Brake pedal went a little soft...

check you lug nuts lol

 

I will bleed them over Thanksgiving break when I have time.

I cleaned the star wheel when I did the rear brakes. I also changed all of the hardware (springs and pins and such) at that point. Shoe wear also was even when I replaced them.

I did not replace the cylinders, but I will check them when I bleed the brakes.

The ebrake shouldn't be the problem, and its a PITA to fix it so I won't.

It most likely isn't a leak, since I have not lost any fluid in the past week (I have checked daily).
I will talk to my friend who has a shop; I stopped by yesterday but he wasn't home so I will try next week.

 

You might think the ebrake shouldn't be a problem - but I've seen weirder things happen. Are you absolutely sure that ebrake problem isn't preventing your drums from working completely?

Checking the fluid level isn't necessarily gonna tell you that you have a leak. A hairline leak can allow small amounts of air in the system without seeing any (or much) visual signs of leaks. Even tiny airbubbles that are small are hard to see but can affect the braking pressure. The more you pump the brakes, the air bubbles break up and are even smaller and harder to see.

 

Yeah, like I said, I have had that problem with the ebrake for over a year (one lever was frozen, so I disassembled it, cleaned it in a parts washer, and lubed it. A month later, the other one that worked froze so I gave up) and the cable is kinda stretched to shit.

As for the small leak thing...I didn't know that; thanks for the advice there. I will bleed the brakes and see if the problem goes away for a little, then comes back (evidence that air was flushed out of the system, but came back via the leak).

Think that will work?

 

It's a troubleshooting process.....

Although, if you do have a leak somewhere...the very first time you step on the brakes, air will be re-introduced into the system. Its hard to tell if bleeding will temporarily remove the problem (as you mentioned). But - again, something you can try and see what happens.
Use a clear hose and tightly secured to your bleeder so you can the fluid as it comes out.

 

my truck does the exact same thing man. i have no money to fix it and it only happens like 1 time every month or something.

 

Still sound like it could be a master cylinder. even a hairline leak you will lose fluid. brake hydraulics are extreme pressures and if you pump the pedal or a friend pumps the pedal you should see leakage even from a hairline leak. If its in the master cylinder what happens is the seal on the piston goes bad when you hit the brakes they sort of work but the longer and harder you hold the brakes the pedal just keeps going down slowly because the fluid is leaking around the piston seal in the master cylinder. I dont know how much the master cylinder is on a tacoma but my old chevy was like 16 bucks at advanced auto and its a cheap/easy fix, if you cant find a leak.

 

Oh, I wan unaware it was inexpensive. I will still troubleshoot it according to Janster's advice, but I will keep this in mind.

Thanks everybody

 

scratch that it was 16 bucks for my chevy but its like 70 for a tacoma

http://www.autozone.com/autozone/catalog/parts/partsShelf.jsp?displayName=Master+Cylinder+%28Brake+System%29&itemId=7-0&isSearchByPartNumber=&sortType=null&totalPages=[I@5b997b&currentPage=1&vehicleNValue=&navValue=14400007&parentId=44-0&fromString=&fromWhere=null&filterByKeyWord=&categoryNValue=&categoryDisplayName=Brakes+%26+Traction+Control&_requestid=1642377

Chevy one is 24 at autozone now... sorry not trying to mislead

 

OK.
Just so long as you're not driving it on public roads with brakes that you know are faulty, right?

 

Just replaced the rotors and pads (ceramic) and the rear shoes on my 06 DC TRD 4X4. Pedal was greta prior, now goes right to the floor and unless I pump the pedal 4 or 5 times feels like very limited stopping capacity. A little scary at 75! Never broke any of the lines but feels like need bleeding?

 

I've had the exact same problem for six months. Tried everything too. Got some answers today. I'm searching all the "soft brake issue" posts and referring people to my detailed account in "recommendations for mods to tow with a gen 1 taco" this problem is more widespread than I thought and the culprit is nothing any of us thought of. I got lucky with somebody that was familiar with the problem, which is a side effect of another common Tacoma problem: rear end sag due to leaf spring failure...causing the load sensing valve to sense a false load and overload the rear brakes, causing tiny leaks that allow air in and out but don't leak enough fluid to be noticed unless you take the rubber seals off the cylinders inside the rear drums and see a little bit of oil that bubbles when you pump the brakes. Sounds crazy, but it's true.

 

Interesting. I just did my 2002 Tacoma front discs. Rotors, calipers and pads. Blead the entire system bleeding the proportioning valve last. They stop fine but after you come to a complete stop pushing on the brake pedal harder causes it to mosh down some. Should be hard and not mush. I replaced the master thinking seals were leaking and no difference. Haven't see any leaks or loss of fluild and I don't remember this condition before unless I just never tried it since they currently stop fine unless you really push on the pedal. Any thoughts anyone?

 

just an FYI on master cylinders:

most common failure, soft pedal

most common reason for failure, seals don't hold pressure so fluid bypasses around the seals internally instead of compressing the fluid and pumping the pedal can firm up and temporarily restore brake pressure until the next time you apply brakes.

second most common failure, seals leaking fluid pressure out the back of the master cylinder by the pushrod. this can go unseen but explains fluid going low with no signs of a leak anywhere.

if you don't see fluid leaking anywhere then it is 100% your master cylinder is bad and at some point those worn leaky seals WILL blow out completely and you have no brakes at all. drive it like that at your own risk.

 

Just to be clear...you're talking the rear brake drum wheel cyclinder right? Is there another one? Can't find a "master brake cylinder" at autozone.com. I change disk and drum pads and am getting the same mushy pedal problem. Could I not have the drums tightened enough through the tensioner? I thought that was automatic. I used all new hardware but didn't replace or turn the drums or disks.They looks fine. Thanks for the help.
Jim

 

I had the same issue as the OP a few years back. It had something to do with the bpv. I disconnected the lever at the axle that runs from the bpv and moved it around. I felt it "break free" and my problem was solved.