Loud Civic brake noise

While sitting in some stop-'n-go traffic in my '89 Civic this weekend I
started hearing a loud cracking-like noise when I stepped on the
brakes.
It only happens when applying light pressure to the pedal and I only
could hear it during low speeds < 20MPH (though I could be missing it
at higher speeds due to raod noise). It also keeps repeating the sound
until the car comes a stop or firmer pressure is applied. Any idea
what might be causing this and/or how severe it is?

Thanks
Matt

 

Brake pads used 100% ... now grinding (cracking-like) metal to metal.
Check it ASAP ! before you mangle the disc(s) beyond repair and need
replacement.

 

And here's what will eventually happen if it gets ignored!!!
http://www.tegger.com/hondafaq/rustybrakes/aerostar_new-old_rotors.jpg

 

I'd say that if metal-metal contact has occurred,then the rotor is already
trashed.They do not resurface well.(warping)
Is that model 4-wheel discs,or front discs/rear drums?

 

Just as a note, I've found the replacing the rotorsmyself using aftermarket
parts can be almost a cheap as having them resufaced.

Dan

 

wow! i've heard of that before, but never seen it. amazing!

 

That was my (divorced) neighbor across the street. She came over to ask why
the brakes were making grinding noises and why there was rust all down the
side of her van.

I moved the car all of six feet down the driveway and stopped. Six feet was
all it took to tell me EXACTLY what was going on.

I asked her how long have the brakes been making funny noises? She says oh,
it just started. Uh, don't think so...

Dumb thing is, she did just exactly this to the rear drum brakes of her
Chev Corsica the year before. I fixed those also.

 

hmm. i'm all for cooperation & helping my neighbor, but i gotta tell
you tegger, as a friend, i'd not touch a vehicle like that unless i was
in a licenced repair shop and had a paper trail up the wazoo. and had
[paid] heavy duty insurance. that's got lawsuit written all over it.

seriously, what would you do if a vehicle like this, with other material
neglect issues [sic], were involved in an accident with fatalities, and
one of the deceased had some bitter lawyer family member looking for
retribution? someone "trying to be helpful" could be in a world of
hurt. by all means, point her in the right direction for proper repair,
but geeze dude, look after your own hindquarters first.

 

This might be slightly off-topic, if so please excuse it. I worked for
several years in a Sears Auto Center and what I have seen would scare the
BeJeezus out of you. One particular incident involved an early 90s model
Dodge Shadow. The lady brough it in complaining of a noise in the right rear
(disks front/drums rear). My brake tech started the inspection, then called
me into the shop. When he removed the right rear brake drum - the entire
assy fell out. That was the shoes, fastening hardware, ebrake spreader bar,
and the adjuster. The drum was badly scored from the spreader bar being
between the shoe and drum (for some time). That was the noise she had heard.
The tech then led me to the right front (disk brakes right?). He asked if I
noticed anything amiss - after some looking it hit me - there was NO disk on
the hub. There were no pads in the calipers either for obvious reasons. The
pads had been worn down to metal-on-metal and acted like a lathe and had cut
the outer part of the disk loose from the hub. We found the disk inboard on
the right drive axle. Further inspection revealed that the left front disk
was nearly cut off also. Only the left rear brake assy looked normal. After
I wrote up an estimate the response I received was - "Just put it back
together. I can't afford that much to get it fixed". Fortunately, Alaska law
allows a shop to refuse such refusals. Also, there was no way we could put
it back together in light of the damaged parts.

Dave D

 

Thanks for the warning. I went to change the front brake pads last
night though, and was surprised to see them in pretty good shape. The
right side showed some uneven wear, so I did install new ones. The
rotors looked good too, still plenty thick. I didn't experience the
noise at all yesterday (even before installing the new brake pads), so
I am unsure if a problem still exists. One thing to note, the pad
itself looked like it had some rust starting to form, is this normal?
I'm thinking about taking it in to a shop this weekend, unless there
are any other ideas for something I can look at first.

Thanks
Matt

 

An important issue in uneven brake pad wear is the lubrication of the slide
pins (probably not the right term for the pins that allow the caliper to
float in the housing) in the caliper. They *really* need to be lubricated
every time the brakes pads are changed. I neglected them once on a Volvo and
the brakes ate through a pad and into the brand new rotor within a month
(sob!). If the pads are worn at any angle at all, or if there is visible
difference between the inner pad and outer pad on the same wheel, that is
why.

Mike