DAKDAK

For about 6 months the car was making a rumbling/grinding noise from the front end whenever I applied the brakes at low speed. It became more severe over time, and was inconsistent. If the brakes were cold (first 10 miles of driving in the morning) there would be no noise at all. I gave it to my trusty local mech (Pete's Foreign Otto in Valdosta, GA, top notch). He replaced pads and rotors all 4 wheels. Now the front right squeals like a Mack truck at medium to light brake pressure (again-inconsistent) and the rumble/grind has turned into a throbbing noise/feel through the brake pedal at high speed hard braking and a much reduced rumble/grind at low speed hard braking. It sounds like there is one point on the rotor that is sqeaking if I roll very slow, because it will "SQUEAK roll roll roll SQUEAK roll roll roll SQUEAK" you get the idea. I definitely am suspecting something worse than a rotor/pad problem. Any ideas out there?

'94 Coupe 6spd 87k miles

RajDatta

Yeah, maybe your heatshield is slightly bent. Also, your rotor could be out of round or not installed correctly for it to only squeal when it hits a particular spot. What kind of pads are you using? When your mechanic did the brakes, did he check the pistons to make sure that they were moving freely and not binding anywhere?
Also, do you have plate lift on top of the calipers?
Raj

Damian in NJ

Tell us about your car, you're new here.

DAKDAK

This car is bone stock with the exception of 17" 2-piece turbo-cup wheels installed in 2001. I've owned it since 1999/30,000 miles. Street car only. I don't really work on it myself much. I'm going home now, so I get to listen to my grinding squealing brakes again...I'm supposed to see Pete in the morning.

Lord_Galva

Your car sounds like mine. When I put new Zimmerman rotors on my car, I spun the disk before puting the caliper on a noticed a slight wobble. Which now creates a squeak at low speeds.

RajDatta

A lot of people that stock rotors make the mistake of standing them on their side. That is a big no no!. You will warp your brand new rotor. The rotors must be placed flat for storage. I have a feeling the rotors are warped even though they might be new.
Raj

DAKDAK

I took the right front wheel off yesterday and spun the rotor by hand, definitely a dragging spot. This from a brand new rotor... I also noticed that the strut dust cover was rotted away and pieces of it were loose inside the spring, AND that the foam head at top of the strut is cracked and coming apart. Could my "brake noise" be from front struts that need to be replaced?

RajDatta

The foam head on top is no biggie. Its just there to lower some vibrations. That is common but there should be no play inthe strut. Looks like you have multiple problems, wrapped rotor and rotted/bent heat shield.
Raj

Lord_Galva

Dang thanks alot Raj. Super informative. Should I worry that the disk is slightly warped? I probably will be replacing them next year anyway. (My mechanic suggested that)

Clem

How does a piece of steel get warped standing on it's side?

RajDatta

Because of its own weight . Ask anyone who handles rotors, they will always tell you to sit them flat on on their sides. My Dad was in auto retail business all his life .
Raj

Clem

I find that kind of amazing, but maybe they do.

Sounds like a couple problems going on to potentially cause the noise. Raj asked earlier, but what kind of brake pads are you using?
If they are stock I would not expect them to squeal. Other compounds definitely could/would however.

Lord_Galva

I'm using PBR ceramic. During the first week they didn't make a peep. After the wobble set in they now sqeek at 5-15mph.

DAKDAK

Stock pads. I'm going to have Pete replace the questionable rotor. Also going to spluge for new shocks all around, they are original. I'll keep this thread alive until I fix the noise.

Lord_Galva

Switch to Koni shocks. I just did and they are awsome. They do require some minor surgury before installation but they feel great plus they are adjustable. Your only choices for shocks that I've seen(if you don't have the M030) are stock shocks ($300)each, Koni's ($160)each, or Blistin coil-overs ($1500)each.