pulling under braking - not caliper
Discussion
Hi all,
Replaced my pads and discs on my 2005 Renault Clio nearly 7k miles ago and all was fine, however during the process of removing the discs I accidentally knocked the caliper from the coil spring and, for a brief moment, the caliper was hanging by its hose although the brakes were still perfect.
Fast forward to now - I had the tracking done a month or two ago; ever since then the car has (ever so slightly and only under heavy-ish braking) pulled ever so slightly to the right each time. Caliper slide pins have been greased when the brakes were replaced and it seems too sudden a problem to be a sticking caliper.
My question is: how likely is it that the flexi-hose has been damaged but only just reared its ugly head?
Is it likely to be suspension or tyre related, bearing in mind the tyres are unevenly worn due to dodgy tracking?
And is there any way of telling if the hose is damaged?
Cheers all,
Replaced my pads and discs on my 2005 Renault Clio nearly 7k miles ago and all was fine, however during the process of removing the discs I accidentally knocked the caliper from the coil spring and, for a brief moment, the caliper was hanging by its hose although the brakes were still perfect.
Fast forward to now - I had the tracking done a month or two ago; ever since then the car has (ever so slightly and only under heavy-ish braking) pulled ever so slightly to the right each time. Caliper slide pins have been greased when the brakes were replaced and it seems too sudden a problem to be a sticking caliper.
My question is: how likely is it that the flexi-hose has been damaged but only just reared its ugly head?
Is it likely to be suspension or tyre related, bearing in mind the tyres are unevenly worn due to dodgy tracking?
And is there any way of telling if the hose is damaged?
Cheers all,
First thing I'd do is check the tyre pressures.
After that I'd strip out the pads from the calipers, check the pistons, slide pins and pads are moving freely, clean everything up, lubricate and reassemble. A sign of a something sticking is unevenly worn pads. They should all have very similar amounts of material left on them.
Anything is possible in 7K miles.
Not much you can do with the brake hoses apart from carefully examining for damage, kinks, splits etc. If in doubt replace them.
After that I'd strip out the pads from the calipers, check the pistons, slide pins and pads are moving freely, clean everything up, lubricate and reassemble. A sign of a something sticking is unevenly worn pads. They should all have very similar amounts of material left on them.
Anything is possible in 7K miles.
Not much you can do with the brake hoses apart from carefully examining for damage, kinks, splits etc. If in doubt replace them.
Hammer67 said:
First thing I'd do is check the tyre pressures.
After that I'd strip out the pads from the calipers, check the pistons, slide pins and pads are moving freely, clean everything up, lubricate and reassemble. A sign of a something sticking is unevenly worn pads. They should all have very similar amounts of material left on them.
Anything is possible in 7K miles.
Not much you can do with the brake hoses apart from carefully examining for damage, kinks, splits etc. If in doubt replace them.
Pads are evenly worn on both sides, so as far as I know nothing is sticking. Slide pins also move freely.After that I'd strip out the pads from the calipers, check the pistons, slide pins and pads are moving freely, clean everything up, lubricate and reassemble. A sign of a something sticking is unevenly worn pads. They should all have very similar amounts of material left on them.
Anything is possible in 7K miles.
Not much you can do with the brake hoses apart from carefully examining for damage, kinks, splits etc. If in doubt replace them.
brrapp said:
Quite likely to be a worn bush on one of the suspension arms. When braking the arm will move slightly back causing the car to 'steer' to that side. If that is the case you might be able to test it if it'steers' the opposite way under hard acceleration
Would a worn suspension bushing be made worse by adjusting the tracking?HazzaCrawf said:
brrapp said:
Quite likely to be a worn bush on one of the suspension arms. When braking the arm will move slightly back causing the car to 'steer' to that side. If that is the case you might be able to test it if it'steers' the opposite way under hard acceleration
Would a worn suspension bushing be made worse by adjusting the tracking?My first suspicion it will be a worn suspension bush but flexi hoses are cheap and easy to eliminate. I'd fit a pair of those on the front and see how it goes.
Tasmin200 said:
Are you sure your tyres are scrubbed just due to tracking?
The N/S tyre is worse than the O/S front tyre by a pretty big margin and car pulled to the left (braking or no braking) before tracking was done. Now the tracking/alignment has been fixed, the pulling has stopped and car tracks straight and true, until I brake suddenly or firmly - at which point the car slightly pulls to the right, not a huge amount but certainly noticeable.Edited by Tasmin200 on Sunday 16th October 21:35
E-bmw said:
As above definitely not due to the hose or you would see leakage, all the hose does is allow pressure in the system to get to the calliper, so it can't produce the effect you are describing without leaking LOTS!
I thought the inside of the hose could collapse causing a slight restriction? I can't see any kinks or cracks in the hose at all, although I'm not able to see if it has bulged/been damaged in any other way just yet.HazzaCrawf said:
E-bmw said:
As above definitely not due to the hose or you would see leakage, all the hose does is allow pressure in the system to get to the calliper, so it can't produce the effect you are describing without leaking LOTS!
I thought the inside of the hose could collapse causing a slight restriction? I can't see any kinks or cracks in the hose at all, although I'm not able to see if it has bulged/been damaged in any other way just yet.It might also be worth swapping the 2 wheels over and seeing if that has any effect on what`s happening.
