had my fabia a couple of weeks now (vrs se) its done 24k, the brakes are rubbish! i use it for my driving school, and when it comes to the emergency stop the feel through the pedal is horrible! almost spongy! the brakes dont seem to have any real bite to them....they seem perfectly alrite for normal driving but i doubt they'd even lock if i whacked em on!!

is this typical of the vrs or shud i look to replacing the discs and pads? cheers. tom,

Could be they need bleeding?

Removed a lot of the spongy-ness from my brakes. Should be done every two years I think, so unless it's been done recently it'll be well due for bleeding.

ye feels exactly like it needs bleeding tbh... might go n get the fluid changed... im used to rubbish brakes ive got a 64 split screen camper with drums all round and no servo assistance! but this is about as bad as them!

Mines the same, i also own a vrs se.

Brake fluid change at the week end me thinks, along with the air fillter which is looking a bit dirty!

ha! another se! i was tellin my mate the other nite that 'theres only a thousand of these blar blar!.....wats the nxt car that comes by! another se! coudnt believe it!! let me know how the brake fluid effects things mate, cheers tom.

Very common on diesels due to 'diesel creep'. The servo vacuum is taken from a mechanical pump, as there is no inlet manifold vacuum on a diesel. I noticed a slight improvement when the brake fluid was replaced, but not much. You will never lock the wheels due to ABS.

oh i know it wudnt mate but my old fiesta tdci brakes were really sharp, these have no bite! i want them sharper! any ideas?

Fit 312mm brakes off the tt/octavia etc they give a good bite and far more feel

Fit 312mm brakes off the tt/octavia etc they give a good bite and far more feel

Agreed,

But like most people have said, it probably needs a good bleed and fluid replacing. Also what state are the pads and discs in?

had my fabia a couple of weeks now (vrs se) its done 24k, the brakes are rubbish! i use it for my driving school, and when it comes to the emergency stop the feel through the pedal is horrible! almost spongy! the brakes dont seem to have any real bite to them....they seem perfectly alrite for normal driving but i doubt they'd even lock if i whacked em on!!

is this typical of the vrs or shud i look to replacing the discs and pads? cheers. tom,

Same on my SE too !!!

I don't think they've got quite the same initial bite as my 2004vRS. The brake fluid was changed a year ago and potentially not properly bled at the time...

Same on my new bike too but that might be down to the pad material.

Same on my SE too !!!

I don't think they've got quite the same initial bite as my 2004vRS. The brake fluid was changed a year ago and potentially not properly bled at the time...

Same on my new bike too but that might be down to the pad material.

I have to say, one of the main reasons I upgraded my brakes as when braking from speed i.e. motorway e.t.c. I found I had to apply quite a bit of pressure to the pedal - it almost seemed that I did not have much left.

Since upgrading the brakes, braking is almost effortless - I have so much more confidence in the brakes and it bites almost at the top of the pedal. Probably the best mod I've done from a driving point of view.

mmm ok well my mates a vw technician so its going into the main dealer for a free check ( aka a brake fluid change, wink wink!) ill see how it bares up then, whats the asking price for these 312mm upgrades? will they fit behind the standard wheels?

mmm ok well my mates a vw technician so its going into the main dealer for a free check ( aka a brake fluid change, wink wink!) ill see how it bares up then, whats the asking price for these 312mm upgrades? will they fit behind the standard wheels?

On average, with new pads and discs you're probably looking at anything from £150 all in to £300 all in, depends how much of a bargain you can find! Yes they do fit behind standard wheels, and fill them nicely too

You've said you use it for driving school though, would this effect your insurance etc etc being 'non standard' part?

Maybe easier way (aside bleeding) is to get better pads?

A question for the techies - Will brake stoppers have much/any effect?

Edited 6 October, 201015 yr by JLneonhug

ha! another se! i was tellin my mate the other nite that 'theres only a thousand of these blar blar!.....wats the nxt car that comes by! another se! coudnt believe it!! let me know how the brake fluid effects things mate, cheers tom.

I know! seems like 999 out of 1000 are in or around the east midlands. There was one parked near me at my work place first day i got mine!

I'll let you know how the fluid change goes. Might even fit some groved and drilled discs and some new pads while im at it.

I know! seems like 999 out of 1000 are in or around the east midlands. There was one parked near me at my work place first day i got mine!

I'll let you know how the fluid change goes. Might even fit some groved and drilled discs and some new pads while im at it.

Avoid drilled, grooved are OK.

A question for the techies - Will brake stoppers have much/any effect?

Brake stoppers are for cheap Japanese tat where the bulkhead is made of rice paper, and flexes too much under braking (or even a stiff breeze). Given the VW range is built from recycled Tiger Tanks I think we are OK