Brakes Feel Mushy

[RangerCat]

I don't think my brakes feel overly mushy. It does take a little more pedal to really stop quickly that our other vehicles but it's not so much that it feels mushy or like it won't stop safely.

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[Desert_5G]

from what I found in the past that helps. is if your vehicles is still fairly new. a few hard stops at high speed helps generate some heat and remove any coatings or oil on the pads and disks.

 

[RCMUSTANG]

That has nothing to do with the inconsistent pedal and general feel.

 

[Floyd]

i wouldn't say mine are mushy. they feel different than the F150 for sure.
the biggest thing I feel is that when applied, and the heat generates, the braking increases. To me that makes it seem like the pads are more efficient with heat.
Other than that, i need to stop, they do it fine.

I think this issue is due to a misunderstanding...
I don't have my truck yet, so this may be speculation.
My TC has brakes designed to respond more aggressively when the brakes are more suddenly applied. I had old school habits of braking late and hard. When I first got the van it felt like the brakes did not respond at the top of the pedal, then overreacted at the bottom.
This made for hard stops. After understanding the strategy I learned to avoid the "extra help" by using a softer touch all the way to a full stop. This system is the best I have ever experienced for street brakes. I think it depends on actually how fast you move the pedal.

The Ranger does have the ability to give more "help" if it senses an aggressive stop which can be disconcerting at first if it acts like my 2016 Transit Connect...Read page 159 of the Ranger owner's manual under "emergency brake assist".

 

[RCMUSTANG]

I slammed the brakes yesterday and it went down real fast with no resistance. Almost like if the master cylinder was bad. Then it started to stop. That is not consistent. It's scary as fuck. I stand by my statement. It should feel consistent everytime you apply them. Not adjust to the particular situation. There's no way to predict your brakes like this. It's not a matter of the brakes not being able to stop. Brake pedal feels mushy and completely inconsistent.

 

[Floyd]

I slammed the brakes yesterday and it went down real fast with no resistance. Almost like if the master cylinder was bad. Then it started to stop. That is not consistent. It's scary as fuck. I stand by my statement. It should feel consistent everytime you apply them. Not adjust to the particular situation. There's no way to predict your brakes like this. It's not a matter of the brakes not being able to stop. Brake pedal feels mushy and completely inconsistent.

18 years as CC on an SCCA race team I agree with the philosophy that the car should do the same thing with the same input everytime!
That would of course mean getting rid of about a dozen different systems on your new truck.

Instead, I predict you will learn how to deal with it and discover the advantages.
If not you should have maybe bought my 2001 Ranger.

If your Ranger is broken, you can get it fixed for free. If it is not broken but only doing something you don't like, you can learn to live with it or trade it for something more than a decade old.

I must admit I would rather drive my TC on public roads in traffic, but my 1995 Mustang is a riot to drive and it shows me the edge... cross it and lose control!

All those electronic nannies can be annoying, but with a little practice they can be predictable.
I disconnected the ABS on my old Ranger and cussed the idea for years, but it was stone age tech compared the new stuff... Heck I was slow to warm up to radial tires or disc brakes in their infancy, but they are now well developed tech.

If it helps...
I recommend the statement on the cover of the hitchhikers guide..."DON'T PANIC!"
Take your truck out in the next rain and make a few hard stops.
Think of it like firing a weapon... Squeeze don't jerk the trigger.
Of course I haven't gotten my Ranger yet and I have only driven one once,but if it turns out to match my TC... WOW!

I do have a question... Does your Ranger still have ABS chatter on hard braking?
My TC has none at all.

 

[RCMUSTANG]

I don't care what systems are on it. It should not react like that. I have a 2017 Fusion Sport and it doesn't act like that with what it has. That's ludicrous to say you need to learn the inconsistencies it has. How do you learn inconsistencies? It's inconsistent.

 

[RCMUSTANG]

Apparently I'm not the only who feels it's not consistent.

 

[mike]

I slammed the brakes yesterday and it went down real fast with no resistance. Almost like if the master cylinder was bad. Then it started to stop. That is not consistent. It's scary as fuck. I stand by my statement. It should feel consistent everytime you apply them. Not adjust to the particular situation. There's no way to predict your brakes like this. It's not a matter of the brakes not being able to stop. Brake pedal feels mushy and completely inconsistent.

If I commit on mine, I have half a mind to to cap off the ABS bs and rerun new brake lines. A more worthwhile mod (to me) than a tune, exhaust or wheel upgrade. Just reinstall when I sell it.

Then, permanently disable every freaking driver "aid" I possibly can.

See how much it irritates me first.

And for those disagreeing, hey I dont think a tune is necessary but some obviously want the performance. I and others want firm consistent brake performance.

My Dad's F150 has soft brakea. Maybe a good thing.. and maybe these brakes are designed for inattentive drivers like my Dad that spazzes sometimes at the last second and slams on the brakes. On a consistent, firm brake pedal he would probably lock up. the brakes... so maybe... like every other system, good drivers are being forced to dumb down through theaw syatems that protect against bad driving.

 

[Schafies]

From the day I first drove my Ranger to the now 900 miles my brakes have been absolutely consistent. The Ranger brakes totally different than my 2017 Explorer but I don't really care. Actually every car or truck I have owned braked differently. I adapted quickly and all was good.

 

[DakotaGuy]

My brakes are just fine. They have a bit more pedal travel then my ‘16 F150 did, but are not nearly as touchy. I feel like I can drive the Ranger more smoothly then I could the F150 because of the brakes.

The only issue I have with the brakes is the brake and gas pedal are closer together than I’d like when I’m wearing boots. It’s a smaller vehicle then my F150 so I can understand why this is, but I can easily accidentally push the brake and the gas at the same time if I’m wearing a wider boot. The first day I had it I accidentally did just that and I’ve had to learn to move my foot over just a little more when braking.

 

[RCMUSTANG]

Again, the feel of the brake pedal is inconsistent. Sometimes it engages higher, sometimes lower, sometimes it feels firmer, sometimes it feels softer. Has nothing to do with any "mods". Look at the date i started this thread. Very soon after I bought it. Never once did I say anywhere that it doesn't stop. If you bothered to read what I posted you'd see what my complaint is about. I stand by my comments that the brake pedal feels inconsistent.

 

[DakotaGuy]

Again, the feel of the brake pedal is inconsistent. Sometimes it engages higher, sometimes lower, sometimes it feels firmer, sometimes it feels softer. Has nothing to do with any "mods". Look at the date i started this thread. Very soon after I bought it. Never once did I say anywhere that it doesn't stop. If you bothered to read what I posted you'd see what my complaint is about. I stand by my comments that the brake pedal feels inconsistent.

It sounds like your vehicle has faulty brakes and complaining over and over on here won’t fix them. Take it in and see if they can fix them to your satisfaction. If they can’t start the lemon law process. That’s about the only advice I have about it.

 

[EcoRanger]

The Brakes on my wife's 15 Edge where inconsistent one time they'd be mushy and the next time it would try and throw you through windshield on her 18 Edge they work just fine. Yes I do agree the brakes on the Ranger do feel mushy but I haven't had any problems stopping.

I want to take back what I said the brakes don't feel mushy it's like someone else has stated the brake peddle travel is longer than I'm use to. After driving my 13 Escape for 6 years the peddle travel completely different but as far as stopping the Ranger I've had zero problems. Maybe it's a condition unique to OP's Ranger.

 

[RCMUSTANG]

Let me clarify. The brake pedal engagement is inconsistent. Not the actual stopping. Maybe that will help.

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