Hi all,

I'm noticing some mornings (this morning especially) the brakes aren't working properly. The pedal is doughy and not as sensitive as normal, requiring considerable extra force to slow the car for the first few depressions. The engine has been running for at least a minute. Is this a known issue? I've never experienced this in any other vehicle except once in the 2019  MK3 I hired before purchasing this one a fortnite ago.
With the snow starting to melt here in Scotland I'm wondering if the heavy slush I was driving through yesterday is to blame - had to drive 70 miles in the countryside for work. Not very experienced with these conditions, being an Aussie. Any advice appreciated.
Cheers

 

1 hour ago, EZappy said:

Hi all,

I'm noticing some mornings (this morning especially) the brakes aren't working properly. The pedal is doughy and not as sensitive as normal, requiring considerable extra force to slow the car for the first few depressions. The engine has been running for at least a minute. Is this a known issue? I've never experienced this in any other vehicle except once in the 2019  MK3 I hired before purchasing this one a fortnite ago.
With the snow starting to melt here in Scotland I'm wondering if the heavy slush I was driving through yesterday is to blame - had to drive 70 miles in the countryside for work. Not very experienced with these conditions, being an Aussie. Any advice appreciated.
Cheers

 

This will probably be down to icy brakes.  It's below 0C in Scotland so any water left on your brakes has probably frozen.  Considering that this only lasts for a few depressions, it would seem that ice is the issue.  The same sort of thing happens when you wash your car and the brake disks develop some surface rust, it can take a few pumps of the brake pedal to clear the disk.  Also, the engine running for some time wont really effect braking.

Thanks for the reply. but yeah it just happened again this morning at 8am - it was  6°C and supposedly didn't get to zero last night, so don't think it can be ice. Reason I mention the engine running as it feels like the booster isn't working. Only happens first thing and it was fine the rest of the day yesterday. I'm a little concerned it could easily catch us unwarily one day if not fixed. I'm surprised no-one else seems to be having this issue as like I say I thought the MK3 I rented beforehand was doing it too.

Sounds as though there is a loss of vacuum needed by the brake booster ( servo ), or a leak in the pipework.

 

You will have to advise the engine code ( four letters ), as there is a big difference in how the vacuum is derived between diesel & petrol engines.

 

To test, repeated press the brake with the engine off, the brake pedal will go hard after a few applications.

Push down on the brake pedal then start the engine, the pedal should start to sink towards the floor without any extra foot pressure if vacuum is being produced.

It seems it was colder round my place at night than I thought - the problem with has indeed gone with the warmer and drier weather. I didn't try the vacuum test as it was ok when the gf got in it the next day.

Appreciate the thoughts - thanks.