Annoying brake squeal
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Back in February I changed the brake pads on my wife's Pathfinder. Since then I have heard a bit of squeal when she backs out of the garage, but figured it was just oxidation build up on the rotors since she drives infrequently now.
Yesterday on the way to pick up my BMW from the shop for alignment, I heard it squeal under light braking. This was while she was pulling out of the parking garage space (so parked for 8 hours or so after a drive to work), and when pulling out after dropping me off (so after a 15 minutes drive in town with many stops). I didn't hear the noise during normal braking, just light use when moving at low speed.
So, clearly there is still some squeal that isn't just rotor oxidation in the morning.
But what?
I bought Power Stop Z17 pads that have a rubber backing that is supposed to eliminate the need for "brake quiet". Do I need to apply some anyway? I did not put on new rotors or have the rotors turned. I'll gladly put new rotors on to eliminate the noise, these little things really get to me.
The noise is just annoying, but I feel like I've failed at basic wrenching if I can't get this resolved!
Sweet full size van DITPG from a few weeks back (other than the huge dent).
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@houstonrunner new pads on old rotors?
If not then they need to be bed in.
A mild squeak could just be how the pads are.
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@houstonrunner just turn up the music man
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@carsoffortlangley That's what my wife says...
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@sony1492 I bedded them in after install, maybe I just need to try it again.
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@houstonrunner I recently corrected the squeal in my front brakes by applying some grease to the back of the pads. You've indicated that you have rubber-backed pads, so not sure if my hack if applicable.
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@houstonrunner did you Sil-Glyde the pins? If the caliper can't float freely, you can get squeaks
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@houstonrunner What others have said, grease in the right places and grease the slide pins. Those pads need to be able to move a tiny bit.
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@classicdatsundebate I did not lubricate the pins. Good idea.
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@houstonrunner That van is actually a rare case where those wheels actually work.
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@houstonrunner I've found that a liberal application of WD-40 gets rid of any squeaks you might have.
/s
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@rusty-vandura Grease on the pads? I've used Brake Quiet (like below), but not just grease before. What kind of grease?
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@houstonrunner I've got the same problem on my Subaru. I replaced the pads as some preventive maintenance since I was moving somewhere where I'd no longer be able to work on the car. Unfortunately the new pads are noisy as hell and I have to find a random parking lot to illegally fix it at some point so it hasn't been high on the priority list. Sure is annoying but I probably forgot to grease a pad or something. My squeak only comes on right after I start out. Seems to resolve after driving for a bit.
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@wrong-wheel-drive Certain compounds are noisier than others. For example, race compound pads are notoriously squeaky until they get up to temperature.
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@houstonrunner i use that spray on anti squeal, and I use it regardless of that rubber backing. I mean, why not?
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Following because I got new rotors and pads for my Volvo and they are still squealing a lot, even after almost 3 months of driving almost every day. I braked hard on an empty highway, even went fast down a small mountain road where they were definitely worn in.
Some people told me that some pads in combination with certain rotors will always squeal, and that I need to get different pads. I tried all the grease methods from the comments (I greased everything up properly even on the first install), but no luck.
I'm gonna give up and buy different pads...
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@otto I get that if the pads are special track or race, or some special super duper low dust. But just normal street pads (in my case) shouldn't do that. I'm going to grease first, then try the spray on anti-squeal recommended by @MybirdIStheword
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@kac said in Annoying brake squeal:
@houstonrunner That van is actually a rare case where those wheels actually work.
Yeah, I haven’t seen a set of those in quite some time. I wish I still had mine.
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A word from the service department.
Typically a high pitched squeak is small metal bits and lower pitched squeak is lack of grease. A lot of techs don’t believe it but WASH NÉW ROTORS UNDER WARM SOAPY WATER, then give em a good rinse under running water. Microscopic bits remain behind after manufacturing that get bedded in the brake pads. There is also some thought that the running water demagnetizes the rotors so the burrs float down the drain easier. This is often the cause of a lot of squeaks in brake jobs. Scrub and rinse em real good. And then reassemble with lots of grease. Should be good enough
