Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums General Common Interests Need Help with the Brakes on a Nissan Quest

thought i would ask this here considering the mecrury villager is almost the same thing and this is a ford site.

Have a 99 Nissan Quest SE, has about 75k on the odo, and is on its second set of brake pads.

Since the second set were put in, i have noticed that the pedal wants to travel further and further when i want to brake. Today the damn minivan scared the [censored] out of me, because the pedal went to the floor i was still doing ~30 mph and closing fast on the stopped car in front of me, luckily the car moved on and i didn't hit it. But i need to get the problem fixed asap

so far i have rechecked the pads and rotors, cleaned the ABS sensors(like that did anything), and bleed the brakes, neither of which helped the problem, after bleeding the brakes tonight, when pulling it back into the garage i press the pedal, it goes to the floor and the van continues to move, had the through on the e brake to keep from killing the wall.

when i looked at the cap for the master cylinder i noticed that there is a rubber washer thing there, that i guess is spossed to seal it, well i dont think it is, would that cause my problem??

anyone got any ideas what the problem could be i don't think it is the ABS acting up, because the light never comes on, it has plenty of brake fluid (dont know if the cap is sealing or if it needs to) and it is not leaking brake fluid anywhere. so i am out of ideas and i am open to some help

thanx spencer

Master Cylinder, the piston in there is passing through the fluid.

When you press on the pedal, does it drop to the floor on the first press, but if you release it and press it again, the pedal becomes more firm?

If so, I'd suspect the master cylinder.

Otherwise, there is a leak in the ABS pump that allows the fluid to be bypassed there.

If you are guessing, guess with the least expensive components first.

TB

ps, when you say the ABS light never comes on, do you mean ever? It should come on when you first turn the ignition switch to the on position as part of the bulb test. If it never comes on, then perhaps there is a fault in that system.

If you mean it never comes on while using the brakes, then that is a different issue.

So you should check that light to make sure it's working. Turn the key on and see if the ABS light is on for 3-5 seconds. If it doesn't turn on, there is something wrong. Check your owners manual for the details on how this light works and what lights should come on when you turn the key.

tb