Car question (really dumb)

[The Sauce]

How do you tell if a brake squeal is just a brake squeal or a worn out brake pad? Whenever I guess one way or the other I am usually wrong and wind up paying either for an unnecessary diagnostic or a new set of rotors

 

[7window]

squeal is okay . grinding is when you need to do somehting about it. When it squeals and you replaced the rotor then you got ripped.

They will move this thread now in the garage.

 

[AmdEmAll]

You cant really tell without looking at it. It could be the wear sensor squealing or just the pads or a pebble stuck in there.

 

[olds]

What's even dumber is that you didn't post in the right forum.

 

[SpatiallyAware]

Turn the wheel all the way to one side and stick your head underneath to see if the tabs are touching.


Also, if you use napa premium pads/rotors you won't have this issue. It's worth the extra 20% in parts cost. Your brakes and tires can literally mean life or death.. it's one thing to skimp on spark plugs, oil/air filter, etc where it's just mpg or engine longevity.... but you really should put decent brakes and tires on your car.

 

[highland145]

What's even dumber is that you didn't post in the right forum.

Grumpy bastard.

Car/year/last time changed/if ever.....??

Grinding=bad
squeal could be the sensor. New pads.
On again/off again.....meh, keep an ear on it.


I ain't no mechanic but I've changed my brake pads since 1990.

Others should change their pads more often.

 

[olds]

Can you reach in the wheel and run your finger across the rotors? Don't do it while it's hot.

 

[highland145]

Can you reach in the wheel and run your finger across the rotors? Don't do it while it's hot.

Grumpy to helpful?

Surely he should try it as soon as it sequels.


Kidding, OP.

If it's just a pad change, people should to learn to do their own. Lifetime pads at autozone vs $120/visit.

edit: Merry late Christmas, Olds.

 

[WoodButcher]

There is no guess involved, if they squeak you need service. If it's only a pebble removal great, if the sensor is rubbing the rotor you need pads. If you wait the steel of the pad will soon contact the rotor and you have issues.
Those sensors are not metered, if they squeak they need attention now, not tomorrow or the day after. The pad is thin and can crack / disintegrate at any time.
When mine squeal remove the tire and inspect, remove the stone or bend the squeaker and head to the auto parts. I'll buy the needed parts and replace them on my next day off.

 

[dud]

There is no guess involved, if they squeak you need service. If it's only a pebble removal great, if the sensor is rubbing the rotor you need pads. If you wait the steel of the pad will soon contact the rotor and you have issues.
Those sensors are not metered, if they squeak they need attention now, not tomorrow or the day after. The pad is thin and can crack / disintegrate at any time.
When mine squeal remove the tire and inspect, rmove the stone or end the squeaker and head to the auto parts. I'll buy the pads and replace them on my next day off.

Huh?

OP, if you know how to remove the wheel from the car first lift the car, remove the wheel and inspect the brake pads. If they are less than spec (usually less than 1/4" then replace (its a very easy job). While there, check the condition of your rotors. Are the machined grooves still there ... or has the entire rotor glazed/mirrored over? If so, you may need to have your rotors resurfaced. My rotors squeak every so often but that does not mean I need a complete brake job.

 

[olds]

Grumpy to helpful?

Surely he should try it as soon as it sequels.


Kidding, OP.

If it's just a pad change, people should to learn to do their own. Lifetime pads at autozone vs $120/visit.

edit: Merry late Christmas, Olds.

Meh, he started it in the thread title. I was just going along.

 

[highland145]

Meh, he started it in the thread title. I was just going along.

True.

 

[WoodButcher]

I fixed the typos, sorry to confuse you dud.
I hope the OP is no longer confused, those brake sensors are screaming "fix me" plain and simple.

 

[manimal]

one thing I told my son when he was 2. Dont skimp on brakes and suspension son. They stop you from dying many times a day.


Ceramic pads are so damn cheap these days its not worth the brake dust and squeal.

 

[The Sauce]

When you replace brake pads, do you need to replace all 4 at the same time? I don't feel like taking a wheel off or crawling around underneath the car since it's about 14F right about now.

 

[Jimzz]

No; you replace them in axle sets. Either the front or the rear tires.

 

[Ferzerp]

There is no guess involved, if they squeak you need service.

I guess you've never had powerful brakes with higher performance pads. Squeaking is pretty common with them if you're gentle with them. On my last two cars, I've had to make sure to do some heavy braking every so often to keep the squeak factor down.

 

[brainhulk]

Some new pads will squeek until you get a good transfer layer down

 

[Xpage]

Breaks do squeal for awhile after you replace them. I just did mine 5 days ago, painted the calipers too, after sanding them down, what a pain! Came out real nice, but made a day job into a 3 day job.

Old breaks can squeak too for awhile if there is excess break dust. However if it goes on for more than a day or two worth of driving and breaking then you are likely hearing the grinding of the metal break wear indicator. When i get home from work i'll post some pics of my old worn breaks, had 70k miles on them and still had 1/8" left before i was going to hit the metal low breakpad indicator.

