Well, well, well...after 45000 miles of spongy double-pump braking I took the 06 F1 STX to the stealer for service, quite conveniently after the warranty expired. After 4 new pads, 4 turned rotors, a bleed, a new wheel speed sensor and $750 I got my truck back WITH THE SAME FRIGGIN PROBLEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

In frustration I came to the forum LITERALLY as soon as I walked in the door. After an hour of reading I found this post and decided to adjust my actuator rod. 15 minutes later and a little elbow grease and I now have BRAKES!!!!! THANKS!!!!

As an aside, it actually took me about an hour because I adjusted it too far out the first time and overheated my brakes on the test run. So I returned it to its original position and then made 1/4 turn increments, reassembled, and test drove. Took about 3/4 turns.

Ill post again in some time to let you all know if it was a permanent fix.

 

oops...double post

 

New guy here who joined up specifically looking for this issue. Truck has had a soft pedal since I bought it new. Took me bout 10 minutes to do and only had to adjust it about a 1/4 turn for it to make a noticeable difference in pedal feel. Thanks for all the good info in here.

 

So glad to see yet another person benefit from this easy DIY fix. Also glad to see you were not discouraged by the petty, childlike remarks of mkosu04. He may have his had in the manufacturing of master cylinders, but he obviously lacks the real world knowledge needed to do this type of work, that and tact, manners, respect.....

Good for you! Now pass it on to that dealership!

 

Glad to be of service vee8ford !!!

That problem plagued me for months after I purchased my 06. Took my dealership a few tries before they got it right, but thank goodness they did!

 

Been plagued with the soft brake pedal since the truck was new in 06. Just returned today from the dealer where they did the booster hose recall. I mentioned the soft pedal to the service manager and he said he has heard about that before and those dang anti lock brakes cause a lot of problems and that I should have it looked into. I said it's out of warranty and had it in prior to the warranty expiring for this problem. They said at the time they could not duplicate the problem. Duh, just push on the brakes! Sounded like I would be footing the bill for them to do some experiments so I came on here looking for a solution. I came home and read all 15 pages of this thread and spent 15 minutes adjusting my actuator rod a half turn and the pedal is right there now! Best brakes I have had since new. I then drove about 5 miles not using the brakes( I live in the country) and the brakes remained cool. Probably leave the adjustment right there for now. Can't say enough about the good info I have found here. Thanks guys!

 

Glad the site was hwelpful and you found a fix!

 

I bought this truck new and never was happy with the brake pedal feel. There was what felt to be an inch of "freeplay" before any noticable breaking effect. The pedal would not pump up and since several other 97 models I had driven prior had done the same thing, I attributed it to the nature of the beast.

When I replaced the front pads, I hoped it would help and did not. When a brake line blew out and I replaced both lines and bled the system, I hoped it would help. It did not.

Then just for grins, I searched and eventually found this thread. I read all 15 pages and got out my tools.

I marked the shaft and nut with white-out and turned the nut out a half turn and reassembled. During the test drive, I found ZERO freeplay, which told me I went too far. When I got back, I licked my finger and touched the rotor and got a sizzle, confirming too far with the adjust.

I readjusted to a 1/4 turn out and absolutely PERFECT! It was as if I had replaced a complete set of worn out brakes and parts with all new!

Thank you all!

 

After living with problem for a year since I got the truck, one half turn made me very happy, probably could go a little more but happy @ 1/2 turn out or counterclockwise..... thanks for the info.

 

Started having the spongy brakes about 8K miles ago. Recently I had a scare in the rain and decided enough was enough. I pulled a wheel and checked the braking hardware only to find...nothing wrong. odd

Looked at the brake fluid and it was a certain shade of nasty, so I sucked it all out and replaced it. No change. hmm

Came to the forum and did some quick searching and ended up here. One minute to take the MC off with air tools - 5 seconds to turn the rod out 1/2 turn - one minute to replace the MC. Instantly noticed the difference, but it wasn't quite where I wanted yet. I got called away for dinner so I'll have to get back in there when I get a minute and try another 1/4 turn.

Oh and I popped the vacuum line off the brake booster prior to removing the MC to release the vacuum and that worked like a charm too.

 

went looking for a procedure. This is from lexus but seems to be somewhat universal. There is a way to adjust clearance without any special tools to make sure it is safe.

 

forgot Linky....bad linky no doughnuts

http://www.autoshop101.com/forms/brake05.pdf

 

GLAD TO HEAR MORE & MORE PEOPLE BENEFITING FROM THIS EXTREMELY EASY TO PERFORM PROCEDURE.

 

thanks for the doc !!!!!

 

I un-screwed the nuts holding on the M/C, but it does not seem to budge. Is there anything else holding that thing on? I hate to pull too hard and break something expensive.