Chris Thomas

I had new brake pads and rotors put on my 87 S4 about 5k miles ago and ever since they have squealed a bit, but it was very bearable. However, now it has got to the point where when I first start the car and pull away everything is nice and silent, and then about a mile or two down the road a very annoying constant squeal starts to come from the wheels (with no brakes applied) ,which is very apparent at slower speeds and less apparent at highway speeds. The odd thing is that the squeal completely disappears when I apply the brakes. Any idea what this could be?

As always any help is greatly appreciated!

Old & New

Sounds like someone didn't properly apply the anti-squeel wafers or compound to the back of the pads. Bring it back to the guy who did the job and he should fix it.

Randy V

AS O&N indicates, the problem is that the pads are resting on the rotors, rather than retracting back with the calipers. Applying either the adhesive pads or anti-squeal compound to the caliper face will fix it.

Jim bailey - 928 International

Chris if you park on a flat surface try putting it in neutral before starting and see how much effort it takes to push the car back and forth a few inches . Then go drive until the brakes are making noise and with engine still running in neutral on a flat surface see how much effort it takes to roll the car back and forth . IF it does not roll as easily then it is possible that your brakes are engaging by them self . If you disconnect the vacuum line to the brake booster you will not have power assist block the hose to the engine and carefully drive around (it will be hard to stop) and see if the brakes still drag , make noise .

Stan.Shaw@Excell.Net

Hopefully your mechanic didn't improperly adjust your brake pedal.

A racer I know did that once and came to a complete halt on the track twice in the same day. Just glad it wasn't me!

Chris Thomas

Thanks for the replies. My mechanic has informed me that the anti-squeal pads are on the brakes and that is not the issue. He is out of ideas.

Jim, I will try your suggestion tonight and let you know.

This weekend I could also get take the wheels off and take some detailed closeup pics of the brakes and post them so you guys can take a look.

Thanks,

Chris

Old & New

You might want to try the compound. It adheres the brake pad to the caliper piston and insures complete retraction from the rotor.

UKKid35

When I remove my calipers shortly I'm expecting to find that the dragging is caused by the corrosion between the caliper body and the steel plate reducing the height of the aperature. This only affects my front wheels and not my rears which spin freely. I've heard that some people skim the edge of the pad rather than fix the caliper, though I'm not planning to do that.

Chris Thomas

Jim:

I did the test you suggested and I did not notice any difference moving the car back and forth before the squealing or after. Any other suggestions.

Many thanks.