Front Brakes Grinding

[doylna]

My left front brake is grinding when I stop, and I've noticed I need apply more pressure to the brakes to stop the car. I took the front left wheel off, and the rotor looked like this:



I'm planning to buy new pads, and replace both the left and the right side brakes.

Do I need to clean the rotor before I replace the pads, or will the new pads wear that surface rust off?

[Losiracer2]

either your master cylinder is not giving adequate pressure or you have a caliper seized.

My rear rotors looked like that when I first bought the car, I needed a new master b/c my fronts were doing all the work and overheating the rotors

[YK86]

The first thing I'd do is replace those pads. It looks like you only have the backing left and now just braking metal on metal. The rotors should be either machined or just buy new ones. They are quite pitted and there's quite a bit of rust on near the center where the pads or whatever is left of them isn't touching.

[doylna]

Is it worth replacing the pads first, and lubing up the caliper to see if that fixes the problem? I never heard a single squeak, so I never thought the pads were that bad; it looks like the pads have about 60k miles on them, the calipers were replaced and the rotors refinished 30K miles ago.

I'm not super interested in spending a boatload of money on the car right now, as it's strictly a car I use to go to and from the grocery store. I'll probably replace the car entirely within the next 10K miles.

What do you guys think?

[bobbycos]

new rotors/pads/master/calipers are cheaper than an accident where the investigators fault you for failing to perform basic upkeep on the car and leave you responsible for the lawsuits

[doylna]

Yeah, with the grinding I'm hearing, I'm not driving the car till I sort this out. But, would still rather not spend $500, when I only need to spend $50

[batever]

Yeah, with the grinding I'm hearing, I'm not driving the car till I sort this out. But, would still rather not spend $500, when I only need to spend $50

Probably one of your pads is worn through to the backing plate. Pads don't usually go 60K miles. That's the grinding: metal backing plate/bracket pressing against the rotors.

You're not going to spend $500. The rotors will cost you as lilttle as $80 for the pair (we're talking Autozone here, not super great rotors but depending on what you need they can be fine). The pads can be $40. A tub of high temp synthetic caliper brake grease will be $10 (less if you just buy a couple of tubes).
I would have all of that on hand, then just take the brakes apart and see what you can see, pull out the caliper sliding pins, clean them up, make sure the boot that goes over them is still intact, then regrease and reassemble. Check to make sure the calipers are not leaking hydraulic fluid, and put new pads on ( after getting rid of some of the surface rust off the rotors and checking that they are not badly scored) . Your braking should improve markedly. If you still aren't happy, go whole whole hog and replace the rotors too. Getting them off is a bitch which is why I suggest just subbing in new pads. Not optimal but often produces good enough results and it'll be vastly better than what you've got now.

[batever]

Is it worth replacing the pads first, and lubing up the caliper to see if that fixes the problem? I never heard a single squeak, so I never thought the pads were that bad; it looks like the pads have about 60k miles on them, the calipers were replaced and the rotors refinished 30K miles ago.

I'm not super interested in spending a boatload of money on the car right now, as it's strictly a car I use to go to and from the grocery store. I'll probably replace the car entirely within the next 10K miles.

What do you guys think?

In short, yes. Doing that will improve the situation markedly. I bet you're not gettting good braking because the brake pads are worn through in some places, meaning that they don't create a lot of friction against the rotor. The metal backing in the pad is pressing against the rotor, and that's not going to create effective braking.

[doylna]

In short, yes. Doing that will improve the situation markedly. I bet you're not gettting good braking because the brake pads are worn through in some places, meaning that they don't create a lot of friction against the rotor. The metal backing in the pad is pressing against the rotor, and that's not going to create effective braking.

Cool, fortunately, I only drove about 1.5 miles with the noise, and the grinding only occurred when I was braking, and the rotor doesn't feel scratched. How would you suggest getting rid of the surface rust on the rotor?

I'll pick up some pads and grease, and give that a try tomorrow. I'm not capable of doing the rotors myself, so I'll try the pads, and if that doesn't work, then I'll have to take it to a shop.

[YK86]

If the rust on there is just mild surface rust (the type that builds up even after leaving the car for a day or 2) then a scotchbrite pad will scrub most of it off. Then the new pads will get rid of the rest under normal braking.

Now if it's really bad and you can totally feel a stepped lip with your finger nail, then it's time to machine.

[doylna]

Would the lip be near the center of the rotor, or on the edge? Or, asked another way, what would a rotor with 'normal' rust look like?

[bobbycos]

that rotor has rust pitting which does not provide a good braking surface

[batever]

that rotor has rust pitting which does not provide a good braking surface

yeah, that's true. Braking would not be ideal in that case. But he may not be looking for ideal, just "a lot better."

to get the surface rust off, use a scotchbrite pad or fine emery cloth and do it in a swirling motion all over the disk.

Spray/wash the brakes clean with brake cleaner first to avoid inhaling brake dust.

Would the lip be near the center of the rotor, or on the edge? Or, asked another way, what would a rotor with 'normal' rust look like?

It woudl be at the bottom or top of the rotor, where the brake pad ends. Mostly likely on part of the rotor that is closest to the axle.

The hard part about doing these rotors is getting them off. It's true, you can pull the rotors, bring them to the shop, and have them machined for probably $15-20.. If there's enouogh thickness left on them, this can be done. Now with the rust pitting, that increases the amount of machining to be done to get to a smooth surface and the shop may tell you that there isn't enough material on the disks to do it (they should measure first before machining).

Another approach is to buy a new set of rotors, put those on, and have the old ones resurfaced and put them aside for next time. That way you don't have to make a trip in the middle of your brake job job to the brake shop.

I have to confess that mi right front rotor is messed up beyond all belief . We aren't talking a little "lip" , but one side of it completely unevenly worn into weird concentric shapes.

It still gives me good braking (not the best, but good) after replacing the old pads last year. The pads are worn into that shape and the braking performance is good (not the best, but good).

So...if the OP is hesitant to remove the motors, I think just going with replacing the pads, cleaning the rotor braking surface up with emery cloth or scotchbrite, and cleaning & regreasing the caliper slide pins, should give very satisfactory results, even if they are not ideal results, and for a cost of $60 or less.

Dont' forget brake cleaner spray, a drip pan to catch it, and a respirator. I use the Darth Vader mask one, NIOSH 99% particulate. Some people don't even bother or use a less thorough type of mask. Meh, for $50 or less for the respirator, I'll keep the asbestos out of my longs, as much as possible.

[HondaFan81]

Brake pads will not wear down that rotor surface. You should replace your rotors or have them turned. I also agree to replace your calipers with remanufactured units and replace your pads too.

Make sure to use a high quality brake grease to lubricate the caliper slide pins. If the dust boots on the pins are torn, replace them. Many overlook this and wonder why their pins end up seizing later via contamination and need to be lubricated more than normal.

[doylna]

Thanks for all the advice. I'll be following the directions in this video to replace the pads. I'll put some PB Blaster on the bolts before I try to break them free, I think.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3ETT0LmhPuE

As batever mentioned, I'm looking to get the car back on the road as a grocery getter, and for $70 in parts, I'm willing to give that a try. Braking is obviously important, and if I can't get it right, I'll drop it off at a shop.