I recently changed my front and back brakes (stock) by myself for the first time. (I have changed brakes before on other cars) Anyway I bought ceramic fronts and semi-metallic rears. I used anti squeal spray. Everything is fine until the car warms up (about a mile) after the brakes are warm they make a light squeal sound at 5-25 miles whenever the brakes are not applied! So if i'm getting up to speed or coasting there is a constant screech... It goes away as soon a I apply the brakes, although the e-brake does not stop the sound.

Anyone had this before, it's driving me crazy.

 

Oh the sound is fairly light. It sounds like a squeal but it is wavering at low speeds.

 

How long has it been since you put the new pads on? There should not be that much of a squeal, but I've never used ceramic before so I'm not sure what you could expect. You could also try the anti squeal grease instead of the spray. That would put more vibration damping between the calipers and the back of the pads. I never had much faith in the spray and always go with the grease.

As long as the pads are seated or you have driven on them more than 50 miles, I would just beat on them a little to see what happens. Do some HARD stops from 40 or 50 mph just off the ABS and see if it helps get rid of the squeal. Just dont overheat them with lots of consecutive hard stops. Should be fun.

 

Thanks for the reply. I somehow lost my lug key while changing out the brakes, I have been waiting for some new lugs before I forcefully remove the old ones. I have driven more than 50 miles so I will try some hard stops. As for ceramic, the store said they came stock on the SC so I went with those even though they were more $. I don' t think the squeal is coming from the sprayed side of the pad because it only makes a sound when they are not being used. I think the pads are constantly rubbing against the rotor but I can't be sure until I recieve my new lugs and remove the wheel.

 

Just back from testing my 60-0 speed and I'm sad to say the hard stops did not fix the squeal I hope I can have the wheels off this weekend and really take a good look.

 

I just had new rotors and pads put on this morning and I noticed that little squeal too...and only when cruising at slow speeds, w/ no brakes applied...I'm glad I'm not the only one =) I'll try out a few things to see if I can get rid of it...please lemme know if anything you try works!

 

give them a little time to break in slowly or try the high speed break in method.
one 60-0 stop isnt going to do it.
40-5 a few times consecutively without stopping completely
then a couple 60-5mph stops should be good to jumpstart the break in but remember its going to take a while to really bed in the brakes assuming they were installed right. double check everything to make sure everything is where it should be

 

OK I'm a moron... I just took the wheels off and the pads are constantly on the rotors. I can't do anything to space them apart. I even tried removing some brake fluid but this seemed to make it worse What are my options? I've never had this happen before and I'm lost for a solution.

 

Whoa, I'm not certain but your calipers could be on their way out. You may have to bleed the brakes and see if that helps. I cant think why the calipers would be so tight that you cant even get them off. Take off both the bolts that hold the calipers on and they should slide off pretty easily. If not, I'm at a loss. Maybe pump the brakes first and then see if they loosen up?

 

let them wear in a little. once worn in, there will be a VERY small space between the rotor and pads. relax a little =)

 

also, assuming you opened the bleeder screw to let out some fluid, bleed your brakes. Its almost certain theres air in the system.

Air in the system would NOT be the cause for the rubbing. air in the system will make the pedal feel mushy.

 

I also thought this would work until I read some threads here that talked about brakes glazing over. thread Basically the pad overheats from constant pressure on the rotor. Eventually it melts causing material to glaze onto the rotor. The only way to fix this is have the rotors turned!

 

hmm..thanks for the thread...a few interesting things to consider....

but I watched the entire installation of my new rotors and pads (EBC Green in the front, Toyota OEM pads in the rear), and everything was by the book...the rotors are zinc plated, were cleaned thoroughly before being mounted, calipers pistons were reset...I guess I'll pick up a can of brake cleaner / quiter and see if that helps. And I've put a good amount of miles on the brakes already...atleast 300 miles or so....

 

How many miles have you put on the pads?




the point of the high speed break in method is to get an even coat of melted brake pad material onto the surface of the rotor. it is that layer that is the reason the brakes work so well. If you get an uneven layer then that is bad. Thats why youre not suppossed to stop when you do the break in method.

anyway, if the condition doesnt improve after a week or so of regular driving, double and triple check your install. If everything is right, check it again. once youre certain that everything is right, pull the pads and use the red goop brake quiet stuff. This is the BEST stuff to use. its sold in a bottle a bout 4 inches high.
Coat the area between the pad and the first shim, then the area between the two shims. press them together then wipe off the excess. Also, make sure your caliper is clean at the areas where the pad touches to make sure theres no debris holding it in place and that it can move freely. Let the red goop sit on the back of the pads before installing for about an hour before installing to make sure it forms a little thicker of a layer and dries that way. recompress your calipers and then reinstall. The goop will act as sort of a spring. Remember that the pads will ALWAYS sit so close to the rotor that the gap will be almost invisible. but the gap will eventually be there.

 

EBC green pads are usually noisy