grinding noise during braking

I was re-parking my A4 this morning and noticed the grind during braking. Is it safe to assume some or all brake pads are toast and visit a dealer to get at least the pair of the front ones?

also was wondering if changing brake fluid worth it given that I have no spongy feeling in the brakes or anything remotely close to that.

had to take my rear wheel driver to work before this is taken care of

Reply to
AD
Loading thread data ...

If you hear grinding prepare to have your rotors turned or replaced along with your pads. Brakes should never grind.

If your brake fluid has never been changed and is dirty get it's probably a good idea to have that flushed too. Brake fluid absorbs moisture.

Reply to
m6onz5a

I wouldn't pay dealer rates to do something like that, it's an easy job. If you don't want to do it yourself, find a local Audi guy. Yes, if you hear grinding, you have gone well beyond the point where you should have replaced the pads. Pull the wheels, look at the pads, replace the ones that are bad. Don't let them turn your rotors down unless they actually measure the things and find them warped.... too many folks will just turn the rotors down for no reason and it's apt to cause more trouble than not. If the rotor is too thin, replace it; if it's warped, turn it down; if neither one is the case just leave it there.

How long as it been since the fluid was changed? How often does the "extreme service" schedule in the owner's manual suggest it be changed? I change mine every year because that's what the manual says to do. If your manual says otherwise, do what it says.

That doesn't sound like a terrible sacrifice, to be honest.

--scott

Reply to
Scott Dorsey

Right. I was referring to a visit to the parts department to get OEM pads :-) Now that I tried to use only parking brake during the morning reparking excercise I hear it too. Only worse. hence I suspect the rear pads are toast.

tnx. where I live the dreaded practice of turning rotors to avoid liability is not practiced, I think. Given that solid ones have provided adequate braking performance for my needs I assume I should not need to replace the fronts with the brake chewing slotted variety. And given that the summers are temperate here I'd skip on the dimples and holes as well ;-)

Do let me know if I miss on anything not going the slotted (and optionally drilled) rotors route in a street car.

Dunno. I had this car since last summer. Probably never though carfax claimed the visits to the service was a religious ritual for the sole previous owner (he was in some college town in new england I guess)

:-) It's same model year as a4, but it looks 5x it's age. I suspect that one was used as a taxi. I like it quite a bit, especially when the snow falls and getting it sideways is as easy as finding dirt during warmer months. Lucky me: 200 meters or so of dirt leading to the backdoor in the office parking lot are at my disposal (with an opportunity for a small hop upon leaving the pavement)

Reply to
AD

MotorsForum website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.