Superb wagon sensitive brakes

[TomAU]

I find the brakes on the superb very very powerful. I would like to just lighten the initial bite and hopefully avoid the noise dive. Has anyone tried different pads or similar to smooth out the initial break bite ?

Thanks,

[dobbey]

You'll soon get use to it. Don't bother with differant pads, it's not worth it

[bill2]

dont worry you are probably not use to driving a very good car as above you will get used to having very good brakes like the rest of the car they are superb.

bill

[SkodaTC]

This was one of the first things I noticed when I changed from a Superb I to Superb II - the brakes and braking system is so much better that it can catch you out initially. The brakes have a kind of 'positive' feel without being aggressive or too sharp.

[Departed]

If you make the initial pressure on the brake pedal as light as possible, then once the pads are engaged you should be able to press harder with little, if any, nosedive. This does require planning and looking further ahead, but - emergencies excepted - no-one should need to jump onto the pedal, which causes the dive in the first place.

Ray

[Aussiev6]

I find the brakes on the superb very very powerful. I would like to just lighten the initial bite and hopefully avoid the noise dive. Has anyone tried different pads or similar to smooth out the initial break bite ?

Thanks,

I agree, they can catch you with the initial grab,

I'm also interested if anyone has non standard pads and their comments

[davekmoore]

There are many cars with light brakes. You get used to them.

[TomAU]

There are many cars with light brakes. You get used to them.

Probably. I was driving the superb all weekend some 400km. Just when I drive the camry and swap back it takes a few minutes to adjust.

[davekmoore]

Probably. I was driving the superb all weekend some 400km. Just when I drive the camry and swap back it takes a few minutes to adjust.

Yup, my wife has the same problem coming out of her Jazz into the Superb. This will sort itself in a couple of years when we have two Superbs. Yay. Less broken noses for me!

I luckily seem to be immune from the issue. Half a lifetime in the car trade and heaps of practice in up to 20 different cars a day will do that to you. Especially as some of the cars you'd drive would be potential trade-ins with dodgy brakes, steering and other mechanical faults. You learn to be gentle with the first few movements of any of the controls. And to pretend to understand when the trade-in that leapt onto the pavement when you so much as put your foot near the brake had "never done that before"!

Maybe a camryectomy is afoot?

Edited 22 January, 2012 by davekmoore

[Camberley_Chris]

I changed from an 11-year old Honda which had stiff brakes to my new Superb Estate and for a couple of weeks kept 'nosediving' but I'm over it now. The Superb has a 'Brake Assist' feature...

Brake Assist

During a severe brake application (e.g. if a hazard exists), the Brake Assist increases

the braking force and thus makes it possible to rapidly produce the pressure

required in the brake system.

The majority of drivers do apply the brakes in good time in dangerous situations,

but do not depress the brake pedal with sufficient pressure. Consequently, it is

not possible for the car to achieve its maximum deceleration and the car covers a

greater distance than necessary.

The Brake Assist is activated by the very quick operation of the brake pedal. In

such cases, a much greater braking pressure exists than during a normal brake application.

This makes it possible, even with a relatively low resistance of the brake

pedal, to produce an adequate pressure in the brake system in the shortest possible

time, which is required for maximum deceleration of the car. You must apply

the brake pedal firmly and hold it in this position in order to achieve the shortest

possible braking distance.

The Brake Assist is able to help you achieve a shorter braking distance in emergency

situations by rapidly producing the pressure required in the brake system. It

fully exploits the attributes of the ABS. After you release the brake pedal, the

function of the Brake Assist is automatically switched off and the brakes operate

in the normal way.

The Brake Assist is part of the ESP system. If a fault occurs in the ESP, the Brake

Assist function is also not available. Further information on the ESP ⇒ page 173.

...so try to be gentle so this is not activated - until you really need it!

[davekmoore]

I changed from an 11-year old Honda which had stiff brakes to my new Superb Estate and for a couple of weeks kept 'nosediving' but I'm over it now. The Superb has a 'Brake Assist' feature...

Brake Assist

During a severe brake application (e.g. if a hazard exists), the Brake Assist increases

the braking force and thus makes it possible to rapidly produce the pressure

required in the brake system.

The majority of drivers do apply the brakes in good time in dangerous situations,

but do not depress the brake pedal with sufficient pressure. Consequently, it is

not possible for the car to achieve its maximum deceleration and the car covers a

greater distance than necessary.

The Brake Assist is activated by the very quick operation of the brake pedal. In

such cases, a much greater braking pressure exists than during a normal brake application.

This makes it possible, even with a relatively low resistance of the brake

pedal, to produce an adequate pressure in the brake system in the shortest possible

time, which is required for maximum deceleration of the car. You must apply

the brake pedal firmly and hold it in this position in order to achieve the shortest

possible braking distance.

The Brake Assist is able to help you achieve a shorter braking distance in emergency

situations by rapidly producing the pressure required in the brake system. It

fully exploits the attributes of the ABS. After you release the brake pedal, the

function of the Brake Assist is automatically switched off and the brakes operate

in the normal way.

The Brake Assist is part of the ESP system. If a fault occurs in the ESP, the Brake

Assist function is also not available. Further information on the ESP ⇒ page 173.

...so try to be gentle so this is not activated - until you really need it!

Brake Assist is good in an emergency, but is a different system from having light-touch brakes that can be moderated by the driver in normal driving.

[ukcruiser]

you aint drove a Citroen then, have you?! - I remember my dad almost putting the sale's guy through the windscreen back i 2005 when they bought a C3 Exclusive!

The Superb's brakes are nice and progressive, compared to a French car!

Al

[davekmoore]

you aint drove a Citroen then, have you?! - I remember my dad almost putting the sale's guy through the windscreen back i 2005 when they bought a C3 Exclusive!

The Superb's brakes are nice and progressive, compared to a French car!

Al

Yup, big Citroens' brakes used to have two settings. Fully off. And fully on.

[Aussiev6]

so anybody tried different pads?