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Brake pad rubbing against rotor or something else?

30K views 30 replies 17 participants last post by  wolfc70 
#1 ·
I replaced all 4 brake pads sometime a while ago. Now my rear driver side brake is making a very low pitch metal rub sound. I took apart my tire again and re-lubed everything, sprayed brake cleaner and still getting this very light metal rub.

I jacked up my car took the tire off again. Now with the caliper still on and brake pads on, it spun the rotor, I can hear the sound. It spins freely with what seems to be no resistance. I pulled off the caliper and brake pads and there is no noise. So its as if the caliper is squeezing a little too much? Or maybe my rotor is slightly bent. One interesting thing is when I spin my rotor there's about a quarter of the rotor where it's silent. The other 3/4 will make a "rub" noise. None of the other tires have this noise! It drives fine, I can only hear when going < 20 mph and when passing fences or an object for the sound to reflect off of.
 
#2 ·
I had this same problem last month. I came to realize that the rear brake pad was getting low, I think 2-3mm. When the pad gets to low, then the indicator starts making a metal on metal noise. Not sure if this is what you have, but by what you are noticing sounds just like you have a low brake pad.
 
#4 ·
You know I just placed slapped on new brake pads, didn't do new rotors because I read many places that you shouldn't have to replace rotors if you take care of your brake pads.

These are new brake pads to the post above BTW.

I think it may be the Ebrake not releasing completely, i heard that somewhere else. They said something about tuning the ebrake. I might go somewhere to have it checked out, and dish out $$$$$$$....:(
 
#7 ·
Guys the brake pads are about 6 months old. They are not worn out and look fine. I just took it apart again and lubed up the sliding pins but still the noise is there.

Now the interesting thing seems that both rears have a "rub" sound if I lift up the car and spin it freely. The difference is the passenger rear side does not make this sound when driving and only the driver side will emit a rather annoying sound, the same sound when i'm spinning the rotor. Of course if I remove the caliper it's quiet, so it doesn't seem to be the brake shield like others have said. I can hear it going 25MPH or below... I'm thinking my rotor is uneven somehow even though I can not see it. The rotor feels smooth so i'm not sure what's going on.

here's a video of it,
http://youtu.be/B7b2RK7Udwg
 
#8 ·
Sounds like a warped rotor, since you have certain spots with no noise.
 
#10 ·
My '08 Coupe does the exact same damn thing, on the drivers front caliper. I've tried everything. It sounds like the wear indicator is barely scraping (most noticable when you are driving with the window open, while driving past a wall or fence on the driver side). When you lightly press the brake pedal, it goes away. The only thing I've noticed are shiny "wear" spots on the brake pad shims. If I replace the shims the noise goes away for a month or two, then comes back. After two sets of different manufacturer shims, I gave up on it! It is insanely annoying though, I know what you're talking about....
 
#11 ·
I would have the rotor turned to see if you can get the uneven spot out of it. I would at least try that before I bought a new rotor.
 
#12 ·
Check to see whether you bent the inboard dust/water shields on each corner. That's the piece of sheet metal behind the rotor when you remove the disc. The shield is heavy sheet metal and easily bent especially during a brake job. If the rotor is off and there's a shiny spot on the shield. that's where it was rubbing. Bend it out and you should be good to go.
 
#15 ·
So i'm partially thinking that can be the issue too. It's strange I only noticed once I changed my brake pads out. But I was told to use the ebrake as much as you can that it "helps" load on the brakes. I'm wondering if that's why it may be stuck on ebrake...for that wheel.

Then again I can push in the caliper pretty easily, so it doesn't seem like the parking brake is making it stick...?
 
#18 ·
Ok guys the verdict is in, went to firestone and they said my rear Rotor was very uneven. Said it likely occurred with the original Honda brake pads (the pads were a bit uneven when I replaced them). Apparently too much Rotor was eaten up (or they say...) So I got two new rear rotors. Still waiting heregoing to drive to work and will see if its completely fixed. Btw the rotors were about $110 each.
 
#19 ·
Ok I was driving around and I can still hear a slight noise from the rear brake. It's not a pulsating sound anymore but a faint sound especially if I pass by something. Is this normal? I mean the brakes seem to be sitting right on the rotor (which is good) but not leaving any room at all?
 
#21 ·
I hope you also put a (another) new set of pads to go with your $110.00ea rotors and didn't re-use them.

There is a right way and a wrong way to do a DIY brake job.

Given the amount of money you save by DIY vs paying a mechanic.

I always replace the rotors with a new pair when changing the brake pads.

Rotors are cheap! You paid 2x what you should have paid for a good set of aftermarket rotors.
 
#23 ·
It's normal for brake pads to drag a little on the rotors. There's nothing to force the pads off of the rotors when you release the brake pedal, so they're always just kinda resting on the rotors. Calipers can fail and can cause excessive drag, but I don't think it's real common. A simple test would probably be to jack both rear tires off the ground and see if they both freewheel *about* the same if you give them a quick spin in the same direction by hand. Sounds like the warped/uneven rotor fixed the main issue and I wouldn't worry about hearing a little bit of rubbing back there still.

There's a procedure to check the ebrake tension in the Service Manual. I believe it's something like it should click 7-9 times when lifting up with 44 pounds of force or something like that. Your ebrake cable should only get looser over time though, not tighter. Although I don't know if replacing the pads effects that or not.
 
#24 ·
I'lll try the ebrake test...

Before spinning the tire would give a 25% silence and 75% brake pad rubbing rotor sound. Now it's 100% on both sides so yeah it seems to be fixed but I can hear the sound when driving around a neighborhood, maybe i'm being picky. I'm also sure the brake pads I got aren't helping (duralast gold) and just are a little noisier than normal.
 
#25 ·
Did you happen to remove the upper and lower metal retaining clips for the brake pads during the brake pad change? If you did and didn't put them back properly pressed in all the way into the slots in the caliper then this is your problem.
 
#27 ·
Owner of Honda accord 2012 SE sedan: rotor problem, see earlier post, still have rotor problems..we'll find out what dealer says now ( before 12.000 miles under waranty. We are past this now...). Anyhow if you replace pad, but not the rotors I would advise the following: your rotor has a little edge on the outside. New pad will rub against this edge. Shim with sandpaper your new pad so it does not rub. ( besides that, if you expect noise...add some paste) good luck, just a mom trying to help.
 
#29 ·
I personally, have had bad luck with Autozone pads. For normal street driving, go to Federated auto parts and buy Raybestos stuff. Quiet, smooth consistent performance. Never had an issue, and fairly cheap too. Granted, they will only last as long as the OEM stuff, but hard to beat for the price.

If you are a more aggressive driver, go with EBC Green Stuff. Vastly improved fade resistance (even better with slotted rotors) over OEM. For occasional track days, EBC Red Stuff. These need a bit of heat to bite, so not the greatest for street use. Hawk also makes great pads, but can be difficult to locate locally (tire rack carries them). All of these pads need to be bedded in on new rotors, as they will chew them up pretty quick, don't use resurfaced ones.

As for rotors, don't go cheapest, don't go with the most expensive. Remember, brake parts are designed to wear. So visually inspect them every 6 months or so. If you see excessive rust on a rotor, this indicates a problem, and it is much cheaper to catch it early, before damage occurs.
 
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