.
Ongoing / intermittent problem with brake pedal going to the floor whenever vehicle runs over a bump, and causes a none stopping vehicle. Vehicle been to dealer on two occasions, and unable to locate cause.
During braking on rough surfaces, the ABS system significantly reduces pressure to the brakes, resulting in near total loss of braking action. When this occurs, the brake pedal drops significantly and there is no pulsing action. I have experienced this three times. The first incident was approaching an intersection. I was traveling approximately 35 MPH, and when I applied the brakes, the pedal dropped several inches and there was little, if any braking action. Luckily, I had a green light and I was able to negotiate the turn without incident. The second time I was traveling on a gravel road. I was traveling approximately 15-20 MPH, and as I came around a corner I encountered a truck that was driving in the middle of the road. Again, I applied the brakes without any effect. I was forced to take evasive action and go into the ditch to avoid an accident. After that, I took the car to a dealer. I was able to reproduce the behavior once with a technician in the car. We were driving approximately 15-20 MPH and I applied the brakes on a rough section of pavement. The ABS pulsed several times, then it stopped pulsing for 2-3 seconds, and then it started pulsing again. During the period when it stopped pulsing, the brake pedal was soft and dropped 1-2 inches. The technician tried to replicate it without success. The technician inspected the system, including checking for diagnostic codes, but could not find a problem.
When trying to slowdown and driving over small bumps brake system will not catch, and vehicle will not slow down. Contacted dealer, and the dealer was not willing to do anything.
When braking on bumps (wet or dry), car does not stop safely.
The ABS on this car has activated 3 times on 100% dry roads at low to moderate speed. The activation seems to be caused by bumps or expansion joints in the pavement. This results in loss of most or all braking power. 2 of these occasions would have caused accidents had there been anyone in front of us.*** *ak dims 11 ivoq entry posted after 12/12/02 cut-over to artemis***758325.
Abs fails on bumps, brake effectiveness becomes marginal or disapsears. I pulled the ABS fuse and brakes are ok. After the incident I replaced the oem bridgestone re92 tires with toyo proxes t!-s (225-50/16w) and the brakes were much improved. However, the ABS is not performing safely so I disabled it by pulling the fuse. I have about 200,000 miles experince with ABS including a mazda rx7 twin turbo, 3 acuras and a ford probe. The wrx ABS is not good.
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