Sponge like brakes after replacing calipers on 2012 town and country

[Darryl]

I just replaced the rotors, brake pads and calipers on both rear driver and passenger side and hooked up the parking brake spring assembly back to the calipers. I bled both rear calipers with the self bleeding method using a bottle, tubing and tubing submerged in brake fluid within the bottle. It seems like I have to push brake pedal down further to stoo and it is not as sensitive. Also I noticed the piston on the new caliper is not fully pushed against the pad on the one side. Am I missing something? Or do I have to bleed the entire system? I assumed tbe the two rear brakes were on it’s own line seperate from the front wheels.

Chrysler Town and Country 2012 Touring
145KM
4 wheel disc brakes

Topic

[Richard Kirshy]

Sounds like you still have air entrapment in the system.

MANUAL BLEEDING PROCEDURE

NOTE: To bleed the brakes manually, the aid of a helper will be required.

1. Attach a clear plastic hose to the bleeder screw and feed the hose into a clear jar containing enough fresh brake fluid to submerge the end of the hose.
2. Have a helper pump the brake pedal three or four times and hold it in the down position.
3. With the pedal in the down position, open the bleeder screw at least one full turn.
4. Once the brake pedal has dropped, close the bleeder screw. After the bleeder screw is closed, release the brake pedal.
5. Repeat the above steps until all trapped air is removed from that wheel circuit (usually four or five times).
6. Bleed the remaining wheel circuits in the same manner until all air is removed from the brake system. Monitor the fluid level in the master cylinder reservoir to make sure it does not go dry.
7. Check and adjust brake fluid level to the FULL mark.
8. Check brake pedal travel and feel. If pedal travel is excessive or if the pedal feels excessively spongy, some air may still be trapped in the system. Re-bleed the brakes as necessary including the IPB Caliper Brake Bleeding Procedure on the rear calipers as listed below.
9. Test drive the vehicle to verify the brakes are operating properly and pedal feel is correct.

IPB CALIPER BRAKE BLEEDING PROCEDURE

Perform the following procedure on each rear brake caliper as necessary.

1. Raise and support vehicle.
2. Remove the wheel mounting nuts, then the tire and wheel assembly.
3. Remove the brake caliper lower guide pin bolt.
4. Swing the caliper assembly upward, pivoting off the upper guide pin, until clear of the adapter bracket.
5. Remove the outboard pad from the adapter bracket.
6. Return the caliper back down over the adapter bracket into mounted position and install the lower guide pin bolt finger tight.
7. Slowly pump the brake pedal until the caliper fingers touch the outboard surface of the brake rotor. Release the pedal.
8. Remove the brake caliper lower guide pin bolt.
9. Swing the caliper assembly upward, pivoting off the upper guide pin, until clear of the adapter bracket.
10. Reinstall the outboard pad in the adapter bracket.
11. Open the caliper bleeder screw at least one full turn.
12. Seat (bottom) the caliper piston in the bore as follows:a. Assemble a 3/8 in. drive ratchet handle and an extension.
b. Insert the extension through Assembly, Forcing Screw 8807-1.
c. Place Adapter 8807-2 on the end of the extension.
d. Insert lugs on Adapter 8807-2 into notches in face of caliper piston.
e. Thread the screw drive on Assembly, Forcing Screw 8807-1 down until it contacts the top of Adapter 8807-2 which is against the caliper piston. Do not over tighten the screw-drive. Damage to the piston can occur.
f. Turn Adapter 8807-2 with the ratchet, rotating the piston in a clockwise direction until fully seated (bottomed) in the bore. It may be necessary to turn Assembly, Forcing Screw 8807-1 with Adapter 8807-2 to start the process of piston retraction.
13. Close the bleeder screw.
14. Return the caliper back down over the adapter bracket into mounted position and install the lower guide pin bolt finger tight.
15. Have a helper pump the brake pedal three or four times and hold it in the down position.
16. With the pedal in the down position, open the bleeder screw at least one full turn and let out fluid and air, if any.
17. Once the brake pedal has dropped, close the bleeder screw. Once the bleeder screw is closed, release the brake pedal.
18. Repeat the previous three steps until all trapped air is removed.
19. Tighten the guide pin bolt to 35 N·m (26 ft. lbs.).
20. Repeat the above procedure on the opposite rear brake caliper as necessary.
21. Check brake pedal travel and feel. If pedal travel is still excessive or if the pedal feels excessively spongy, repeat the entire procedure as necessary.
22. Install the tire and wheel assembly. Install and tighten wheel mounting nuts to 135 N·m (100 ft. lbs.).
23. Lower the vehicle.
24. Test drive the vehicle to verify the brakes are operating properly and pedal feel is correct.

