Subaru - Legacy :: 2000 - Spongy Brakes / Reservoir Is Full
Dec 31, 2011
I have a 2000 subaru legacy outback with about 160,000 miles.
The brakes are spongy. The reservoir is full. I took it to my regular mechanic, and he said the lines are good. He also said that if it were the master cylinder, after pumping the brakes up the peddle will sink to the floor, which it is not doing. So he's stumped.
What this would be? I've had several scares when I had to slam the brakes and wasn't sure the car would stop!
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A few days ago, the temp gauge in my 1995 Subaru Legacy went sky high in a matter of 2 minutes. I immediately stopped the car, let it cool down & checked the radiator. The reservoir was empty and radiator took about 1/2 gal of water (I figured water was fine since the weather is 90 degrees here right now). Suspecting a leak, I also added a bottle of that "Bar's Stop Leaks" stuff. I hesitantly started making my way home, about 16 miles away. The car was perfectly fine -- no overheating at all. Next day, I drove the car maybe 10 miles & again no problems. Yesterday, I went to a friend's house -- about 50 miles round trip. I assumed (I know, dangerous) that all was well ... until today. This morning I noticed a small puddle of antifreeze near driver's front tire. The reservoir was down by about 1/2 it's capacity BUT the radiator itself was almost full (if it took 3 oz. that was a lot). Now I figure there's a leak, but if there is then why wouldn't the system drain itself all the way? Is it unusual to have a leak that limits drainage?I am also tempted to add another bottle of stop leak but looking around this ...
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My mother in law gave her 1995 Subaru to us last year. She told me not to use the parking brake because the wheels seize up and to drive it often. We did not need a third car and every third day of not driving it the rear wheels would seize up which would require me (once in the snow) to jack the car up, take off the rear wheels, and tap the drum with a large hammer. Doing this would cause a huge mess because of the rust which fell onto the driveway. So recently I told her that the drums, shoes, and most likely the brake lines needed replacing and I would not pay for that as I didn't need the car anyway. Her response was that If I had driven the car every so often then it would have been fine. At which point I raised the safety issue with the braking and so forth which she flat out rejected saying it was fine when she drove it. Now I'm being blamed for the problems with her old neglected car. Should I just have the thing towed away or try and get it fixed?
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About a year ago, I bled all 4 brakes and put in new fluid on my 01 Accent GS 1.6L auto. Still to this day, they are very spongy, and you have to push them far to get good stopping power. My pads are ok on the front, rear shoes are ok as well. No leak in lines anywhere. What's up with this?
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I drive a 2000 Subaru Legacy and the radiator fan does not always come on. This sometimes makes the car run hot but has not (yet) put it into the "danger zone" overheating. It seems to happen if the car is in stop and go traffic and it's hot outside. If I'm driving down the highway or the weather is cool it doesn't happen.
I checked the fuses (yes, even the ones under the hood) and they are all fine. I am just curious if there is a sensor that could be the problem or if it is more likely the thermostat. It didn't quite fit the descriptions I found for thermostat but I'm a broke college student trying to keep an old car on the road, not a Subaru mechanic
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I have a 1997 Subaru Legacy sedan with a 2.2L engine with AWD. When I step on the brakes I hear a ratcheting type of sound and feel pulsations in the brake pedal.There is no problem with brake performance that I have noticed. We have replaced the front rotors and front brake pads.We also replaced the rear passenger side brake caliper. It still makes a loud ratchet/groaning-like sound. It makes the sound when you first start braking after starting the car and intermittently while driving. It's not constant when you step on the brakes.
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As the title says, my car has been leaking oil. I noticed it several months ago and took it to a shop and they said that it it might be leaking from the engine seals. I think they replaced all but the rear seal, because that would have cost a lot more because they would have to pull the engine.
It seemed ok for a while (or maybe I just didn't notice), but now I've noticed that it continues to drip oil, but since it hasn't been fixed by replacing the other seals, I am hesitant to bring it back to the guys who worked on it the first time.
I looked under the car and hood and tried to see if I could tell where the oil is leaking from but it's not apparent to me. I looked at the oil pressure sending switch and, as far as I can tell, I don't see any dripping there, although it does look kinda grimy around that area, but it's hard to tell if it's oil or just run-of-the-mill dirt.
I took a few pics : mauk52.jpg1600x1200
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I recently bought a Subaru Legacy 2000. When I first got it it started fine, however when I leave it sit for overnight or up to a week it doesn't like to start. It will click, and eventually anywhere from 5 minutes to a half an hour it will eventually start right up.
I replaced the battery and the connections after talking to a mechanic... And after both of these fixes it started just fine for a few days. But I am suspecting the starter. The only issue is once I have had the car going after the initial trouble it will fire off just fine for the rest of the day. Other than the starter could it be moisture in something? Like I said it only will do this when it sits over night or longer?
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I have had some slight rough running with a cold engine and stumble <2000rpm. Finally it tripped a CEL which was read as a misfire code.
The mechanic swapped the coil and plug(recent) and no change. He did a compression test and air blew out the exhaust. So.......the car needs a valve job which entails motor removal and fixing the head and reinstall. He rough estimates this at $2000 and rate is $65/hr.
He mentioned looking at pistons and may be a bit more if rough.
This car well maintained (170,000 miles 2005 Legacy turbo wagon with manual)...