I would recommend doing all 4 breaks at once. Breaks only come in pairs for each axle. The rotor can be grinded down and reused if they are not terribly worn down, but I just replaced mine but they looked good enough to reuse. I'd have a professional machine them if I were you. Else rotors aren't too expensive.

Advance auto parts has a deal 20%, plus a $50 off coupon, if you spend $100. The coupon is only valid on a purchase of 100 or more.

So you could get breaks and 2 rotors for ~120 for high quality ones. Then get 2 more rotors and a few items to get over $100 and use the $50 off coupon.

 

[phucheneh]

Worn-out pads don't make noise (unless you're all the way through the pad material- the comes the grinding).

It's the wear indicators ('squealers'). Little metal tab attached to the pad's backing plate that is designed to hit the rotor once the pad gets to to maybe 2mm or so. It will make a pretty constant noise- not intermittent, not much variation in pitch.

Other squeaks are a result of vibration. Proper cleaning and lubing of parts during a brake job prevents this 99% of the time (also, not throwing away steel shims and pad slides). Doesn't always last until the next set of pads, though, and certain cars are far more prone than others.

If you think you may need pads, my advice is generally 'look at them.' On most cars with aluminum wheels, you can at least see the thickness of the outer pads without much effort. Assume that the inners are a little more worn. With big enough wheels, you can sometimes also see them from the outside (look between the caliper and bracket), or you can crawl underneath the car and look from the back.

Worst case, you need to take the wheels off to properly inspect. Not a huge deal.

 

[KentState]

I guess you've never had powerful brakes with higher performance pads. Squeaking is pretty common with them if you're gentle with them. On my last two cars, I've had to make sure to do some heavy braking every so often to keep the squeak factor down.

That's how mine are. They squeal and a couple heavy braking sessions mix the problem. I'm sure the Brembos on your cars are very similar to mine.

 

[leper84]

Squeal can be- bad pad, bad shim, no lube, rust, glazed over, worn/ grooved rotors, low pads, bad bracket hardware rubbing against the rotor, something caught in the pad, dirty drums... ect.

OP first off there are a lot of places that will do a free brake inspection so you don't have to pay a diag. They should give you two measurments- pad thickness and rotor thickness. For pads you don't need to service them unless they are under 4mm in thickness (2mm for shoes).

For your rotors they'll measure the thickness and should be able to show you in their computer on mitchell or alldata what the minimum allowable thickness is. If your rotors aren't close to the minimum, they don't have a gigantic lip or gigantic grooves and they aren't cracked, you do not need to replace them. If you don't believe the shop ask them to show you the measurements and explain to you in common english without a sales pitch.

Most shops will also turn rotors as part of a brake service without any extra charge.

Also german cars= no machine rotors.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Breaks do squeal for awhile after you replace them. I just did mine 5 days ago, painted the calipers too, after sanding them down, what a pain! Came out real nice, but made a day job into a 3 day job.

Old breaks can squeak too for awhile if there is excess break dust. However if it goes on for more than a day or two worth of driving and breaking then you are likely hearing the grinding of the metal break wear indicator. When i get home from work i'll post some pics of my old worn breaks, had 70k miles on them and still had 1/8" left before i was going to hit the metal low breakpad indicator.

I would recommend doing all 4 breaks at once. Breaks only come in pairs for each axle. The rotor can be grinded down and reused if they are not terribly worn down, but I just replaced mine but they looked good enough to reuse. I'd have a professional machine them if I were you. Else rotors aren't too expensive.

Advance auto parts has a deal 20%, plus a $50 off coupon, if you spend $100. The coupon is only valid on a purchase of 100 or more.

So you could get breaks and 2 rotors for ~120 for high quality ones. Then get 2 more rotors and a few items to get over $100 and use the $50 off coupon.

You can't even spell brakes correctly and you are servicing your own car? Remind me never to buy a car from you.

To the OP, if you have the tools, jack up whichever end the noise is coming from and pull off one of the wheels. You will be able to look at the caliper where the rotor spins inside it and you can visually inspect the pads. Look for uneven wear, thin (less than 1/8") pad material and inspect the rotors for scoring or deep groves. If you hear a sound like metal grinding on metal then you will likely need new pads and rotors.

If you don't have the tools to support your car and remove the wheels I guess you'll just have to rely on the mechanic you take it to.

 

[phucheneh]

That's how mine are. They squeal and a couple heavy braking sessions mix the problem. I'm sure the Brembos on your cars are very similar to mine.

I've never really dealt with 'performance' pads, but have done factory four-piston setups on a few makes. I think they were all Brembo (that or just identical designs).

You can make them not squeak. Again, aftermarket high-po pads may be different, but with factory ones, they won't make noise if everything is cleaned and lubed. The factory pads generally even come with an extra-thick grease for this purpose. I do the sides of the pads (the steel part, obviously, not the friction material), the pins, and the places where the anti-rattle clip makes contact (pin side and pad side).

edit: and agree with Jules. and leper.

 

[Gerle]

You can't even spell brakes correctly and you are servicing your own car? Remind me never to buy a car from you.

deep groves.

Deep like the jungle?