Hi all,

I have a 2007 model year 997 Turbo that I had some issues with when autocrossing it last June. I have resolved the coolant nipple leak after performing an engine out service to pin the coolant lines and replace the plastic elbows, as well as pretty much every o-ring, vacuum hose, coolant hose, water pump, thermostat, clutch/flywheel, etc., etc., etc. The car runs great and I feel much more confident with the coolant lines now pinned and all the items that can deteriorate through thousands of heat cycles having been refreshed.

So now I'm on to the second issue I experienced before the coolant leak ended my day. I had previously upgraded the brake lines with steel braided versions and changed out the brake fluid. I bled the brakes like crazy and they felt great during spirited driving on the street - never experienced any weird behavior. On my first autocross run on what I was told was a pretty quick course setup, probably not more than 15 second into the run after going through two slalom sections and a fairly quick left hander, when I went to apply the brakes to scrub some speed before entering the next slalom section my brake pedal felt like it had a wood block underneath it. No matter how hard I pushed on it, it didn't feel like it was going down towards the floorboard at all and the car was barely slowing down. I managed to slow down enough to enter and get through the slalom successfully, but it happened again at the "end" of the course which was a hairpin turn where you reversed course and pretty much did the first bit backwards, And again once more when I needed to brake entering a slalom to scrub speed from 90-100mph down to ~60mpg. I didn't make this last one and ended up off course with a no time for that run. Once I got back into the line-up in the pits, the brake pedal felt fine again - no fade or braking degradation. And that was immediately, not after cooling down for any period. This happened again on my second run, but because I was expecting it I was able to manage a little better. And then it happened to a VERY knowledgeable and capable instructor who had been riding along with me for the first two runs and I had asked to drive on the third run. And once again on my fourth run after which my cooling system expired upon entering the pit area and my day was done.

I have a brand new set of rotors and pads sitting in the garage that I'll be looking to install before spring, but I also want to try and resolve the brake pedal feel issue that I experienced... except the only time it's ever reared it's ugly head is while I was on the autocross course. Any ideas?

Dion