Spongy Brakes

[Allegiance]

Hi Guys,

I notice with the Polo in the wet that the brakes feel quite spongy. Anyone else have this issue/feeling?

Thanks

[Billecartz]

Hi Guys,

I notice with the Polo in the wet that the brakes feel quite spongy. Anyone else have this issue/feeling?

Thanks

I must admit that I am not 100% happy with the brakes, they have very little feel almost dead at first and then when you push a little harder they pull up reasonably well. The ball and chain noticed it too, I hope taht they improve once fully bedded in and the tyres have a settled in also.

[Allegiance]

Anyone know the dimensions of the discs?

[Buller_Scott]

i'd confirm this with your dealer, but if the polo comes standard with 14 inch steel wheels i'd be inclined to think that they're 256mm brakes.

being newer, however, it's also possible that they might be 280mm brakes.

if you want to upgrade your brakes, guys, check out gsl rally sport in the vendors section of this site.

i got my 256mm front slotted rotors, QFM HPX rear pads and QFM A1RM front pads put on, had the lines bled and replaced with TRW race fluid, bedded them in, and went for a drive up around black spur the other day. 350km's round trip, LOTS of corners. it was my b'day, and i went to play.

frigging amazing. i kept on punishing my brakes, the pads bit MUCH better than standard, time and time again, and even when i could smell the acrid smell of hot brakes, i had ZERO brake fade, ZERO compromised pedal feel, and as a system, they worked perfectly.

pretty awesome piece of mind for under $500. oh, and the track pads [front] have good cold bite, too, for running around the city.

cheers,

scotty

[Jun]

Might need to bleed the brakes?

[Transporter]

i'd confirm this with your dealer, but if the polo comes standard with 14 inch steel wheels i'd be inclined to think that they're 256mm brakes.

being newer, however, it's also possible that they might be 280mm brakes.

if you want to upgrade your brakes, guys, check out gsl rally sport in the vendors section of this site.

i got my 256mm front slotted rotors, QFM HPX rear pads and QFM A1RM front pads put on, had the lines bled and replaced with TRW race fluid, bedded them in, and went for a drive up around black spur the other day. 350km's round trip, LOTS of corners. it was my b'day, and i went to play.

frigging amazing. i kept on punishing my brakes, the pads bit MUCH better than standard, time and time again, and even when i could smell the acrid smell of hot brakes, i had ZERO brake fade, ZERO compromised pedal feel, and as a system, they worked perfectly.

pretty awesome piece of mind for under $500. oh, and the track pads [front] have good cold bite, too, for running around the city.

cheers,

scotty

That's the advantage of the sloted discs, that the slots shave the surface of the pads, so they never fade and amazingly they don't reduce the life of the pads.

[noone]

That's the advantage of the sloted discs, that the slots shave the surface of the pads, so they never fade and amazingly they don't reduce the life of the pads.

Isn't the point of the slots to help remove the surface of the pad?

I don't think the Polo is built to a budget and spongy brakes was definately included in the last model. I'm not a fan of braided lines and there should not be anything wrong with the stock pad / rotor, they are designed to be comfortable and quiet.

Hey Scott, are they the GTI brakes? Hope you've got all that running now, make the toy pull up a little harder...

[Buller_Scott]

That's the advantage of the sloted discs, that the slots shave the surface of the pads, so they never fade and amazingly they don't reduce the life of the pads.

i tell you, the difference is night and day, compared with the stock tdi setup- im a very, very happy camper. stock rotor size slotted + good pads all round + good fluid- a mod i will be doing to ANY car i own from now on!

[gslrallysport]

That's the advantage of the sloted discs, that the slots shave the surface of the pads, so they never fade and amazingly they don't reduce the life of the pads.

Knowing exactly what parts he's got on the car I'd actually say most of the difference is coming from the front A1RM pads. Scotty's running the 256mm rotors, which will work the pads quite hard given their significantly lower thermal capacity and lesser leverage versus the 288mm rotors. In this particular case I don't think the slotted rotors would be making a massive difference when compared to the change of pad.

As Scotty said, on standard size 256mm rotors, with the right pads and fluid the difference is night and day. You're better off spending money on upgrading existing standard hardware, then getter lesser quality parts in upgraded hardware. As an example Evo 4-9 gravel rally cars with 550 odd nm, anti-lag, brutal accleration, and driven by hard-on-brakes left foot brakers only run 276mmx24mm front rotors, and with the right pads and fluid don't struggle for brakes....

[Transporter]

Hi Guys,

I notice with the Polo in the wet that the brakes feel quite spongy. Anyone else have this issue/feeling?

Thanks

Just take it to the VW workshop to check it, but I guess if they are spongy only in wet conditions they will tell you that it is normal. If you're like some of us who want the perfect brakes in any conditions, fitting slotted rotors (assuming there is no fault in your new car brake system) will give you perfect brake pedal feel no matter if wet or dry and how hard you brake. There is not noticeable reduction in the brake pads life.