I recently purchased a 2003 CR-V, and have noticed that it bounces whenever I hit any kind of bump. I would like to see if there is a suggested update I can do to resolve this. I have also noticed that my brakes feel soft (almost go to the floor soft) and has not changed even after doing a bleed of everything. Any suggestions?

Drag

Just out of curiosity, what is a JDM engine, and why do they tend to have such low milage or whatever?

 

JDM = Japanese Domestic Market **Despite popular belief by many dumbass people who have slaughtered the term, "JDM" isn't a brand.
This means the engine was in Japan. To my understanding Japan has very strict vehicle/smog laws - which means they have to retire the vehicle after so many miles. They're then sold off, and bought by US companies.

 

From experience with my 2001 CR-V, Honda suspension components tend to be pretty long-wearing. There's a chance your shocks are all original, and after 15 years of use they may be shot explaining your harsh ride. Check each unit for leakage as there should be none. Any leakage at all means the unit is shot and requires replacement. Shock absorber performance will degrade over time even if they don't leak, however, and this becomes a more subjective measure of wear, though there is a way to check it. If you perform a jounce/rebound test you can check the effectiveness of your shock absorbers.

Put your hands on the front bumper and push down repeatedly until you get the front moving up-and-down pretty good. Be forceful here...you want to really get it bouncing. Let go and count how many up-and-down cycles it takes for the vehicle to stop bouncing and return to its normal ride height. If you think of normal ride height to be the "zero point", the compressed state to be "negative" and rebound above the "zero point" to be "positive" territory, a "pass" means the front bumper passes the "zero point" no more than 3 times before coming to rest. If you pull your hands off the bumper in negative territory, the vehicle will rebound up through zero into positive territory, squat back past zero to negative, and then should come to rest at zero. Fewer cycles is even better, more cycles means your shocks are on the outs. Repeat for the rear...same rules apply.

As for your brakes, look over your lines for any wet spots and look over your rubber lines for any leaks. If you find none, take off each caliper and use a pair of pliers or c-clamp to make sure the pistons are moving. If they're all moving fine, there's a chance your master cylinder could be failing. When the piston seals in the master cylinder begin to fail they'll develop small tears that allow the pistons to move "through" the fluid instead of actually pushing the fluid and fully actuating your brakes. This can often feel like a spongy pedal since you need more travel to do the same amount of work...if it'll do any at all. I'm going to bet your master cylinder is on the way out. If everything looks good you can improve your pedal feel by replacing your rubber lines with stainless steel braided brake hoses. These expand less under braking pressure transferring more of your pedal effort to the brakes themselves where the work is actually done. Don't go this route though until you ensure your braking system is healthy, otherwise you'll just be throwing good money after bad.