Brakes Replacement Soft Pedal
 

Just replaced all the break pads and that went well. However, I get a soft pedal and a squishing noise. i tried driving the vehicle and stomping the break pedal several times but it still feels soft and it takes several pumps to get a firmer pedal. Will this resolve itself over time or do I have to bleed the brake lines now?

Highly doubtful it will resolve itself, you'll probably need to bleed the brakes.

Alas i thought so
Made arrangements to get the vehicle to the shop
Thanks

yeah but something is wrong here
you should not have to bleed the brakes everytime you replace the pads

if bleeding doesnt solve the problem , its time for a new master cylinder it seems..

Take the car out safely and lock up the brakes and activate the ABS and see if it gets better.

Great Advice
 

Thanks everyone for the great advice.
I took the car out and tried to lock the brakes up but they would not lock or even bring the car to a screeching halt.
The will pump up to make the pedal firmer but then become soft again.
I haven't taken it to have the brakes bled but I do agree it shouldn't be necessary.
I have a S80 T6 I have done this many times on my own car and I was helping a sick friend by doing his brakes for him. His car is a late 2001 or early 2002 C70 XC and it shouldn't be doing this. I put new rotors and pads on as I have done often on my own car.

Hopefully the bleeding will take out the spongy feeling. I will let you know how it goes after that.
Thanks again for all the help

Try again if you can on dirt and see if it will lock up then. I have to do it all the time after doing brakes. It is something with compressing the calipers creates a bubble in the ABS unit and activating the pump fixes the problem.

Progress 1/2 Way Home
 

tech and the group,

Thanks for all the great advice and I am half way home.
The bleeding of the brakes did firm up the pedal and I had placed a retaining spring on incorrectly that contributed to the problem. But now I am getting chatter with the pads on the left front wheel.

I think it may be because the pad on the exterior did not stick when the adhesive back was peeled off?

Would that cause the chatter when the pedal in not pressed. As soon as the pedal is pressed in the vibration and chatter goes away?

Also, if the sticky back is no longer good do they have a replacement with out having to buy a new set of brakes?

The left front usually does not have a sticky back so that should not affect it.
I would drive it a little and let the pads settle in and see if it stops.

These front pads had sticky backs on the outside small pads it is a 202 XC

this is a 2002 Cross Country

Must be the brand. Only the rears have the sticky bad on the OEM pads. The fronts did not use them that I have ever seen. The spring should hold everything pretty stable.

Thanks
I'll take them out and abuse them and see if they settle down.
Thanks again!

Your original problem leads me to believe you need a new brake booster. Soft and squishy, with a hiss? Well, bleeding them will be fine and dandy until they get soft again, then rock hard and lock up. Same thing with the 960, same thing with my new S80. You're gonna want to get that looked at.

To One and All
Problem resolved
First, the brakes were just fine and the installation was correct from the beginning. The bleeding of the breaks did help and probably wasn't necessary after all but didn't hurt.
The scraping and rattling from the left front wheel had nothing to do with the brakes.
The person who bled the brakes forgot to tighten the lug nuts on the front left when and it was falling off. I discovered this when I took it for a test drive and the wheel had a different temperment when I truned right than left. When I stopped and checked the wheel it was on the last threads of the two remaining bolts. So I had to hit Volvo and buy three new lug bolts and put the wheel back on.
Now it is good to go! What a pain this job has been

Thanks for all the great advice though!