STANDARD PROCEDURE – ANTILOCK BRAKE SYSTEM BLEEDING
The base brake’s hydraulic system must be bled anytime air enters the hydraulic system. The ABS must always be bled anytime it is suspected that the HCU has ingested air.

Brake systems with ABS must be bled as two independent braking systems. The non-ABS portion of the brake system with ABS is to be bled the same as any non-ABS system.

The ABS portion of the brake system must be bled separately. Use the following procedure to properly bleed the brake hydraulic system including the ABS.

NOTE: During the brake bleeding procedure, be sure the brake fluid level remains close to the FULL level in the master cylinder fluid reservoir. Check the fluid level periodically during the bleeding procedure and add Mopar® DOT 3 brake fluid as required.

BLEEDING
When bleeding the ABS system, the following bleeding sequence must be followed to insure complete and adequate bleeding.

1. Make sure all hydraulic fluid lines are installed and properly torqued.
2. Connect the scan tool to the diagnostics connector. The diagnostic connector is located under the lower steering column cover to the left of the steering column.
3. Using the scan tool, check to make sure the ABM does not have any fault codes stored. If it does, clear them.

WARNING: When bleeding the brake system wear safety glasses. A clear bleed tube must be attached to the bleeder screws and submerged in a clear container filled part way with clean brake fluid. Direct the flow of brake fluid away from yourself and the painted surfaces of the vehicle. Brake fluid at high pressure may come out of the bleeder screws when opened.

NOTE: Pressure bleeding is recommended to bleed the base brake system to ensure all air is removed from system. Manual bleeding may also be used, but additional time is needed to remove all air from system.
4. Bleed the base brake system.
5. Using the scan tool, select ECU VIEW, followed by ABS MISCELLANEOUS FUNCTIONS to access bleeding. Follow the instructions displayed. When finished, disconnect the scan tool and proceed.
6. Bleed the base brake system a second time. Check brake fluid level in the reservoir periodically to prevent emptying, causing air to enter the hydraulic system.
7. Fill the master cylinder fluid reservoir to the FULL level.
8. Test drive the vehicle to be sure the brakes are operating correctly and that the brake pedal does not feel spongy.
Reply With Quote

[Darryl]

Just wondering why I would have to recompress the piston for the IPB bleed. This was a brand new caliper I put on…

[Richard Kirshy]

I didn’t write the procedure…
Though I would think to follow it would be prudent.

[Darryl]

Thank you for your reply. The more I look at the instructions seems to me that leaving bleeder screw open while compressing piston will force out air that may be stuck in the caliper itself which one come out with a standard bleed. Will have to give it a shot. I hate these push and turn pistons.

[Jason Dresch]

So I’ve never experienced this, but I’ve heard that the master cylinder can lose it’s prime if run completely out of fluid, I’ve installed a master cylinder before and I know it won’t work right if you don’t prime it first and keep the reservoir full. If you didn’t run it out of fluid then I would discard this this post and keep on keeping on.
One other piece I would add is that a collapsed line will not allow the piston to retract properly. (rubber hose) Good luck.

[Darryl]

Thank you for the insight. I think I have it fixed now. I re bled the lines on all 4 calipers and the brakes are back to where they should be. Not quite as sensitive as before but pretty darn close. This week I plan to pull those rear two tires off again and spin the pistons back as I feel there might be a tiny bit of air still. The mistake I made the first time around was trying to compress the rear caliper piston with the bleeder valve closed and the brake fluid reservoir cap on still, so the fluid had no where to go… I also believe this is why I ended up replacing my calipers.

The fluid started leaking out of the side of caliper piston while I was compressing (for you car repair experts can you confirm this?). I noticed upon taking the cap off the brake fluid reservoir that that seal was bubbled like pressure had tried to escape.

The master cylinder never went dry. I guess you live and you learn 🙂 Bright side of things, I won’t have to worry about rear calipers for a while.

[Author]

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