When is the MOT due? Maybe ask the tester to report back on any play in the bushes/joints on the front suspension.
Hammer67 said:
Clutching at straws there I would have thought. Have you carefully checked the tyre pressures? A slight variation between the 2 tyres could cause this.
It might also be worth swapping the 2 wheels over and seeing if that has any effect on what`s happening.
When is the MOT due? Maybe ask the tester to report back on any play in the bushes/joints on the front suspension.
MOT was done in June, no advisories on suspension of any kind - in fact no advisories at all (not that advisories mean a huge amount). It might also be worth swapping the 2 wheels over and seeing if that has any effect on what`s happening.
When is the MOT due? Maybe ask the tester to report back on any play in the bushes/joints on the front suspension.
Given people's responses I am confident it isn't a braking problem - the pads have equal wear on both sides as of a month ago but was panicking due to the 'hose accident', and the pulling only occurred post-tracking. Therefore, I'm thinking that my plan of action should be:
check bushings for play shortly before tyre replacement (tyres are unevenly worn, N/S quite badly so and are nearing wear bars)
replace tyres and have alignment re-done
failing that, replace front brake flexi hoses
Don't waste your money on changing the hoses, they are NOT the problem!
It could be tyres & as you know there is an issue with their wear, sort that out before going any further, it is most likely to be a calliper issue though, even though you think it may not be. The only other option is a suspension bush/joint.
It could be tyres & as you know there is an issue with their wear, sort that out before going any further, it is most likely to be a calliper issue though, even though you think it may not be. The only other option is a suspension bush/joint.
E-bmw said:
Don't waste your money on changing the hoses, they are NOT the problem!
It could be tyres & as you know there is an issue with their wear, sort that out before going any further, it is most likely to be a calliper issue though, even though you think it may not be. The only other option is a suspension bush/joint.
Never come across a sticking calliper before. The guide pins have been greased - what else could cause the calliper to stick? Worn piston seals, I suppose?It could be tyres & as you know there is an issue with their wear, sort that out before going any further, it is most likely to be a calliper issue though, even though you think it may not be. The only other option is a suspension bush/joint.
This is my first car that I've owned and maintained for nearly two years, but some problems I just haven't come across yet!
HazzaCrawf said:
E-bmw said:
Don't waste your money on changing the hoses, they are NOT the problem!
It could be tyres & as you know there is an issue with their wear, sort that out before going any further, it is most likely to be a calliper issue though, even though you think it may not be. The only other option is a suspension bush/joint.
Never come across a sticking calliper before. The guide pins have been greased - what else could cause the calliper to stick? Worn piston seals, I suppose?It could be tyres & as you know there is an issue with their wear, sort that out before going any further, it is most likely to be a calliper issue though, even though you think it may not be. The only other option is a suspension bush/joint.
This is my first car that I've owned and maintained for nearly two years, but some problems I just haven't come across yet!
When servicing brakes or renewing brake pads I always clamp the flexi to prevent fluid being pushed back through the system & open the bleed nipples to allow easy retraction of the pistons. Any unusual effort required needs investigation.
Bear in mind that when pulling due to brake issues it's the side that the car pulls towards that isn't the problem as that side's working.
Edited by paintman on Wednesday 19th October 08:43
If the tyres were on before it was tracked that will cause the car to pull.
My Clio did exactly the same when I bought some Turbine wheels for it. 2 new tyres later it was great.
My BMW is tramlining quite a bit at the moment with uneven wear. It would have helped if
-They didn't have 4mm still left on them
-They weren't over £160 a corner! That price is fitted from Black Circles :/.
I'm tempted to change them but with the rear being close to being changed that could be a huge bill for the month!
My Clio did exactly the same when I bought some Turbine wheels for it. 2 new tyres later it was great.
My BMW is tramlining quite a bit at the moment with uneven wear. It would have helped if
-They didn't have 4mm still left on them
-They weren't over £160 a corner! That price is fitted from Black Circles :/.
I'm tempted to change them but with the rear being close to being changed that could be a huge bill for the month!
one eyed mick said:
In one of your posts you say tyres are unevenly worn THERES YOUR ANSWER !!! get some propertyres on and a full geo check adjust!!!
Would unevenly worn tyres cause it to track straight when not braking, but pull slightly when on the brakes?SebringMan said:
If the tyres were on before it was tracked that will cause the car to pull.
My Clio did exactly the same when I bought some Turbine wheels for it. 2 new tyres later it was great.
My BMW is tramlining quite a bit at the moment with uneven wear. It would have helped if
-They didn't have 4mm still left on them
-They weren't over £160 a corner! That price is fitted from Black Circles :/.
I'm tempted to change them but with the rear being close to being changed that could be a huge bill for the month!
Did it only pull under braking? The clio tracks perfectly straight when off the brakes even if it feels a bit 'unsteady on its feet'.My Clio did exactly the same when I bought some Turbine wheels for it. 2 new tyres later it was great.
My BMW is tramlining quite a bit at the moment with uneven wear. It would have helped if
-They didn't have 4mm still left on them
-They weren't over £160 a corner! That price is fitted from Black Circles :/.
I'm tempted to change them but with the rear being close to being changed that could be a huge bill for the month!
Gassing Station | Home Mechanics | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff