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Brakes barely work even after bleeding 3 times.

Yeah, my money says the spring clip is most likely the problem, but I've done the bleed and re-bleed and re-bleed on race cars before that just wouldn't get all the air out until I did a VERY thorough and systematic bleed job.
 
Rara said:
Unless there is something missing from the OP's description of the problem, its not the ABS module.
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Wouldn't the spring clip make it feel funny when the car was off as well or is it just when you have the extra boosted power?
 
The clips is a strong possibility that I did not remember until someone else mentioned them and that most certainly could be the problem. It is even the most likely one.

Rara, I seldom take exception to anything you say, and I believe that overall you know more about brake systems than I will ever know, but my experience doesn't match your about air in the ABS module.

I feel this is a highly likely item since he allowed the master cylinder to go dry.

As a technician and service manager I have seen several instances where a low pedal that seemed to be from air in the system was cured by cycling the ABS system, usually combined with additional bleeding afterward.

That even happened on my own car immediately after changing the front pads. The pedal was very low and bleeding didn't help. It was raining, so I went for a drive and slammed on the brakes hard enough to invoke the ABS. After three such events, the pedal came most of the way up. I returned home and bleed for one last time and the pedal was nearly back up to prior to changing the pads. The pedal came up the rest of the way after about two weeks of driving as the pads finished seating.

I can't tell you how many times I experienced the same concern about low pedal coming up after cycling the ABS a few times on customer's cars. In the shop, I could have a technician plug in a scanner rather than find a place to road test with slippery conditions.

Why is it not possible for the ABS module to be one of the hard places to get air out of the brake hydraulic system?
 
Big Jim said:
Why is it not possible for the ABS module to be one of the hard places to get air out of the brake hydraulic system?
Click to expand...

I don't disagree with this at all, just that based on the OP's description, its not what it sounds like.
 
Also a clean container and a hose on the bleeder can help "see" if it's air. Fill the container with brake fluid and put the hose into it, you will see air bubbles.

But I would make sure the pads are not "tight" in there mounting points. They need to slide.

I will also say, in some cases, If you have rear drums, if not adjusted correctly can also cause pedel to drop and you can pump it up.

Have you done anything to the brakes, like replace the shoes, drums, rotors, or pads? Wheel cylinders, or calipers?

Last thing, does the master have it's own bleed screw on it. I have seen lots of fords that uses this, and will also cause problems, but don't recall seeing it on a contour or mystique.
 
the first time i did a the brake on my SVT, i changed all the lines and everything and rann the master cylinder dry (not on purpose). and after i got everything back together and filled the res with fluid, i bled all the lines in the correct order and everything seemed to be good.. well when i gave her a test drive, she braked like ish... so i took everything apart and re-bled the lines SUPER thoroughly... long story short, it ended up that i needed to clean the new rotors with brake clean, and then they were like brand new...

now this might or might not be the cure for your problem, but don't forget to clean new rotors!

-Mac
 
We get people in the auto store all the time over that. You even go out of your way to tell them to clean the oil off new rotors and 2 days later they are back with the parts and still covered with oil and now brake pad material. Now demanding that you warranty them. Ridiculous.
 
I just bought teh car off of squigg for a decent price and was wondering if anyone had pictures of what the clip on the brakes are supposed to look like, i should be pulling the car int eh garage this weekend to be giving it a great look over and figure out if i will be keeping it or selling it

thanks in advance for any help guys
 
I had a feeling that was it. I don't think I've seen many (if any at all) on the forums that actually needed the ABS module purged.
 
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