[JD6]

My Mini was at the main dealer for its MOT and brake fluid change yesterday. The brake feel has changed quite significantly - the first half of the pedal travel does very little which is a bit disconcerting. When you press further down and hard, the car still stops sharply.

I haven't noticed such a significant change in brake feel on any previous fluid change on a car I have owned- I'm wondering if this is likely to be a symptom of an issue - perhaps too little brake fluid or some air in the system? I'd quite like to know what I'm talking about before I approach the dealer!

[Kendo67]

Low brake fluid is easily checked and should show a warning light on the dash , air being introduced during the replacement procedure is a possibility if they have allowed the reservoir to run dry.

Either way , i would be taking it back to them.

K

[Ennoch]

Once the brakes start working does it feel spongy(ier) in any way?

[KRS_SN]

How many miles are you on.
Had the issue with mine after bfs spongy feel though car would stop as expected.
Dealer said pads are nearly done (25k miles) change
Changed f+b pads and now its very responsive. I'm poorer though

[kzg1969]

Funny you mention this as i just had my 3yr / fluid change and when driving away nearly overshot the first couple of junctions due to poor brakes. Seemed to sort itself out though.

Brake fluid level wont cause what you describe. I am guessing that its a little air in the system.

Another possibility could be some contamination on the pads/disc but that would typically have the same pressure feel, but less stopping efficiency.

Take it back and just tell them its got excessive pedal travel.

[Alscoob]

Suspect it's due to brakes being pressure bled these days rather than the pump the pedal system and user error. Maybe it aerates the fluid slightly and takes time to settle down, but it shouldn't have an effect on the pedal it should still be consistant throughout the travel.

In my days of bleading brakes, if you have take the whole lot apart and are starting from scratch, as you bled them you would start to get pedal feel from right down at the floor, the more you bled them the further up the pedal travel would be until they worked with reasonably little pedal travel. Sounds like they haven't bled them properly and you still have air in the system.

I would take it back & get them to do it again.

[JD6]

Originally Posted by Ennoch

Once the brakes start working does it feel spongy(ier) in any way?

With enough pressure the car still stops quickly, it’s just the initial travel on the brake pedal does nothing even though it offers some resistance - not sure if I’d call this spongy - certainly surprising having owned this car for years. If it’s just a change of feel, I can probably get used to that, but I’m not sure it’s just that.

[JD6]

Originally Posted by KRS_SN

How many miles are you on.
Had the issue with mine after bfs spongy feel though car would stop as expected.
Dealer said pads are nearly done (25k miles) change
Changed f+b pads and now its very responsive. I'm poorer though

It’s on 46k miles / 7 years and this is the third brake fluid change for the car.

The pads and discs were checked and are fine.

[Ennoch]

I think the answer is to take it back to them and say you're concerned as there's been a clear degradation in braking performance and feel since they worked on the car. At the end of the day it's their problem to fix given you took it to them and they gave it back to you with worse performance than you had originally!

[JD6]

To update the thread. The Mini went back in today. They found some air in the system apparently and did the job again. The brakes are now back to how they should be. Thanks for the suggestions.

[isleaiw1]

Originally Posted by JD6

It’s on 46k miles / 7 years and this is the third brake fluid change for the car.

The pads and discs were checked and are fine.

which reminds me I need to get my 7 year old / 31k mile Mini serviced and brake fluid changed.... whats the going rate in your neck of the woods..?

[JD6]

Originally Posted by isleaiw1

which reminds me I need to get my 7 year old / 31k mile Mini serviced and brake fluid changed.... whats the going rate in your neck of the woods..?

It's still free up here! I have TLC XL which is an 8 year service pack. The first service I have to pay for in the car's life will be in 3 years time at 10 years old. I suspect they regret offering that deal...

[isleaiw1]

Originally Posted by JD6

It's still free up here! I have TLC XL which is an 8 year service pack. The first service I have to pay for in the car's life will be in 3 years time at 10 years old. I suspect they regret offering that deal...

ah, we never expected owning the car this long so only came with the 5 year pack...

bizarrely the service and brake fluid change is more at Stratstone Chesterfield than Sytner Tring.... I quite liked Tring when it was specialist cars but may just go to an independent for this work as car isnt really worth it now...

[Scoobyd]

Originally Posted by isleaiw1

ah, we never expected owning the car this long so only came with the 5 year pack...

bizarrely the service and brake fluid change is more at Stratstone Chesterfield than Sytner Tring.... I quite liked Tring when it was specialist cars but may just go to an independent for this work as car isnt really worth it now...

If you want an excellent independent give Phil Crouch at CPC Engineering a call. Over in Amersham so not too far. Absolute nightmare to get hold of at times but he's been looking after mine forever and they're a great, trusted, garage.

[isleaiw1]

Originally Posted by Scoobyd

If you want an excellent independent give Phil Crouch at CPC Engineering a call. Over in Amersham so not too far. Absolute nightmare to get hold of at times but he's been looking after mine forever and they're a great, trusted, garage.

Thanks young man, sounds good to me.