Two Questions, Brakes and Spark Plugs

[CBFryman 2]

First question/problem: As of late my truck's front right break has been making an odd sound when breaking and coasting at a low speed. It isn

[CBFryman 2]

And I's like to not have to buy a gapping tool. I have shims and All if it is possible to gap with thoes.

[djjdnap 78]

sounds like ur past brake pads and your grinding metal on metal..aka your rotors. So u might wanna get the brakes changed asap and have someone look at ur rotors as well.

To set the gap just buy one of the gapping tools from autozone or somin, they only cost maybe 2$. and they fit on ur keychain.

Basiclly u gotta take every spark plug and like it says set the gap by using the tool. Very very easy..

[CBFryman 2]

Thanks, I really hope I havent gone that far. I didnt have any squeaking at all, it just started happening all of the sudden and all of my other brakes are fine.

[CBFryman 2]

What gapping tool are you reffering to?

This is the kind I am familure with.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0002LJR7...3469?n=15684181

[topgun 262]

Just get a set of feeler gagues.

[Eldorado 0]

gapping disk more like it.

It has a ring around the outslde that varies in thickness.

They are cheap and will get the job done. They always have them at the counter

[CBFryman 2]

I think I already have what Eldorado is talking about. I hope that is all I need.

Doing some reading it sounds like I've damaged my rotar, how I dont know since I never had any squealong and on last brake check up they where of adequite thickness. I bet the dusche I bought the truck from put some cheap pads on it to save money and they didnt have the shims that make that terrible noise when you need to replace your pads.

Im going to take the wheel off and see if there are any gouges or abnormal wear on the rotar and check the pad thickness.

[CBFryman 2]

and new pads and rotars is going to cost me $200.

[Adrian_D 520]

pretty weird if the sound doesn't apper only under 20mph.

my guess is either the pads are trashed, or the bearing is trashed.

the bearings on dad's mk3 were making a bit of noise, but it was loudest only at certain speeds. a pretty easy fix.

do you have brake disks on the back ? weird again, since the front brakes sustain more wear...

when was the last time you changed the pads ?

imo, the pads are something you NEED to keep an eye on if you don't have thickness sensors.

[Adrian_D 520]

and new pads and rotars is going to cost me $200.

junkyard ftw. over here we have shops that buy cars damaged in accidents and take them apart to sell them for parts. try to find a similar car and take the rotors off.

[CBFryman 2]

Its the FRONT right brake. I have drum rear brakes.

It happends below 20mph, mostly when brakeing but slightly when costing.

Now that I think about it I dont hear it in reverse...ill double check that today. I've yet to change the pads on the truck but I've only put 10,000 miles on it. Last time I changed my oil thickness was above above 1/4" and they where both evely worn. I was planning on changing them with my next oil change.

[CBFryman 2]

and new pads and rotars is going to cost me $200.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

junkyard ftw. over here we have shops that buy cars damaged in accidents and take them apart to sell them for parts. try to find a similar car and take the rotors off.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Good Idea. I can also get these resurfaced if they arent to bad. I have the hook up at a machine shop.

[Adrian_D 520]

the problem with your gf's could be related to the ignition and not neccesarily to the spark plugs. pop the hood whe it's dark and look for sparks around connectors.

[Adrian_D 520]

Its the FRONT right brake. I have drum rear brakes.

It happends below 20mph, mostly when brakeing but slightly when costing.

Now that I think about it I dont hear it in reverse...ill double check that today. I've yet to change the pads on the truck but I've only put 10,000 miles on it. Last time I changed my oil thickness was above above 1/4" and they where both evely worn. I was planning on changing them with my next oil change.

i must be blind. sorry, i didn't notice it was the front brakes.

[CBFryman 2]

the problem with your gf's could be related to the ignition and not neccesarily to the spark plugs. pop the hood whe it's dark and look for sparks around connectors.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I'll give that a try if plugs dont fix it. Plugs are like $3 each and she only has 4. I'm sure they are getting close to due anyway.