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My 2000 Subaru Outback automatic, with 95,000 miles is intermittently stalling. No check engine light, no sputtering, engine temperature & oil pressure fine; it will just be running and then it isn't. It has happened with a 1/4 tank gas and with a full tank of gas. Primarily it has happened after driving around on a hot day, with some highway driving, city driving, running errands- so stopping for a while, then when I head home and gain altitude (another 2000-2500 ft), it will stall when I take my foot off of the accelerator to make a left turn, or go around a blind right curve, but not every time. When it has stalled once, it tends to repeatedly stall when I take my foot off of the gas.
It always starts right back up again with no problem. It happened once in town right after I filled up with gas, but didn't repeatedly stall after that.It has been to my mechanic 3 times and no codes come up with scan. The AF sensor (idle control valve) was replaced twice, throttle body cleaned (although not bad), crank sensor checked, fuel trim checked, wires, battery checked, hoses checked, reprogramming of ECU checked- not needed, no recalls/reflashes, nothing found. I don't want to end up stranded on a lonely mountain road with fires approaching, or getting broadsided when it stalls in a left turn.
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Brake issues 2003 f250 super duty 6.0. Changed master cylinder, drivers side rear brake hose, new pads all around. Pedal is good at times for a few seconds. I've bled them all numerous times truck running or not flushed power steering pump new fluid. Brakes are spongy or go to floor. Do I need a scanner?
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I just replaced the front break pads. I didn't replace the rotors or get them machined, didn't look like they needed them. Once I pushed on the brakes (truck off) I noticed that brake fluid spilled out the brake reservoir. I'm guessing it happened when I compressed the piston into the caliper? I took some of the fluid out of the reservoir and now its at MAX (I didn't bleed them). I've only been only be able to stop and go on the driveway (I'm waiting on a new radius arm bracket). The brakes seems spongy, the brake hits the floor. ABS and Brake lights came on then turned off once I started to pump them when I turned the truck 'on'. Do I just need to actually drive and "break" the breaks in?
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I'm not too familiar with these trucks, but I've been working on my buddies 1999 e350 ford van.
The other day we were going out kayaking, and the brakes locked up, we were able to drive it home, but it was obvious the brakes were holding the truck back. decided to check it out today, found one front and one rear caliper were sticking, the dual piston calipers only had one working, which I believed to be causing the pads to get pressed together crooked, and caused them to "lock up" or get stuck.
anyways, got the new calipers on and no more sticking, so I bled the brakes started in the front and went all the way to the back, did every caliper. brakes feel firm with the vehicle off, but instantly when the van is started, the pedal goes to the floor. it still stops okay, but the pedal feel is not nearly where it should be.
I got all of the air out of the system, but the abs light is on, and has been for a while. I'm wondering if there is something else that needs to be bled in the abs? someone was telling me about bleeding the abs motor?
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I have a really weird problem with my car. Every time that I apply the brakes, I get a bit of a shudder. It just started a couple of weeks ago and we checked the brake pads which were fine and the bearings were good as well. What could be causing this problem?
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My 89 240 is a project car so I am just fixing everything up as new until it's all done.
Replaced the Brake Booster with a fully reconditioned one, a new master cylinder, full pressure bleed, new pads. Now I have fantastic brakes but they feel super spongy still . As an example, I make an emergency stop to check if they are ok and after stopping just fine , the pedal still wants to go down further. I have checked all the flexible lines for ballooning and they are ok .
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A while ago I had to lock up my brakes to prevent an accident. now my brakes are soft and spongy, going all the way to the floor and still not quite stopping. making abs type noise. also, i can press all the way down while standing still, with the same type noise.
1996 chevrolet astrovan
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Friday morning I'm backing my 2011 Sonata Limited out of the garage and I always idle out but this time it started backing about 2 paces faster than idle speed. I hit the brakes and the pedal is on the floor..no brakes..I put it Drive and nothing no power. It didn't stop until I backed into the street curb, tires only no damage. When it hit the curb the brake pedal was back and Drive engaged as if nothing ever happened. Dropped it off at the dealer and they couldn't find anything but did open a case with Hyundai. Saturday doing a couple of backing the brakes were really spongy in reverse only. Will have that checked next week.
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So I've got spongy brakes on my 2003 Prius. I've flushed the whole system twice. Replaced the hoses, pads, rotors, shoes, and drums. Still spongy. I'm not sure what to check next. No lights or codes. I'm leaning toward the master cylinder. You can pump the brakes up when they become spongy and they hold solid. If you practically stand on the brake pedal it will slowly bleed down. This tells me the fluid pressure must be escaping somewhere. I don't want to just blindly replace parts.
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After replacing the Front Rotors, calipers, and brake lines on my 2005 F150 Super Crew I have spongy brakes. I have also replaced the master cylinder. I have bled the brakes as well as a reputable repair shop has done the same. We are both at a loss as to what is wrong. The ABS light is on now after the replacement of these parts. This issue did not exist prior to changing these items. This was done to hopefully eliminate brake shudder that I have been experiencing for some time.
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In cold weather (10-15 deg.) the brakes in my 2009 Santa Fe are very soft/spongy. I had to depress the brake pedal nearly to the floor before it would stop on dry pavement. Once it's warmed up, the brakes seem fine. Pumping them seems to work but they are not back to their normal condition.
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My 2010 SL rogue's brakes seem to be extremely spongy/floaty. When stopping I need to push the brakes pedal all the way down before it'll come to a complete stop. It feels like I'm pushing air out. Just got her back from bthe repair shop, and had been driving a rent a car(2015 Ford focus) and the difference between the braking is night/day.
Checked the brakes fluid and its just a hair under max line. Was under the impression that the break pads were replaced a year ago. Best obvious answer I can figure out(google) is possibly air in the brake lines?
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