Spongy front brakes.

[AtvKid4Eva]

Ok well my buddy got new front brake pads for his 400ex and we installed them and then bled the brakes until the handle had a nice resistance and they are still spongy they wont lock up or really even stop you just slow you down. I kno they can be a lot better than they are. so do i just need to keep bleeding them? could there be some air in the line still?

[svahle]

Might try searching as there are many posts on this topic. Here are a few things to check. Make sure all the moving parts are free and greased. I would just go ahead and clean up the calipers. Sometimes they can stick and result in poor brakes. Also, I find that the quad brakes are a pain in the arse to bleed. Seems air just finds a way to get hung up somewhere. There are many suggested methods of bleeding the brakes. I prefer a mini-vac (can be picked up at a local auto parts store). How old are the brake lines? The rubber lines expand with age. Might try some new steel braided lines as they do not expand and give better brake efficiency and feel. Another problem could be the master cylinder needs a rebuild. The master cylinder can go bad and have poor pressure.

I don't know what procedure you used to change the pads but you usually don't need to bleed the brakes or remove brake lines, etc. Not to suggest you didn't know that but I was just curious as to why you needed to bleed the brakes if you only changed the brake pads. Might keep that in mind for next time.

Hope some of this helps and good luck.

[vett_09]

I'm not trying to be a smart ***, but is the master cylinder full of break fluid? Because it kind of sounds to me like you don't have enough pressure. You said that you bled them, but did you refill the break fluid after you were finished?

[AtvKid4Eva]

yea its full.

[Kaleigh]

most likely you have to rebleed.. how much fluid do you have in your res.. is it all the way to the top..(overflowing) i know someone already asked but i just want to make sure..

[JOEX]

Do the newer models use DOT 5 brake fluid?

[AtvKid4Eva]

It uses dot 4 and i guess i'll just have to bleed some more even tho it seems all the air is out. and yes the resivoir is totally full. I have a good lever feel but the brakes just dont stop like discs do they just slow you down.