stupid, stupid brakes. - Ford Forums - Mustang Forum, Ford Trucks, Ford Focus and Ford Cars

danege · 03-08-2003, 00:10

I have an eb 1 fairmont, ive had it for a little over 3 weeks. When i got it, it had a little squeak coming from the front wheels....like when you put new pads on and they squeak for a bit.....but this does it all the time....even when my foot isnt on the break pedal.So it does it when the breaks arent even applied. We replaced the front pads a week or so ago and i didnt hear any squeaking for a day...so i was pretty happy...but it came back a few days ago....so now im really pissed. Does anyone know what could it be, im thinking that the disks could need machining, but im not sure. Im all out of ideas and this noise is really embarrasing. Help would be greatly apprecieated

Thanks

Dane.

SiX_iN_a_RoW · 03-08-2003, 00:22

id say the brakes are grabbing slightly.

danege · 03-08-2003, 00:26

yer thats kinda what i was thinking.

Any advice on how to fix that?

Thanks

Dane.

mongrelEB · 03-08-2003, 03:52

Grease the guide pins.
Not hard, worst bit's taking the wheel and caliper off. If the pins are corroded, you may need to use some fine sandpaper to smooth them down a bit.
Luck.

danege · 03-08-2003, 05:52

how will greasing the guide pins fix it?

And i dont find it hard taking the wheel and calipers off....done it twice in the last week :S

Thanks

Dane.

Aussiblue · 03-08-2003, 06:21

All brakes make a noise it just ususally at a frequency you can't hear (think about it - what would youn expect to happen when you grind down a synthetic material (pads) on a spinning metal brake disc. It been a problem since disk brakes and to a lesser extent drum brales existed. You can change the sound frequency so you hear nothing by:

a) Using CRC Stop Squeak; rubbery adhesive goo that you put on the back of the pads and anti rattle plates. Works in 99% of cases. PBR also make a brake pad adhesive but the CRC pink goo is best (Repco etc).

b) If no go with goo you can try radial cuts though the centre of the pad (same direction as imaginary wheel spokes) ; cut with hacksaw to within 1 mm of backing plate. Many good pads already have a cut or groove (carries dust away and changes frequency of sound).
c) Chamfer the leading edge of the pads; use a hacksaw or chisel to take 1 or two mm off creating a 45 degree angle.

danege · 03-08-2003, 06:38

these pads did have a cut in the middle of them....and they had some sought of 'anti noise coating' as they called it.

Thanks

Dane.

ViGiLaNtE · 03-08-2003, 14:49

The guide pins are one of the main components of the caliper. The caliper slides on these pins to maintain a straight line pressure on your disc. If these arent sliding freely then this will create a resistance when you apply or release the brake pedal, hence the slight squeal you can hear when you arent on the pedal. They havent released fully and are basically still touching the disc surface.
Get these greased or as said before sanded down and they should be as good as new.

Are you sure the cut in the brake pads wasnt there already??..These are usually standard with most pads for ventalation.

ViGiLaNtE

Sundeep · 03-08-2003, 17:10

That used to happen on my mum's car.

We just drove in reverse for about 50 metres with the handbrake up.

Went away after that.

Sundeep

XplodEd EA · 03-08-2003, 23:23

I had the same problem, I lubricated the slides and put a cut down the centre of the pad, it didn't go away, I pulled the pads out again and noticed that on the outside of the disc the edge was slightly raised due to wearing. I chamfered the edges of the pads and the constant noise is now gone