up-and-down

Ok, I brought home my Impreza ('98 L model) the other day from the dealership and I've been driving it and my '97 Sentra around for about a week now. I've noticed that the Subaru's brake pedal has a much firmer feel to it than the Nissan's. This is nice and all, but the thing is the Nissan stops so much quicker than the Soob. Meaning that it feels like I need to press the pedal further and harder to get the Impreza to come to a stop than with the Sentra. It isn't an enormous difference that has me afraid to drive either car in rush hour traffic but more of something I've noticed and would like to inspect further before my 2300 mile drive cross country. In the Nissan, the pedal is much softer; not overly mushy or unstable but just noticably softer and it bites in almost immediately.

So..........
Today I brought both cars into the garage, jacked them up and took the front wheels off to inspect and compare them side by side. Aside from the width Impreza's rotors dwarfing that of the Sentra's, I noticed that the Subaru has RED brake pads. They weren't spray painted as far as I could tell seeing as the serial/model/whatever numbers were engraved in gold over the red. Either the Subaru didn't have the metal wear indicators or I'm just retarded, but I was almost 3/8" between the rotor and the indicator on the Sentra. In the end, both pad sets looked to have pretty much the same amount of wear, that being not a lot at all.

Now my questions are:
-I'm thinking these can't possibly be stock brake pads on the Impreza, by any chance are they EBC Red's (going out on a limb here) or anything other then the OEM Subaru's?
-In my brake fluid reservoir the fluid level is a bit above the max indicator when the car is sitting cold. Should I pump some of this out to put it within the min/max lines? Could this be contributing to what's going on and if not, will it be a concern in and of itself?

I've driven around for a while but haven't had much time to take the Subaru out for a good ol' windy-wooded road drive so I haven't gotten the pads to heat up much. If I do have non-OEM pads, I may be under their optimum performance temps and this would explain my situation pretty well.
I'm more or less at this point thinking that I do have upgraded pads and/or I should bleed the brakes to see if any changes occur but I'm no brake master tech by any means so any input and thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Am I at least on the right track?
Thanks
Chris

jdepould

iTrader: (2)

did you go for a drive then check where the brake fluid level is? I wouldn't think it would be any different. . . but yeah, being above the max line could contribute to the pedal being too firm.

up-and-down

I didn't check the level after I drove for a while. I may do that later tonight.

jdepould

iTrader: (2)

I would try getting the fluid level between min and max before doing anything else, because that could just be it, and it would be a much less expensive place to start

up-and-down

Well I went to the dealership and am still kicking myself in the face for having to pay them to change out a bunch of stuff I could easily do myself, brake fluid being one of them. Too bad my dad has ABSOLUTELY no mechanics tools whatsoever. In any event, I was looking at a wrx in the showroom and its brake fluid reservoir was filled almost completely to the bottom of the cap so I'm thinking mine may not be that big of a deal after all. We'll see on Monday afternoon when I get the car back.

jdepould

iTrader: (2)

why did you take it to the dealership? Just find a reliable mechanic in your area, saves you a lot of cash.

up-and-down

I had to order some parts and I know the guys so they take good care of me there. Still I could do the afternoons worth of work for about $75. Who knows, I may well call them tomorrow, cancel the appointment, and just go get my parts. I have little to no faith in most of the mechanics of my area. I had a clutch replaced on my 240 a while back and a few days after I get the car back I notice some shifting problems. I take a look and the transmission isn't bolted in all the way. That and other horror stories have made me just spring for doing work on my own.

jdepould

iTrader: (2)

that sucks, I'm fortunate in that I have a mechanic that I trust completely (and they even pick me up!)