If its out of Warranty then why bother taking it the the Honda dealer just do it yourself or get a price off a good local garage its well documented on here that the bleeding of the brakes is not a specialist job .
Its because Honda is my local dealer, i dont have any other options where i live unfortunately my local garage shut down due to lack of business. So I am there at Honda. So i'll get it done and at least that way they cant say I havent had it repaired/serviced to non dealer standards
In all honesty if i was to buy another, it would be non linked and abs free. And learn from my mistake. At the moment if the problem isnt resolved i'm on two minds if i should sell up and take a break from bikes or take the abs system out completely and fit a nice brembo set up to the bike.
Right, Got the bike back on Saturday morning, and having ridden it every day since i can confirm that so far the brakes are now excellent. John Banks Honda in Bury St Edmunds conducted a service and did 2 full brake bleeds on the bike to get the brakes to where they are now. The senior technician announced that apparantly Honda have been known to require up to 7 full brake bleeds before the brakes are bled correctly. Unfortunately I had to pay for the work which wasnt great but in the end I got my bike back and its all working. Apparently Honda are looking into the modulator placement as it is in a place where heat is prone to affecting it, this could be as simple as fitting some heat proof wrap around it to something much more complex. But thats something they are looking into at the moment. Hope this helps Cheers Pete
That's good news Pete - glad it is working and you have full power brakes - Hope this is the end of your problems with the bike
Quick question for fellow abs owners.. Shortly after i bought the bike i was out on a ride and really threw the anchors on as i was going to miss a turn, the tyres were definately nice and warm and the braking was excellent however as i came down to approx 10mph the bike squirmed like hell, like a fish out of water it was.. does the abs turn off at low speed or was i just being too aggressive on the brakes? I would say the braking was smooth but very hard, dry conditions. Cheers
You were probably holding your tongue wrong YT. You have too stick it out & to the left, otherwise the abs doesnt work.
I really hope it is, now lets get the quickshifter, PCV and SFM all mapped up shall we. Possibly also unlock the ECU too. Cheers Pete
I've now got the same issue, I only use to get an issue if I feathered the brakes whilst filtering. I will bleed the system through this weekend with my fingers crossed for a result. Never heard of having to bleed a system through upto 7 times , the downside of owning a c-abs bike .
Glad to hear yours is sorted now Pete. I have spoken to two Honda dealers regarding the problems I am having, one quoted 1 hours labour for carrying out a brake fluid change, the other quoted 5-6 hours labour. I should add that the one quoting 1 hour are and have been a very reputable dealer for many years. I think I will be getting it booked in with them, so hopefully the issue will then get sorted. Needless to say I was just staggered at the difference in labour charge.
Just so you know, A full Brake System bleed will take 4 hours, there is a massive 22 page procedure that has to be followed to conduct it. to do a fluid change in an hour i would suggest they arent bleeding the modulators etc. I have been told that feathering the brakes will cause the abs to malfunction as it tricks the bike into thinking the bike is skidding (rolling with light brake pressure causes this) and you will lose your lever, dirty calipers can also cause the issue, as can your brakes running hot (Warped discs, low pads etc). I would advise anyone taking the bike in to get the garage to service the calipers at the same time. If done right the brakes should be like mine are now and be on instanly trying to stop you on the spot. Honda state that the brake fluid should be flushed through completely every 2 years, i would suggest that this is stuck to for ABS models. Hope this helps
Hi Pete, Bats on here has replaced the front lines on his c-abs with braided lines and then bled the system as you would as normal without any issues. Others have had Honda dealers bleed their systems and a few days later still had the same problem I have also downloaded Honda's 22 page workshop manual for c-abs brake bleed procedure already. Thanks for the heads up and i'm glad yours is working how it should do now.
That's just bad design... And bad engineering... I had it this morning... 2012 C-ABS. 910 miles on the clock. Failed while filtering and hit a van in front of me. Luckily at low speed and only with my tyre. Had that Oh Fuk! moment playing in my head at the time... Not sure I trust the brakes now, light pressure and often is how I filter... Ouch... How will I ride the M4 now... H
Assuming the pump for the ABS is electric does it have a max duty cycle perhaps? SOme wit decided that nobody would ever need to continuously use the brakes more than 20 seconds in every 30... Or something equally as stupid...
