2014 brakes are EXTREMELY touchy

The brakes on my 2014 4x4 offroad have been extremely touchy ever since i purchased it 6 months ago. i barely touch the pedal, and the brakes are grabbing hard. it make the tacoma unpleasant to drive. It only has 36K miles on it, and i assume all braking components are original. Does anyone have a fix for this?

 

I think if you have a TRD off road they have a different brake booster and it makes them a bit more touchy. Takes a bit to get used to. I Drove my friends 2wd base model and it felt very different when braking.

I could be wrong though, this is just what I heard

 

Is this your first Toyota? First Tacoma? All the ones I have owned and driven are touchy when properly maintained.

You’ll get used to it. Just imagine if you had a big brake upgrade like I and others have…I locked up the wheels when someone almost pulled out in front of me this morning.

 

if its a TRD offroad you've got a funky booster that has super sensitive stopping.. its normal.. you'll get use to it.

 

ive tried to get used it it. its a pain in the ass, especially on snow and ice up here in the great, white north. i drive my wives 4runner and that thing is perfect. my tacoma.... 1/2 of stroke on the pedal and you have to peal your lips off the steering wheel

 

1st tacoma. my wife has had 12, 15, and 18 4runners and ive had a 08 tundra

 

shes had 4runners? the 4runner uses the same booster. i've always found the runners to be even more aggressive than the tacos

 

My ‘15 TRD OR is the same. Completely the opposite from our Forester XT, which has mushy brakes but super touchy accelerator. Makes for some jerky driving when I switch lol.

 

Does the big brake upgrade disable your ABS?

 

I'm guessing that after 6 mos. you should have adapted to the brakes. So if it's not driver skill related:
Some of the causes of grabbing brakes are contaminated brake pads (dust, grease, fluid), misaligned calipers, loose brake mounting bolts, seized caliper pistons and/or sliding pins and damaged brake lines or rubber hoses.
If you don't have the mechanical skills, take it to a competent repair shop.

 

Nope, it just locks up the front wheels so quickly and evenly that the ABS doesn’t engage before the tires chirp.

 

I have the same truck, 2014 TRD OR and yes, the brakes are good....sometimes too good.
I don't know if this will work but to try and make them more predictable you could try bedding them. Perform the process you would do after a brake replacement job.
It might help them grab more consistently instead of nothing until there's enough pressure to lock them up.
You can find the process online. It varies by brakes shoe/pad manufacturer but is basically the same.

 

Absolutely time to take it to a professional.

 

Not sure if I agree. In an emergency stop I can have the front tires chirp before it lets off full braking enough that ABS isn’t activated. ABS works when I’m situations where traction is lost or there is uneven wheel speeds between wheels.

If I had some low profile street tires on the truck, it would just stop much quicker, but with 15/32” of tread depth…

 

It’s my old truck. The brakes are setup properly, it just has the StopTech BBK with the upgraded 6 piston ST60 calipers. It will stop quick when asked.

OP, slightly larger tires actually take the edge off a bit on the brakes. So if a small lift and tire upgrade is in your future, the braking becomes less break neck. But sounds like your brakes are working as they should, as others mentioned the off road comes with increased braking power from the electric (vs vacuum) brake booster.

 

Ahhhh. Never mind.

 

I have a 2014 Baja and the first time I drove it I thought I would never get used to how touchy the brakes were. I did get used to the brakes. However, the best fix was to put 33" E rated tires on it! Brakes feel normal now.

 

I got my 13 TRD OR back in 2016, I also complained about the brakes to the dealer. He looked up the history on the truck, and the first owner complained about the same thing.
I got used to it, you will to.

 

Normal as other have said. Drives me nuts after driving other vehicles.

Course my favorite driving vehicle is one with no ABS at all and manual steering so I'm a bit of an oddball.