recently purchased a 93 the brake were soft when i ran it around didnt think much of it, check out the pads and rotors both in good shape. any suggestions on were to start

 

Fluid? Master cylinder leak? I have brand new pads, cylinder, etc. and still have to start stopping at least three blocks before my intended resting point

 

Get used to it. They are not great new. Some issues may be air in line. ABS in the rear also can cause lousy brakes. And as mentioned the master cyl units are not the best either. Loose rear brakes ( maybe need to be adjusted ). Alot of times the auto adjusters on the rear freeze up and stop working.

 

SPONGY PEDAL
A spongy pedal is most often caused by air in the system. However, thin brake drums or substandard brake lines and hoses can also cause a spongy pedal. The proper course of action is to bleed the system, and replace thin drums and substandard quality brake hoses if suspected.


BRAKE BLEEDING
Use Mopar brake fluid, or an equivalent quality fluid meeting SAE J1703-F and DOT 3 standards only. Use fresh, clean fluid from a sealed container at all times.

Do not pump the brake pedal at any time while bleeding. Air in the system will be compressed into small bubbles that are distributed throughout the hydraulic system. This will make additional bleeding operations necessary.

Do not allow the master cylinder to run out of fluid during bleed operations. An empty cylinder will allow additional air to be drawn into the system. Check the cylinder fluid level frequently and add fluid as needed.

Bleed only one brake component at a time in the following sequence:

master cylinder
combination valve
right rear wheel
left rear wheel
right front wheel
left front wheel
MANUAL BLEEDING
Remove reservoir filler caps and fill reservoir with Mopar, or equivalent quality DOT 3 brake fluid.
If calipers, or wheel cylinders were overhauled, open all caliper and wheel cylinder bleed screws. Then close each bleed screw as fluid starts to drip from it. Top off master cylinder reservoir once more before proceeding.
Attach one end of bleed hose to bleed screw and insert opposite end in glass container partially filled with brake fluid Bleed Hose Setup Be sure end of bleed hose is immersed in fluid..
Open up bleeder, then have a helper press down the brake pedal. Once the pedal is down close the bleeder. Repeat bleeding until fluid stream is clear and free of bubbles. Then move to the next wheel.

 

Make sure the caliper slides are clean/rust/gunk free and lubed also. Do a search, there`s a post on it IIRC.

 

Recently I was able to diagnose/fix my brake issue. For the longest time I couldn't understand the spongy to fade away pedal. No MC fluid leaks, rear pads and drums looked good. I almost rearended another car on the freeway because I did not start braking in my 5 car distance like I had trained myself to do. It ended up being a tear in my vaccuum line, right where it connects to the low vac sensor in the drivers side panel. Even after I cut off the tear and re-attached the hose, it still wasn't up to par, but definately better. I ended up swapping all vac hoses for new, and brakes are as they should be. Might want to go through your vac lines. The originals are 13-18 years old.

 

TextToMakeThePost

 

thanks alot for the help ended up being my master cylinder, wont stop on a dime definetly going to have to geta brake box for my gooseneck before i even think about pulling it anywhere though.

 

I had the exact same issue, I figured it out when I looked under the truck and saw a bunch of vapor coming out of the crankcase vent tube. This is because the vaccum pump vents through the crankcase. Bonehead design on Dodge's part, the vaccuum line to the low vac sensor chafes on the MC and eventually worries a hole into the line.

 

I dont mean to be a butt here but to those that keep saying these trucks have bad brakes are in error. Dodge has used this design for 25 plus years as well as ford and chevy. If your brakes arent working up to par either get the know how to repair them right or take it to a shop. Accepting brakes that are just barely enough to stop you is silly and unsafe to you and ppl around you, so stop telling ppl to live with it.

As for soft brakes its air, or the pressure is being spent else where as in soft lines or over travel of brake pads and shoes, on rare occasions it can be caused by booster probs. In a working system you apply pressure the pad moves, if you dont stop the pressure being applied is not being transmitted to the pad. Remenber your only displacing a tiny amount of fluid when you mash the pedal, a ounce maybe two at the most. Theres little room for a problem any where.

Since 90 % of most brake worries come from air, Carquest auto parts has a bleeder valve that replaces the factory ones, you loosen it 1/4 a turn , when you mash the pedal fluid comes out but theres an internal valve that stops air from being sucked in. One person can easily and effectively bleed his own brakes and with little waste. And you leave them in just like the factory ones, after you bleed one wheel snug it back up and move on to the next one.

 

Good post.

 

appreciate your insight will be looking more on depth at the problem this weekend, any suggestions on which electric brake box to go with.

 

I use prodegy,iv had no worries from them.