Brakes feel mooshy, please advise

You don't take your car in for regular service? You should have had your brakes checked out by now and then you'd have your answer.

I am not saying you need to go to Ford but at least go to some one you can trust.

I don't think you'll get very many responsible people to give you advise here. It could be air in the brake lines, or worn out pads, or something more serious. The real point to consider here is: It's your brakes; your brakes could easily cost you your life. Don't drive a car with brake problems. As an added incentive I can honestly say that when it comes to brakes usually the longer you wait the more expensive the repair. Get 'em checked now.

As far as the brakes feeling mushy, it really depends on what car you're coming from. If your last car was a modded mustang with upgraded brakes, then the stockers may feel a little soft. If you coming from a stock civic, then they definitely should not be soft.


As far as the parking brake goes..... as the brake pads wear, it will take more vertical force on the E brake lever for the same amount of brake force. 45k on a single set of pads, you may be ready for an upgrade, so that the e-brake isn't soft. More importantly, if the e-brake doesn't seem to engage as well as before, that most likely means that you rear brakes are functioning quite as well as they used to.... time to get them checked out or upgraded.

In the end, brake parts are relatively cheap. Just replace them and have the extra piece of mind. You may cheap out on the oil/antifreeze/gas that you put in the car, but one thing you should always spend money on is your brakes. Just remember, new pads and rotors (even performance ones) are MUCH cheaper than a trip to the body shop......