On my Fabia 1.4 TDI with ABS fitted, when applying the brakes lightly for say 5 seconds and then having to apply a harder pressure in order to stop more quickly, I find that the brakes are very poor and not capable of stopping in the distance available.... However if I quickly lift off the brake pedal and re-apply, I have excellent brakes and can stop in half the distance, this has always been the case since new....Someone has suggested that it is a common fault because after the initial application, the vacuum servo has not replenished the vacuum....Has anyone else experienced this?....If so, is there a fix to get maximum braking on the first application?....Any help most appreciated.....DB

Sounds bloody dangerous to me, I'd be getting that looked at under warrenty as I didn't find this on the 1.4TDI i had as a courtesy car.

if the servo had not replenished the vacuum , the brake pedal would be very hard because you wouldn't have full vacuum assistance , are the wheel bearings ok ? a poor brake pedal on initial application can be caused by the excess travel in the pads that is required due to pads being pushed back when there is excessive wheel bearing play .

you could also have a faulty brake master cylnder or the servo rod into the brake master cylinder could be incorrectly adjusted .

has the vehicle had an MOT , as surely it would of failed if there was excessive pedal travel or is the vehicle still in warranty , in which case i would be pestering the dealer to sort the brakes HTH

if the servo had not replenished the vacuum , the brake pedal would be very hard because you wouldn't have full vacuum assistance , are the wheel bearings ok ? a poor brake pedal on initial application can be caused by the excess travel in the pads that is required due to pads being pushed back when there is excessive wheel bearing play .

you could also have a faulty brake master cylnder or the servo rod into the brake master cylinder could be incorrectly adjusted .

has the vehicle had an MOT , as surely it would of failed if there was excessive pedal travel or is the vehicle still in warranty , in which case i would be pestering the dealer to sort the brakes HTH

MOT not required yet, first registered on 17/09/04 and just done 16,000 miles, trying to convince a dealer that there is a problem is very dificult because when the second application is made the brakes are extremely good....I don't quite know what angle, other than my previous statement, to convince the dealer that something is at fault....Any suggestions gratefully received....DB

the vaccuum is generated by a pump on the end of the camshaft on the diesels.... faulty possibly??

I also have been surprised at an occasional "dead" feeling on the brakes and the need for a good shove on the pedal. Have never tried re-applying so don't know if this results in an improvement. Mostly they very sharp and progressive. Nothing appears to be wrong. Has been there since new. Fabia TDI new March 2004. Would be interested to know if this is a common querk or there really is a problem.

V

if the servo had not replenished the vacuum , the brake pedal would be very hard because you wouldn't have full vacuum assistance , are the wheel bearings ok ? a poor brake pedal on initial application can be caused by the excess travel in the pads that is required due to pads being pushed back when there is excessive wheel bearing play .

you could also have a faulty brake master cylnder or the servo rod into the brake master cylinder could be incorrectly adjusted .

has the vehicle had an MOT , as surely it would of failed if there was excessive pedal travel or is the vehicle still in warranty , in which case i would be pestering the dealer to sort the brakes HTH

Correct, this is the feeling you get, the brake pedal is hardish to push, (another reply states it as 'dead') with only about 60% retardation, on the second application you get 100% braking. Wheel bearings are OK, it's only done 16,000 miles and only just 2 years old....Thanks for your input....DB

I had exactly the same problem as this on an old Peugeot 405 diesel. The only difference was that the problem was intermittent. Usually the brakes were ok, but every now and then, I'd have to re-apply the brakes to get them to work properly. It was bloody dangerous and the dealer couldn't fix it. They changed the vacuum pump but that made no difference. In the end I got rid of the car because I didn't want to kill myself.

don 't have the problem with mine, sharp as heck

Q

If the dealer won't fix it either try another dealer or ask them to get a skoda UK tech down to look at it.

Brakes are not something you want to be taking chances with.

my brakes are sharp, when it was last servicd they took the rear drums off,adjusted the brake shoes, it's even sharper now, perhaps your rear brake shoes need adjusting up?

my brakes are sharp, when it was last servicd they took the rear drums off,adjusted the brake shoes, it's even sharper now, perhaps your rear brake shoes need adjusting up?

thats a good point , with having a VRS with rear discs i never thought of that , its certainly worth a try

my brakes are sharp, when it was last servicd they took the rear drums off,adjusted the brake shoes, it's even sharper now, perhaps your rear brake shoes need adjusting up?

That doesn't sound like it to me. It's the front brakes that do nearly all the work so adjusting the rear brakes could only make a small difference.

Thanks, will approach another dealer....DB

my brakes are sharp, when it was last servicd they took the rear drums off,adjusted the brake shoes, it's even sharper now, perhaps your rear brake shoes need adjusting up?

If they needed adjusting.... you will need a new 'Self Adjusting' kit on the rear brakes. I had the problem with my Pug 205 GRD long time ago.

