[PagalDesi4Life]

Curious to see if any 1st Gen Sequoia owners experience the "soft brake pedal" when pressing down on the pedal. Although the brakes do function 100% when pressed on, it still feels not as stiff as it should when touched. I mean, I've been in other cars where the moment you start pressing down on the pedal you have that immediate reaction but with ours it seems like there is a "sponge" type effect within the first .5-1" of pressing down. I change my pads ands rotors every 2-3 years and stick with mostly oem products when it comes to brakes, but I've always wondering why there was this effect. It's been like this for years, never really asked the dealership about it because they'll just say it works fine. And no there's no leaks, I've done the brake test numerous times when the car is off and it doesn't show any signs of leaks or air in the system. Maybe the bushings need to be tightened? Not sure..

What do you think?

 

[jburner]

Did you do the TSB on your calipers, or do you have originals? I don't and my brakes are extremely responsive immediately. I'm actually surprised at how quickly they do respond.

Forgive me if you've done all this already, just a thought...
Have you bled your brakes? Did you replace pads by yourself? What color is your brake fluid? If you still have old stuff in the lines, it will retain moisture over time which can create that spongy feeling, that is if you don't actually have air in the lines. I've heard of back bleeding brake lines pushing the fluid through the bleeder and up into the master cylinder. That method is supposed to have less chance of getting air in the lines. Keep us posted on your findings.

What bushings are you referring to?

 

[PagalDesi4Life]

Did you do the TSB on your calipers, or do you have originals? I don't and my brakes are extremely responsive immediately. I'm actually surprised at how quickly they do respond.

Forgive me if you've done all this already, just a thought...
Have you bled your brakes? Did you replace pads by yourself? What color is your brake fluid? If you still have old stuff in the lines, it will retain moisture over time which can create that spongy feeling, that is if you don't actually have air in the lines. I've heard of back bleeding brake lines pushing the fluid through the bleeder and up into the master cylinder. That method is supposed to have less chance of getting air in the lines. Keep us posted on your findings.

What bushings are you referring to?

I had a brake job done almost 2 years ago, took it to the dealership, had the all 4 pads replaced and rotors resurfaced. they replaced the brake fluid and did a flush too. I remember even after the brake job, the pedal still had the same feeling.

 

[BigD9]

I had a brake job done almost 2 years ago, took it to the dealership, had the all 4 pads replaced and rotors resurfaced. they replaced the brake fluid and did a flush too. I remember even after the brake job, the pedal still had the same feeling.

My 2004 has the same soft spongy feel to the brakes. I was waiting for warmer weather to flush and replace the fluid to see if that helped. The rotors and brake pads are all looking new.

Did you do the TSB on your calipers, or do you have originals?

Jburner, what bulletin are you referring to? I didn't see any TSB for the calipers for my 2004. Is there any way to see if the TSB has been performed? Are the calipers pre and post TSB different? Thanks for the heads up.

 

[big-o]

There is no TSB on the 04' model. The TSB was for the pre 03' model with the Caliper stamp 13WE. The TSB was an out of pocket expense incurred by the owner if still under warranty.

Also, the spongy feel is a Toyota thing. All of mine have had it, and I think they just don't care to make face melting stopping power for some reason? You have to upgrade to the TRD pad or caliper/disc set combo...or something like a EBC pad/disc set to get some good response when you hit the pedal.

 

[BigD9]

Thanks for the information BigO

 

[Stevex]

My 2004 Sequoia has the same soft breaking. I am the 1st owner and always maintain the vehicle regularly. The brake works but I am reluctant to pull a boat or trailer. The parking brake is not strong either, which the vehicle can still move. These contrast with my son’s 2018 Corolla.

 

[Billy Bob]

I can almost guarantee what is causing the soft/mushy pedal........ the rubber brake lines get old and start to give just enough to make your brake pedal seem soft.........you can do one or two things but really it's the same repair.........REPLACE all the rubber flexible lines in the brake system, however if you replace them all with flexible Stainless Steel lines you will never have to do them again.

Since I replace ALL my flexible lines with SS lines my brake pedal is ROCK solid. Look up your vehicle on Rockauto.com and see if they have the SS flexible lines.........I got ALL of mine there in a package about 3 years ago for $118 but I no longer see them there for my vehicle..........if not search on Amazon or Ebay and you will find them there................REMEMBER if your paying someone to replace them, the labor charge is the same for the cheap rubber lines as the much better SS lines. And you will basically get a FREE brake fluid flush too.

BTW this is a common problem with Toyota brakes on their trucks/SUV's.

 

[Rath718]

I can almost guarantee what is causing the soft/mushy pedal........ the rubber brake lines get old and start to give just enough to make your brake pedal seem soft.........you can do one or two things but really it's the same repair.........REPLACE all the rubber flexible lines in the brake system, however if you replace them all with flexible Stainless Steel lines you will never have to do them again.

Since I replace ALL my flexible lines with SS lines my brake pedal is ROCK solid. Look up your vehicle on Rockauto.com and see if they have the SS flexible lines.........I got ALL of mine there in a package about 3 years ago for $118 but I no longer see them there for my vehicle..........if not search on Amazon or Ebay and you will find them there................REMEMBER if your paying someone to replace them, the labor charge is the same for the cheap rubber lines as the much better SS lines. And you will basically get a FREE brake fluid flush too.

BTW this is a common problem with Toyota brakes on their trucks/SUV's.

I still have the same problem even after replacing the brake lines with stainless steel lines. Although it’s spongy, it doesn’t lose pressure when depressed for a few second. The pressure is constant and that leads me to believe that the master cylinder and booster are fine. I have to double pump the brake pedal when coming to a stop. Pressing on the brake (without pumping) would go a little more than half way with a lot of leg strength. Only after pumping the brake pedal is when I feel the brakes engage about 1/4 of the way pedal depression. I don’t know what else I can do to make it feel as responsive as other vehicles.

 

[Billy Bob]

Did you replace ALL 6 lines or just the lines at each wheel because there are 2 more on the rear axle area. What year truck and how many miles ?

 

[Rath718]

Did you replace ALL 6 lines or just the lines at each wheel because there are 2 more on the rear axle area. What year truck and how many miles ?

I have 2006 Toyota Sequoia limited. I replaced all the soft lines in front and rear, up to the hard line above the rear axle. Bled the lines til there were no signs of air.