Brake failure. I bought the bike TODAY

[Iroh]

Hi. First post on this forum and it's a bad one... I need help

I bought my CT today. Now, I tested this bike a couple of times a couple of weeks ago and everything seemed great. I put an offer on the bike a few days ago and they accepted. I will not name the dealer but it is a Main Honda dealer. The bike has 5 and a half thousand miles on it. Full service history.

SO, I ride home, all seemed normal except I noticed the throttle seemed very snatchy at low speed, also the bike seemed to not go along smoothly, doing about 40-50 I'm having to ride the throttle to keep the speed up and smooth. I assume it's just the way the throttle is and I have to get used to it.

Then I go out again about an hour later and here's where the real trouble starts... I'm going up a single lane about 15 mph, come to a 90 degree turn go for the brake and the brake lever is stuck solid. I couldn't move it. I go down the gears to slow the bike, a few seconds later the brake frees up and seems ok again. 5 minutes later I'm going along an A road doing about 45-50 and the bike suddenly slow down. At first I think it's an engine problem but then it picks back up. I think the brakes came on again hard then released (without me touching them) I continue home and feel that non smooth thing again as I'm going along. My assumption is the brakes have a serious problem.

What do I do? I want to take the bike back and get a full refund tbh. I assume they will just say no and propose the have a look at the brakes for me but I don't feel like I have any confidence now in this bike. If they completely replace the brake system that might be ok but I don't know.

Has anyone here experienced anything like what I am describing? any help asap would be seriously appreciated

[Big Tex]

I had the frozen brake lever problem. I took it in and they said there was an ABS problem. Whatever it was, the dealer fixed it for free. (Keep in mind, mine was still under warranty)

[Cajunhog]

This has happened to me. Both brake lever lock , and brakes stuck. The following also happened that cause me to find a fix , or it seems.

One time after a mishap of my doing using a Ram Mount master cylinder cover that came apart at highway speed and took the master cylinder cover and the silicone plunger / and hard plastic type cover.

When got  home front brakes locked 1 mile from my house when replaced parts and topped off with fluid.

So I wrapped a bungee cord around the front brake lever and let the bike sit about a week. This allows any air to slowly escape from the system.

In my case the , the ram mount incident probably caused more than a little air resulting in the lock up.

Since doing the bungee cord wrap around the front brake lever for about 10 days removed any and all air, even the smallest bubbles. . I’ve not had a single brake incident and the fluid  is over 30 months old! Still going to flush the fluid in the coming weeks. But wanted to see if the wrap trick worked and it seemed to cure it. Even with brake fluid turning root beer color.

Thought I share this for whatever it’s worth. A friend of mine is mechanically inclined around any motorcycle recommends doing this even on my GoldWing after flushing the brakes and I get the bike home. I think he’s into something. He says 24-48 hours. I did 10 days due to the extremity of that specific issue I had on my CT.

While your fluid must be of proper type & clarity for your system , air can also an be an issue. I think the CT is subjected to this issue as well maybe more so than the average machine. Again… Just me experience with it.

[BeToney]

It hasn't happened while riding but after purchasing the bike last year, the first thing I did was flush the brake fluid.  When I opened the bleed valve and pulled the lever to the bar to purge the fluid, the lever was solid, it moved maybe 3-5mm and stopped.  It took several attempts to get the lever to move but I was finally able to get the lever to fully move to the bar.
After that happened, I did a search here and there were several reports saying this brake system requires fresh fluid so I will now flush it at least annually.  I have owned the bike less than a year and flushed the fluid twice for my own peace of mind, after 9,000 miles it has never happened again.

[DaveinNC]

A common issue with old or contaminated fluid. Completely flush the brake system with high-quality synthetic fluid. I installed speed bleeders on mine and it's included in my annual maintenance. After that, you should be good to go.

[Hound]

The OP hasn't been here since April last year so it seems likely he returned his bike. Sloppy of the dealer to have let it out like that, though. Useful advice there, guys.

[DaveinNC]

Originally Posted by Hound

The OP hasn't been here since April last year so it seems likely he returned his bike. Sloppy of the dealer to have let it out like that, though. Useful advice there, guys.

I should start looking at dates before I make an effort to respond..