Sqeaking noise from brakes

[Pepsi90919]

There's a moderate SQEEEEEEEEEAAAAAAKKK coming from the rear drums when I brake at moderate to slow speeds. From what I can gather from the Internet, this is either caused by just the harder type of brake shoe or some rust forming on it, being worn off? This car is a '92 bonneville and frequently does not get driven for 2-3 days at a time. The noise seems to go away with driving, and happens more in the cold/wet. Any ideas?

 

[guyver01]

Two ideas... both are mutually exclusive.

(1) You have metallic brakepads, which the squeaking is normal.
(2) You don't have metallic break pads, which the squeaking is caused by worn out breaks. Get 'em checked.

 

[StageLeft]

I had the exact same problem. On my rear brakes some rust had gotten in between the drums and rotors (?) the mechanic said. They cleaned it out (said I didn't need to replace brakes), but unfortunately the noise stayed. Some oil fixed it. If the squeek is harsh and you get it all the time (ie, also in dry weather) to the point where its embarassing I think its your warning tab showing that the brakes are almost worn out in which case you should get them fixed.

 

[iamwiz82]

its rust, dirt, etc being cleaned off of your brakes. If it is constant, or gets worse when you drive, then its the actualy brake pad giving you a warning that it is on its way out.

 

[ratkil]

"Some oil fixed it."
Some oil where? Doesn't oil on the brake pads cause a potential for them to lock up during braking?

 

[StageLeft]

Well ratkil, I just threw some oil around behind the wheel all over the place and it fixed the sound. True, I'm not a mechanic (i know nothing) and I was worried at the time that the oil could cause some problems...now I know for sure I think its worn off by now, I sold the car a long time ago anyway and I haven't heard of any problems by the owner!

 

[Eug]

Sure you haven't worn out the break pads? If so, ouch!

 

[iamwiz82]

drum brakes arent really a problem if they are worn out, since you can have a mechanic just sand it down if groves are left in the drum itself.

I replaced my front left rotor the other day because it was in a pretty sorry state. Squeking stopped there, but now i have noticed my other 3 wheels are squeking, and i just relpaced them all within the last year... argh

 

[iamwiz82]

stupid DP

 

[Soybomb]

If it sits for a while and then go aways pretty quickly its just grime and rust being worn away. If its a continuous sound it might be worth having them checked out for wear. Putting oil on your brakes is a bad idea...there is supposed to be friction between the two surfaces.

 

[Zenmervolt]

First of all, follow Soybomb's advice and do not put oil on your brakes. All oil will do is reduce the friction and consequently reduce the effectiveness of your brakes. I leave my car in a campus parking lot for months at a time without appreciable driving (I start it once a week and let some heat build up in the engine, but I don't drive it). When I leave for Winter or Spring break, I get a very mild grinding sound from the rear drums under light braking because of the thin coating of rust. I have never had rusty brakes squeak, the only time I have heard brakes squeak is when the pads needed to be replaced. I should mention that mild squeaking under light braking is completely normal, but with the windows closed and the radio off the squeaking should be barely noticable if at all. Get the brakes checked.

Zenmervolt