Some issues after installing brake pads
 

After installing Carbotech XP8, I am noticing these issues:

1. Brake pedal can bottom out

2. Air hissing when pressing brake pedal down

3. Brakes screech, but not evenly

4. Braking force seems good.

These are the steps I went through to install:

1. Remove old brake pads and shims.

2. Installed new brake pads (no shims) snugly into their slots. Needed to compress caliper pistons a bit for them to fit. Checked pads a month ago and they were 10mm front and 8mm rear, so not much compressing.

3. Tightened guide pin bolts lightly with finger tips until flush with caliper and no further movement from light twist. Then applied around 20-30 degrees of rotation to get a snug fit. This was roughly what was needed to apply 19 ft-lbs when I tested with torque wrench.

4. Pumped brake pedal repeatedly after install.

5. Never opened brake fluid reservoir or bled from caliper. Did not replace or resurface rotors because they looked basically new.

Any ideas? Could it just be that I haven't bedded the brake pads and they are not flush yet?

You need to bleed your lines, then bed.

Yeah... I'm bleeding and bedding them in a couple days. What should the OEM brake fluid look like? Mine is like this: