If both pads are not free to float in the caliper, then this brake pedal feel will happen.

Strip , clean, file for clearance(as required), lube, reassemble. It is also good to routinely (once very couple of weeks) force the pads/caliper to center on the rotor - easy to do.

Normal brake to about 2-3km/h, the press very hard on the brake and HOLD. Panic stop-type hard. Hold till the car stops rocking on the tires/suspension. Snap your foot off the brake, the reapply brakes in one smooth squeeze to panic brake pressure. Hold for 3 count. Snap foot off brake.

That rocking of the car helps to move the front caliper on its mount, while the steady high pressure forces both pads to the rotor. Snapping your foot off the brake insures the most fluid will be pulled past the brake piston assembly (taking up any slack in the system).

The cause of the imbalance is simple - normal gentle smooth braking can let the caliper hang up (front) or let one pad move more than the other (rear).

Try it. You will notice a change in the pedal feel, and an increase in initial "bite" as the brakes are applied. The trick is to be rolling just fast enough to induce that front/back/front/back oscillation in the chassis when VERY firmly press/hold the brakes. If the tires slide - you were going too fast. The car should just STOP and shake front/back, like a glass of water jerked to a stop.


MAT