Brake noise

[Squint]

I did the regular maintenance oil change on the Fiesta a few weeks ago and while my dad and I had it up slightly, we looked at the front brakes. The problem I've been having is that the front brakes are squealing some, but there doesn't seem to be a pattern and it's not always happening. Light to middle pressure usually.

The pads and rotors are fine and show normal wear lines, nothing is wearing funny. We put some lubricant on the calipers and that reduced the noise a little, but I don't know if that was coincidental or not.

A dealership is actually looking at it today because they're fixing a speaker issue too and it's under warranty. But, I wanted to know if you all had any ideas.

[Shadow]

It's not unusual for some brake pads to have some light squealing that comes and goes. Some pads contain bits of iron, and that's often the cause for the noise. As the brake pads wear, a small piece of iron in the pads might surface and create a little bit of noise as it contacts the rotor. As the pad wears further, the noise should eventually subside.

[Squint]

It's not unusual for some brake pads to have some light squealing that comes and goes. Some pads contain bits of iron, and that's often the cause for the noise. As the brake pads wear, a small piece of iron in the pads might surface and create a little bit of noise as it contacts the rotor. As the pad wears further, the noise should eventually subside.

Noise has been there for at least a month that I can remember. How long are you thinking for that wear, Shadow? My first reaction were that the pads were worn out (much faster than they should) so that's why we looked at them. No issues there.

[Shadow]

Well, think of it this way.... if you pads are wearing and a small piece of iron (or ferrous metal) begins to surface on the pad, it may continue to cause noise under certain braking conditions. Eventually, the pad will wear down to point that the iron is no longer on the surface of the pad. The amount of time this takes can vary greatly, depending upon several factors. The size of the iron particle and/or the aggressiveness of your braking, for example. I guess what I'm trying to say is that you shouldn't be too concerned with an occasional squeal here and there. It does get annoying if it happens a lot, but it's not really uncommon, especially on OEM organic or OEM semi-metallic brake pads. If you've check the pads & rotors and they look good, then you can either live with the occasional squealing or you can always swap out your brake pads.

If you do decide to get new pads, try something like Raybestos Quiet Stop. They are ceramic pads that have very low dusting and are very quiet. I've used them in the past and have been very happy with them.

[Squint]

That's a good idea about quiet brake pads Shadow. My update, the dealer called me back and said that they think turning the rotors would fix the issue. I'm not going to have them do it for $120 because I can certainly get it done cheaper where I work.

I wasn't having any vibration, just noise, and so they said that was not covered by warranty since it didn't impact driving at all and the noise warranty is just 12 months/12,000 miles.

Thoughts on that?

[Shadow]

I wouldn't cut the rotors. In fact, I never cut my rotors unless they have excessive lateral runout. There's really no point in removing material from a rotor unless it is absolutely necessary.

The reason the dealer is telling you that cutting the rotors may help is because a freshly cut rotor will grind away at the pads while it transfers pad material onto itself and also smooths out the freshly cut surface of the rotor. If anything, it's usually just a temporary fix.

If you want to get the same effect at no cost, you can try this: take some sandpaper or emery cloth and work the surface of your rotors by hand. Just scuff them up real good on both the inner and outer surfaces. You can also remove the pads and scuff them up too by moving the pad in a figure eight pattern against a piece of emery cloth sitting on a flat & smooth surface. That's actually an old trick that guys used to do when they glazed their motorcycle pads. But it does work to expose fresh pad material. Put everything back and then bed the brakes. It might be worth the time and effort, rather than spending the money to cut the rotors.

[AHTOXA]

Unless you get pulsation in the brake pedal when stopping I wouldn't cut the rotors either.

[Shadow]

Unless you get pulsation in the brake pedal when stopping I wouldn't cut the rotors either.

Hey....we agree again!

[AHTOXA]

I knew you'd make a coment on that.

[Shadow]

I knew you'd make a coment on that.

It must be some kind of record....

[Squint]

I'll look into doing it myself Shadow. But there isn't any vibration, just some noise. Which I guess should disappear over time if it's just material in the pads surfacing. I've never had that issue with any other vehicle/brakes.. I wonder if the Ford OEMs are made of different materials than after market...

[Shadow]

I'll look into doing it myself Shadow. But there isn't any vibration, just some noise.

That's exactly what I'm trying to explain. If you felt vibration in the brake pedal, it would be because your rotors have excessive lateral runout. What happens is the pads move in and out as they pass over the high & low spots on the rotor, causing a pedal pulsation (or vibration). Obviously this isn't a problem on your car. What I was telling you to do is to scuff up the rotors and/or pads to help eliminate the noise.

Which I guess should disappear over time if it's just material in the pads surfacing. I've never had that issue with any other vehicle/brakes.. I wonder if the Ford OEMs are made of different materials than after market...

It's not just Ford....lots of manufacturers have ferrous metals in their pads. It's really not that unusual for pads (OEM or even aftermarket) to make a bit of noise on occasion. Sometimes you get lucky and you never hear any noise, and other times you get an occasional squeal here and there. Like I said, when the time comes to replace your pads, definitely consider ceramic pads. They are usually very quiet because they don't contain any steel or iron (but they do sometimes have copper)....and the low dusting is a nice benefit as well.

[AHTOXA]

I knew you'd make a coment on that.

It must be some kind of record....

Insert "rimshot" sound clip.

[Squint]

I'll look into doing it myself Shadow. But there isn't any vibration, just some noise.

That's exactly what I'm trying to explain. If you felt vibration in the brake pedal, it would be because your rotors have excessive lateral runout. What happens is the pads move in and out as they pass over the high & low spots on the rotor, causing a pedal pulsation (or vibration). Obviously this isn't a problem on your car. What I was telling you to do is to scuff up the rotors and/or pads to help eliminate the noise.

Thank you for that explanation. It gave me enough of a picture that it makes sense. I guess I had known how the brakes work but I never put together how the vibration happens. And I will look into ceramics when it is time to replace them.

[bk7794]

This may help