I solved my trucks problem. I took the wheel off and ran my finger over the rotar, Ive got two or three gouges. I had my dad take a look at it and he says it was from the rivets in the pad and that the pads are cheapie POS (tall rivets and no squaling shims). He says they should be able to be turned. I called down to my friend's dad's machien shop and he said he'll do it for free, I just need to drop them off tomarrow.

So today after practice I get to take apart my bearings.

I'm gonna go ahead and replace the bearings while im down there and when I get the rotars back I'm going to get some high quality pads. No $20 Jiffy Lube chit balls. I even found the record of the last brake change, a mere 18,000 miles ago at Jiffy Lube. Oil Change, Chassis Lube, and Brake Pads $55 special...I'm going to pay that much just for pads.

[djjdnap 78]

my dad has a machine that shaves/resurface/fix wateva u wanna call it to rotors. takes about 2mins to fix.

Glad to hear its not that bad.

[Tirefryr 1,742]

If a rotor is gouged, it will NOT be able to be turned out. There will not be enough meat to SAFELY turn the rotor and remove the gouge. The idea is to take the minimum amount of material off for a level surface and anything more than 1/16th of an inch will more than likely go beyond the point of a safe thickness. If you search, you can find new rotors for damn near the price of having them turned and you are better off with a new rotor anyways. WE would never turn a rotor unless it was the last option, and gouged rotors were automatically scrapped.

[djjdnap 78]

^^^haha

should have seen mines. Shaved it down and works just fine.

[///M5 2,833]

It is almost never worth turning rotors anyway, buying new ones is almost the same price. On the same note who cares about the grooves, if they aren't out of balance there is no need to turn them. Buying brakes for your truck in the front only should not cost $200. I did rotors and pads at all four corners on the M for $230.

[CBFryman 2]

I could do it for $125 +tax. $200 was on summit.

[CBFryman 2]

It turns out the caliper was the culprit. Jiffy didnt reinstall it correctly and only the outside pad was giving any clamping force. All of my other pads where ~1/4".

The new pads I got where $45 and getting them turned for free is better than even junk yard roters. The grooves are not deep deep. Luckily I caught this quickly. I would say that are about 1/16th. You cant see them now that I cleaned the roter, only feel it when you run your finger over it. My dad is going to have me get them turned anyway, I have no say in the matter. He wa a mechanic for 5 years before the navy and 5 years in the navy so I trust him.

[topgun 262]

If you can't see them when its clean and can only feel them, its less than a 1/16"

[mrray13 30]

while i can't get them turned for free (not yet, anyway), a local parts store will do them for $6 each. a whole hella lot cheaper then replacing them.

also, and i usually don't disagree with ryan, but in all honesty, i've had rotors turned that had gouges alot worse then 1/16th...probably a bit over 1/8th. no exaggeration. the secert is in the thickness of the rotor and how thick it will be after turning. if it's a rotor that's never been turned, then most guoges can indeed be shaved out, almost regardless of deepness. and if it's been turned a time or two, but isn't cracked, most shops will indeed turn it as long as half the original thickness remains. meaning, somewhere inthe neighborhood of 3/16th of an inch of thickness AFTER turning.

but one should always err on the side of caution when it comes to their brakes..they is kinda important...

wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee

[///M5 2,833]

New cars have disposable rotors that are never meant to be turned, obviously not all but this is another one of the industries classic money saving manuvers. Shave a little metal off the rotors and they are cheaper.

Even if they are worn I don't believe in turning them, warped is another story. A groove will just add to the surface area for stopping so it won't hurt your stopping power. It may have a negative or positive effect on cooling but not on stopping. At $6 I might bother to though since that is uber cheap. Most places near me charge $20 a rotor and when new ones are $40 it'd be pretty dumb to turn them.