Get your brake fluid bled, there may be air in the systems, that will make the pedal spongey on the first press down, but then on the second press it will be fine. A way to check that is start your engine, then depress pedal repeatedly 'fastish' and listen for it hissing, until pedal become firm. Stop leave it for a bit a couple of seconds and pedal will return to normal. If there is more then two or three hisses until pedal is firm, then it maybe there is air in the system, take to garage and get bled

Hope this idea helps

Q

If they needed adjusting.... you will need a new 'Self Adjusting' kit on the rear brakes. I had the problem with my Pug 205 GRD long time ago.

Get your brake fluid bled, there may be air in the systems, that will make the pedal spongey on the first press down, but then on the second press it will be fine. A way to check that is start your engine, then depress pedal repeatedly 'fastish' and listen for it hissing, until pedal become firm. Stop leave it for a bit a couple of seconds and pedal will return to normal. If there is more then two or three hisses until pedal is firm, then it maybe there is air in the system, take to garage and get bled

Hope this idea helps

Q

Thanks for the idea but I don't think it's that, you don't get an 'air in the system' spongy feel and what's more the problem is not consistent, just occasional when you least expect it.....DB

This is worrying. If I've got DB right then we have both experienced the same problem. Everything is OK then out of the blue press the brakes and the pedal is hard, doesn't go down much and apparently the servo isn't helping. This fits with lack of servo assistance as it is similar to the sensation one gets when in slow - stop start traffic going down hill. Turning off the engine and just using the brakes then the servo fills and the pedal is hard and stopping needs a good push on the pedal. The pedal is not spongy (I know the feeling when it is) so it doesn't seem to be air in the hydraulics. In 60K it has happened about (I think) 3 maybe 4 times. Mostly just a bit odd as I was going slowly, but once approaching a roundabout at 70. It was a bit disconcerting at the time and I put it down to anti-lock and bad surface because at the next juction the brakes worked as normal. Now I'm sure it was not. I never went to the dealer's garage as there was nothing to show them (I'm sure they'd say it was in my mind, and I've no confidence in them anyway). It can't be ignored - one day it might happen when there is no leaway. So how can you have such an odd failure that it only happens every ten or so thousand miles - and is it significant that both cars are 1.4 TDi s? Is there anything to check? If the pump was a problem or if there was an adjustment fault then surely it would happen frequently.

Have any of you professionals had any similar complaints? Any help would be most appreciated.

V

Thanks for the idea but I don't think it's that, you don't get an 'air in the system' spongy feel and what's more the problem is not consistent, just occasional when you least expect it.....DB

rodgar that

I realise this thread hasn't been added to in sometime, but i have experienced something very similar if not the same.

My car Fabia Estate diesel 1.4TDi '06' just over 11k mine since new.

Since i have had it this has happened maybe 4 times all ways in similar circumstances.

Less then 30mph in straight line on the flat and breaking VERY softly almost not at all (But the car is slowing) then if hit a speed bump or pot hole anything that bumps the front of the car the breaks instantly go soft the pressure behind the pedel is gone and the car is no longer slowing!

a couple of times i just released the break and reapplied with no problems the other times i just pushed my foot right down in this case the pedel seams to move a lot (Certainly more than normal) but the breaks do apply and the car slows although not as harshly as normal.

My line of thought was, could it be the ABS trigged falsly by the bump and disengaging the break till you either repply the break or put more force on the pedel. (I don't know if this is feasable or not)

Another bit of info i just remembered (As this hasn't happened in a while) when it does there is a vibration from the breaks I think i could even feel it on the pedel, it was this that made me think it might be the ABS

Any furthur thoughts chaps

Thanks

Ian

Hi...Well my Fabia 1.4 TDI has finally been sorted...I stated that if the dealer could not find any faults, I would employ the AA to perform a road test inspection at my expense; if the AA found a fault, I would expect the dealer to rectify ASAP and to re-imburse me for the AA inspection....Hey presto, they re-checked and found that the ABS pump needed replacing and that the RH front ABS sensor was not working, and had obviously not been working from new!....All is now perfect after 24,000 miles of poor braking....Thanks to everyones input....Mr Mogwye.

Hi, This is an old question, so I hope the OP got sorted, but perhaps somebody can help here. As above I had this problem on occasions. One day checking the small box (located at the back of the engine compartment in front of the driver) which accepts lots of pipes, I found that it didn't close properly. I put springs around it to keep everything tight. Since then, I've had no problems. One pipe does come from the braking system according to the Haynes manual, although no idea what it does. Could there be a connection, is it just coincidence, or my imagination?

Any ideas or comments anybody?

Thanks V

I have a problem with excessive pedal travel on a Fabia (2007 Mk11 with 32k on it). pedal height is ok with engine off but sinks way to far with the engine running. When you switch the engine off with the brake pedal pressed it pushes back up at you. Brakes stop the car ok but its easy to hit the gas pedal as well as the brake as the brake pedal is so low. Applying hand brake makes no difference so I am ruling out rear drum brake adjustment. Any ideas folks? Nearest main dealer is 40 miles away nearest GOOD main dealer is 60 so that is a bit of an issue.