Aprilia Rear Brake Woes

[05 GSXR 750]

Originally Posted by mscuddy

***TAKEN FROM "THE APRILLA FORUM"*** (I Googled "Aprilla Brake Problems btw).


Please do not ride your bike if you are not absolutely certain that the brakes are working properly. If you monkey with the actuating rod on front (at the lever) or rear (at the pedal) brake be sure you have detectable free-play. If there is no free-play it can prevent fluid return to the reservoir and cause brake application and lock-up as system temperature rises."

I was wondering if you could further elaborate upon what you discussed above? I recently installed a new brake lever and since the installation my brakes seem to "build" pressure as I use them until they lock up. I was wondering what I did to cause this problem and what I can do to remedy it.

Thanks very much

[vermicious]

For anyone else who may have experienced this I was able to eliminate the issue without a full-on bleed by following a somewhat counter-intuitive piece of advice from Aprilia tech. Namely, hang a full can of paint from the rear brake lever. The reason this is counter-intuitive is because the MC and reservoir are the lowest points in the brake brake system. What makes the effectiveness of this solution even more ironic is the fact that it didn't work for me until I used the rear wheel stand (effectively increasing the elevation of the brake over the MC and reservoir)... koo-koo nutty. Oh, and it seems to work best if you warm the bike up first... I don't know if lowers the brake fluid viscosity or what but it takes a hell of a lot less time to get the desired results after the bike's been running for five minutes or more.

[BrowningBAR]

Alright, what the hell are you holding in your avatar? Is that a leaf blower? Some sort of Nerf Bazooka/cannon thing? World's largest turkey baster?

[vermicious]

Originally Posted by BrowningBAR

Alright, what the hell are you holding in your avatar? Is that a leaf blower? Some sort of Nerf Bazooka/cannon thing? World's largest turkey baster?

haha, it's a weed-whacker... I was chasing a friend with it.

[mark varney]

Originally Posted by vermicious

Any other Aprilia owners out there suffering from pressure loss to the rear brake? I lose brake pressure steadily over a couple of thousand miles and have to bleed them dry in order to restore it. This is easy enough to do but gets to be a little obnoxious if you put real miles on the bike.

I love this bike and would really like to find a permanent solution to my solitary complaint with it. Any ideas?

I too have an aprila 1000cc millie have had the rear brake overhauled but I am having problem re-bleeding can some tell me how to re-bleed the brake Thanks Mark

[MOKE1K]

Originally Posted by mscuddy

You can lace up a nice Moto Guzzi Falcone drum if that doesn't work. Cables don't leak air. That's why I dig 'em.

That's funny. When people ask me why I hate my 07 Suzuki hydraulic clutch I respond by saying "because it can never leak".

[MOKE1K]

Listen if the manufacture hasent admitted fault by means of a recall, then good luck. Bleeding brakes seems always a mystery for most. Whenever I can I avoid bleeding always go for the flush. Flushing only ever requires a plastic bottle, clear tubing that will make a sealed fit around your bleed nipple.

If you absolutely have to bleed the brake's' do things such as filling the caliper(s) first to make it easier to bleed.

Also not found on all bikes but easy to aquire and essential to bleeding brakes is a master cylinder bleed bolt. A much easier way to bleed brakes,... it's a bleed nipple and intergrated into your bajo bolt located by your master and holding on your front brake line on. Remember air gets trapped at the highest point of the line. Good luck. Let us know what happens and if the manufacture takes responsibility if there is a real problem.