The other day (night actually when it was a little chilly) as I was driving my car on a nice spirited ride home on country roads, I kept hearing, just on the edge of audibly, something which sounded like a brake squeal. It was/is happening every time I was/am taking a corner and vigorously accelerating out of the turn. For a bit there, I thought I was hallucinating. Finally, the 300 W LED lit up over my head! It was ESP kicking in. That also explains why the rear brakes are wearing faster than the front brakes. I was wondering why I have substantially more pad thickness on my front brakes when I last checked. Has anybody else experienced this? Either brakes squealing on turn departure and/or accelerated rear pad wear?
The other day (night actually when it was a little chilly) as I was driving my car on a nice spirited ride home on country roads, I kept hearing, just on the edge of audibly, something which sounded like a brake squeal. It was/is happening every time I was/am taking a corner and vigorously accelerating out of the turn.
Since I do not have the capability to put a microphone next to the brake pad in question in order to definitively limit the sound to brake pad noise versus tire noise I can only put forth by somewhat limited observations from my frail human hearing.
Your rear brakes shouldn't be working harder than the front unless the computer cuts in... so If the light isn't flashing, then the brakes shouldn't be applying... Your rear brakes might be slightly stuck - cause could be multiple things but let's not go there until we determine if there is indeed a problem.
All the relevant numbers are at spec. I have noticed significant wear on the back brake pads versus the front. If I keep my foot off of the go pedal when I take the corners I do not hear the noise, it does not matter how hard I corner as long as I don’t add power to the rear. And the squeals sounds exactly like the squeal I hear when the car has cold brakes and I am stopping lightly. (same high frequency) I have Continental DWS 06, and they don’t actually squeal when I apply power, it sounds more like a scuffing noise, not high frequency. The reason I’m asking, is because the ESP light is not coming on when I hear this noise.
But I only get a squeal when I accelerate vigorously out of the corner. It is possible that the ESP light is flickering on and off to fast for me to see. If I drive like a conservative old man (Sarge is a great example) the car is quiet like a Mercedes.
Like turdo says, coming out of a corner, my civic does the same (dust cover is pushed in; how that happens, who knows) but bending it away cures it (for a while then reoccurs many miles later).
An easy fix if that's what the issue actually is. Does not happen on a straight-away (however slow that is in my civic :frown: ) and usually only turning one way. Doesn't do it for me turning the other way.
I had the same thing a few years ago on a Vauxhall Signam.
It turned out to be the heat shield that was getting hot and deforming over time and touching the disc.
I would straighten it then it would reappear a few months later.
When I sold the car there was quite a few posts on the Vauxhall forums from people suffering the same thing so quite a common issue with some cars I guess :surprise:
Unfortunately, I wouldn’t trust them to tell me if I need sunglasses in the Sahara desert at high noon. Their idea of fixing a problem is to wrap a new car around an oil change.
My actual concern is not the noise, it’s very minimal, it’s the wear of the rear pads. I was wondering if anybody else was noticing the same phenomena. At 43,000 miles there is maybe 15% greater wear on the rear then on the front. I have not checked left to right rear wear variances.
The sound catches your attention, but I would investigate the pad wear first. Have you checked for any codes, or maybe have someone monitor with one of those Torque type applications on phone.
Once discs are hot, do you keep your foot on the brakes?
I'd expect fronts to wear faster (all things being equal) due to weight transfer under braking.
They will be working harder. @frogfoot@Delucas thoughts?
To eliminate the ESP possibility, if you are not seeing the light then it is not engaging. As for the mechanical concern the first thing that comes to mind is a sticky piston in your brakes. That would account for wear and the noise. Do you notice any slight pull to one side after you let off the brakes?
No pull. It’s very strange, another car I drive a fair amount shows the same type of wear pattern where the back brake pads are wearing more than the front brakes. Maybe it’s my driving style. Mostly highway and I am very gentle on the brakes for the most part. 5% spirited 95% driving like the Sarge.
I would say jack up the rear with some blocks or bricks before and behind the front wheels and the car in neutral. Then see if the rear wheels turn heavy.
Or when cold drive a bit without to much braking and feel if the rear brake disks get much hotter then the front ones.
I really don’t think my back brakes are dragging. I just get the feeling that the ESP is kicking on and not letting me know. The squeal that I hear is very characteristic of brakes. I was wondering if anybody else noticed that the backs wear faster in then fronts.
I had my front brake pads and rotors replaced on the purchase of my SLK55. The rear pads and rotors did not need to be replaced. So I quess the previous owner did not drive it to the max like you do.
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