My brake pads keep binding!?
Discussion
Is it just the weather?
You know when you wash your car, and the first instant where you take off the handbrake and move the car afterwards the pads are slightly bound to the discs, they kind of 'click' off!?....well, my car seems to be doing that an awful lot lately - not just after the car's been washed.
I leave the car in a cold garage overnight, and a cold underground carpark during the day; so is it just the moisture in the cold air that's doing it!? I've tried leaving the car with the handbrake off and just in gear btu it still does the same thing (on, I beleive, the fronts).
The pads are low but not mega so (i.e. won't need changing for probably 1k miles).
Help!
Thanks all
You know when you wash your car, and the first instant where you take off the handbrake and move the car afterwards the pads are slightly bound to the discs, they kind of 'click' off!?....well, my car seems to be doing that an awful lot lately - not just after the car's been washed.
I leave the car in a cold garage overnight, and a cold underground carpark during the day; so is it just the moisture in the cold air that's doing it!? I've tried leaving the car with the handbrake off and just in gear btu it still does the same thing (on, I beleive, the fronts).
The pads are low but not mega so (i.e. won't need changing for probably 1k miles).
Help!
Thanks all
This is definitely common with particularly the oem pads. There have been numerous posts on seloc about it. The opinion was generally that it is nothing to worry about. However, you have tried the usual remedies.
The problem is, that although your pads look ok on inspection from the side, it is difficult to be sure that they are wearing evenly on the face of the pads. The last thing you want is to score the discs. I changed my pads when they were down to about 30-40% for fear of the costs of replacing discs etc.
The problem is, that although your pads look ok on inspection from the side, it is difficult to be sure that they are wearing evenly on the face of the pads. The last thing you want is to score the discs. I changed my pads when they were down to about 30-40% for fear of the costs of replacing discs etc.
My brakes did this the other morning which i thought was odd - the first time it did it since I've had the car but I wasn't too worried about it - if it keeps doing it I'll look into it. I wonder if it is all the salt on the roads playing havoc with things?
I ended up giving it a bit more gas than normal to break the bind and ended up shooting off the driveway too fast and smacked my numberplate on the floor (oops!)
I ended up giving it a bit more gas than normal to break the bind and ended up shooting off the driveway too fast and smacked my numberplate on the floor (oops!)
In the early days when you used handbrake's a lot and specialy in cold days with salt! and moistre, when the brake cilindres come out that way when you put the brake on, the cilindres where not that good those days and begun to rust a bit! and you know its a very narrow bush? so a bit corrosion(rost) make that the cilinder couls not get back far anough and that way the brakes braked a bit...
So I almost never use the handbrake(for parking annyway
) for parking I always use first gear!
But in your case the fronts mostly stick? that has proberbly to do with the matterial of your brakes and the movement of the brakes...normally when you drive and then brake the brakes get of the disk again a bit when you drive again! but when you park your car in the garage or outside you brake and you stop and park, so that way your car does not move annymore so the brakes can not come back anough of the disks and then some cold wether and moistre can leaf a filmlayer between the pads and the disk so they could stick!(also depends what type pads you use I guess)
its like when you wash your car and spray on the iron brake disks and leave the car you get rost within a day or night or few hours! so thats why they could stick in your case...and the wider your pads have to come out(when getting older) the more they come on the never used area(dirty) so not clean and that way the pads can't come back when not driving!
so clean your callipers?? make it moveble at the end and its getting better!
Hope this makes all sence...difficult because I can only use easy English words
But I hope u understand..
GTRene
>> Edited by GTRene on Tuesday 6th December 10:47
So I almost never use the handbrake(for parking annyway
) for parking I always use first gear! But in your case the fronts mostly stick? that has proberbly to do with the matterial of your brakes and the movement of the brakes...normally when you drive and then brake the brakes get of the disk again a bit when you drive again! but when you park your car in the garage or outside you brake and you stop and park, so that way your car does not move annymore so the brakes can not come back anough of the disks and then some cold wether and moistre can leaf a filmlayer between the pads and the disk so they could stick!(also depends what type pads you use I guess)
its like when you wash your car and spray on the iron brake disks and leave the car you get rost within a day or night or few hours! so thats why they could stick in your case...and the wider your pads have to come out(when getting older) the more they come on the never used area(dirty) so not clean and that way the pads can't come back when not driving!
so clean your callipers?? make it moveble at the end and its getting better!
Hope this makes all sence...difficult because I can only use easy English words
But I hope u understand..
GTRene
>> Edited by GTRene on Tuesday 6th December 10:47
You beat me (i wish) to this post ! Three month old 111R and its happened too. Not after washing, but after she has been standing for a couple of days, again little bit more right foot and all ok. My van does this after a weeks rest, quite difficult to get rolling on a couple of occasions.
phew thanks guys I'm glad you all said that!
It's strange - it never happened during the summer which is why I thought it was the cold damp air doing it. I'll probably change the pads at the beginning of the year because between now and xmas I'll probably do 200 miles - if that.
Expect a "what brake pads" post from me in the near future! (actually, I've seen a few of them around so I'll be searching, have no fear).
Oh, and GTRene, I understood your post perfectly; thank you.
Cheers all
Tony
It's strange - it never happened during the summer which is why I thought it was the cold damp air doing it. I'll probably change the pads at the beginning of the year because between now and xmas I'll probably do 200 miles - if that.
Expect a "what brake pads" post from me in the near future! (actually, I've seen a few of them around so I'll be searching, have no fear).
Oh, and GTRene, I understood your post perfectly; thank you.
Cheers all
Tony
Tony,
Think it's one of those things that always feels worse in the Liz because it's so light and minimal. Any noises and vibrations tend to reverberate around the chassis and sound really bad!
Happens on all cars to some degree but you probably would not even notice it.
I, like others, leave mine garaged in 1st gear with the handbrake off.
If it's been wet I also finish each journey with some prolonged applications of the brakes, just helps to dry them out bit.
Cheers
Dunc
Think it's one of those things that always feels worse in the Liz because it's so light and minimal. Any noises and vibrations tend to reverberate around the chassis and sound really bad!
Happens on all cars to some degree but you probably would not even notice it.
I, like others, leave mine garaged in 1st gear with the handbrake off.
If it's been wet I also finish each journey with some prolonged applications of the brakes, just helps to dry them out bit.
Cheers
Dunc
tonyhetherington said:
Lesson number one... don't leave the handbrake on.
I'm not doing trackdays here! Merely driving to work (at the moment)
Surely you mean "lesson number one, always leave the car in gear aswell" ?
My handbrake only gets used for hill starts. Trackdays or not the brakes still get hot and, being rear engined, an Elise runs more rear brake bias than most cars meaning more heat and more expansion.
Also when you've got your disks realy hot! don't use the handbrake also at least not for long or only when they're coold down, because otherwise the disks could cool down on only a little piece of the disk and that way could harm the disks! they get curved!
The same for the front disks...after hot braking the disks, don't let your foot to long on the brakes when youre standing still! they can cool down to hard on that point of the disk so it could get curved! and that way cause many vibration in the steering wheel and car when braking later on!
cheers
GTRene
The same for the front disks...after hot braking the disks, don't let your foot to long on the brakes when youre standing still! they can cool down to hard on that point of the disk so it could get curved! and that way cause many vibration in the steering wheel and car when braking later on!
cheers
GTRene
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