jaguargod

Has anyone ever had their anti-lock brakes lock up? I'm not talking about just when braking. More like they clamp down and don't release at all. My RX-8 just seemed to drive alot "heavier" or sluggishly this morning than I ever remember it doing before. It also seemed like when I would let off of the accelerator that it would coast alot slower like there was alot of drag. Also, when I get near my stopping point at work, I haven't been hitting the brakes hard for a good while, but the rotors are scalding hot to the touch, and it seems like there is more brake dust than there has been in a while. Anyone have any ideas?

lurch519

was this both front and rear rotors? i have sometimes, when i was in a hurry, not put the parking brake down all the way, and not realized it for severaly miles. that would cause the rears to apply some braking force while driving. also, even light braking causes the rotors to heat up significantly, and not having any type of active cooling, will retain heat for a while.

jaguargod

Okay. I will try it out again on the way home tonight. It may be nothing but perception. It's just that when you drive a car for several months, you get really familiar with how the car "feels", and when it changes in some way, you know it. Hopefully, it's nothing.

lurch519

i hope so man, like i said, sometimes i have left the parking brake just the last notch up, and i didnt notice for like 30 minutes.

Glyphon

if this continues, you need to get it checked out ASAP. you can overheat your brake fluid. this is bad because you can lose all brake pressure. happened to me a few years ago. get in the car i was driving at the time, release the parking brake and head off to college. about 3/4 of the way there on the highway, coming up to a red light, mash on the brakes and they go to the floor, without slowing the car at all good thing was i was in the fast lane, so i pulled off into the median, stayed on the brakes (they were providing maybe 1/10th of their stopping power) and downshifted through the gears until i finally was able to stop.

get the car towed to the dealer, and come to find out when i "released" the parking brake, instead of releasing the brakes, the cable snapped instead, with the brakes still partially engaged.

that's a scary situation...being on the highway, coming up on stopped traffic with no brakes.

jaguargod

Well, I don't think it has anything to do with my brakes. I did some research, and alot of people are having power issues in high temperature weather. It was very hot here today, and I re-drove my car this evening after the weather cooled down, and it performs as usual again. I guess it is just the heat. I hope they come up with a fix for this issue. I don't have the luxury of not driving it during the heat of the summer.

Im_DANomite

iTrader: (1)

you could change your brake fluid to DOT 4 and swap out those rubber brake lines for some stainless steel. that would definately help out the braking power. if you think the brakes are dragging, i'd have the dealership check the calipers, make sure they aren't seizing (which i highly doubt).

army_rx8

^no it won't...dot 4 just has a different operating temp then dot 3 (slightly higher wet/dry boiling point but pretty similar)...and stainless steal breake lines will help with breake "feel" not their over all power..power woule be a new vacum booster..different master cylinder..or different calipers (more surface area..down side being they won't move as far but will do so with more force).....i woudl keep with the dot 3 myself as our system was designed for it...if you changed it you woudl have to do a complete flush..i wouldn't want any of it mixing.....you can mix the,...but it isn't recomended by anyone i know. (including manufactorers) most people only mix it if they absolutly need some brake fluid and the other kind is the only one avaliable...btu they do a flush when they get home.

if you are going to worry about the barake fluid might as well got DOT 5...haha good luck getting that stuff to work though. :p

your abs isn't siezing up...it only activats when you depress teh pedal (it has a tie in to the rear brake light so it works only when it sees that on)..i'd say your calipers have a slight drag to them if there is a lot of brake dust and they are gettign hot and you aren't treally using them....but it's really only guess work with out checking it out..i'd take it to teh drealership it's still under warrenty isn't it?

also check out (if you have teh means) the parking brake (as someone forgot who suggested).....as i believe ours is a thrust screw type...if you have it a lill pulled or out of adjust ment (ie not disengaing) it'll cause the rear calipers to drag a lill.

well that's all i can think off of the top of my head.......haha sorry if none of that made sense or if it was all speeled horrible but i'll just balme that on esleepyiness and not my crappy typing skills :p good luck with you car :D

army_rx8

haha sorry just read this after my apparently pointless rant...yes your car will lose power at higher temps..b/c the car monitors intake air temp and it'll add more fuel to help cool down the combustion chanber to prevent knock/detonation.....which is nice but the added fuel will make your rich car run super rich.

at least that's my whoel theroy on it...hehe hopfull that schooling in automotive technology wasn't a waste :o

jaguargod

Well, I think I am back to square one. I got the same thing all over again this morning driving to work. And my temp. reading was 73 degrees, so I know it wasn't too hot.

Glyphon

i think your car is scared of your clown avatar :D

jaguargod

I am back to thinking that my brakes may possibly be out of whack. I have had my wife apply the brakes while I watch, and it looks like the calipers are not moving when pressed, or are moving only slightly? My question is, is this normal? Or should it be very noticeable that the calipers are clamping, and releasing?