Brake Question For The Experts - Corolland: the Toyota Corolla Forums

Lots of smart folks on this board. I appreciate your posts.

On my 2004ce I just noticed a low scraping sound coming from my front discs at 50k miles. Normally I would just assume that the pads need replacing and do it myself.

However, I read somewhere that the sound of worn pads on a corolla should be a high pitch screech. And a low scraping sound could indicate an alignment problem. I think this might be BS so I thought I'd bring it to the board.

1) Should my oem pads be worn out at 50k?

2) Would the scraping sound be normal for worn pads?

3) How often do corollas need an alignment with normal driving, if ever?

4) Can someone recommend a good, low cost pad.

Thanks!

sounds like either your pads are worn out ?(mileage is no indication of when they wear out.), or we have seen rocks get in between the backing plate and the rotor.

i like the toyota brake pads myself.

aaron

sounds like either your pads are worn out ?(mileage is no indication of when they wear out.), or we have seen rocks get in between the backing plate and the rotor.i like the toyota brake pads myself.

aaron

The pads are shot and they are metal to metal you need pads and rotors now if you go aftermkt please reuse the factory shims they are there for a reason.

50k thats pretty good for milage.

A Sequoia only last about 30-40k

Bikeman982

Just take off your wheel and take a look at the brakes.

They may need replacing.

I changed my wife's front disc brake shoes and her rear brake pads today.

They were worn and she thought that the noise they made was bad. She was right.

Hard to say for sure without an inspection - can't really go by mileage either, as they say - your mileage may vary. I've gotten as little as 24K on a set of front OEM pads in 50/50 city/highway driving - but also saw around 3-4 hours of traffic EACH day (DC Metro traffic) during that period. Now that I've moved out a little way (now only 2 hours of traffic EACH day default_biggrin ) - I've usually run about 60K on a set of brake pads (on third set now).

Sometimes you can get corrosion on the rotor that will cause this low rumbling sound (pretty normal if you let the car sit for a day or more, even sooner if there is any precipitation around) or contamination via some debris imbedded in and around there - like mentioned above. If the grumbling sound happens when you step on the brakes - then probably excessively worn pads. If the sound disappears when you step on the brake - then probably it is some contamination, but you should double check pad thickness as well. Could be a sticking caliper (doesn't slide smoothly) causing the inner pad to drag on the rotor.

If the sound is there all the time or you notice the braking behavior has changed a bit - might warrant an immediate check. Pay careful attention to the backside of the rotor - as these sliding calipers tend to wear the inside pad faster than the outboard pad (function of their design). You could have some metal to metal contact between the rotor and the brake pad backing material, a bad situation. Like Bike mentioned - only way to know for sure is to pop the wheel off and visually take a peek yourself - NOTE: make sure that you let things cool a bit, showed someone how I worked on my own brakes - saw that it seemed simple enough, he attempted it himself and burned himself pretty good (I assumed this was common sense - opps default_ohmy )

I'd do an inspection first before buying anything. As others have mentioned, mileage is no indication of usage. I've got 92k on the original brakes on my '03, still working/sounding fine.

Bikeman982

A good method is to have a second vehicle to drive to the parts store for replacement,

while your car is out of commission.

You can take out any bad or worn parts and bring them to the store - to get an exact replacement.

I did that with my wife's brake pads and shoes, yesterday.

defintly sounds like brakes are done for, check them asap, no need to ruin the rotors if its just the pads that are going, the high pitch sound you should hear like you said is from the brake indicator tab but i have seen those brake off or be bent in shipping or instalment so when the pads gets worn it wont have that sound, like everyone has been saying milage is no idcator of when to change brake pads, i have driven 30Kmiles on OEM before changing them and also 7Kmiles on OEM pads, one thing i will say for sure on the 7th gen front brakes they are very good, they are are prolly bigger than what is really needed for the size of that car and so that will help the life because it has a bigger cooling surface and you wont get brake fade and all that jazz, not sure about new ones but im sure that same thought was put into them, if you go aftermarket come back and let us know so we can all help get you in the right way

ps check the brakes very soon like i said before, better waste an hour checking than risk your life

Bikeman982

I bought the best front disc brake pads I could find from Kragen AutoParts. They are ceramic and should last a long time, they also come with a lifetime warranty.

For the 7th generation they are Raybestos part number PGD562QS.

They are ultra quiet operation, with low dusting, formulated for your vehicle specifics, provide consistent, smooth performance, are 100% slotted and chamfered, and have premium constrained shims.

They come with a small tube of sound deadening lube.

Hope that is all you need.

P.S. I changed them myself and if you need any assistance with changing yours, just let me know.

impossible to tell exactly what it is from what you posted. do an inspection first to see what might be wrong before doing anything. or take the safe route and get new pads and rotors. things i'd check would be warped rotors, worn out pads, stuck/seized calipers and such.

BTW an alignment is anything but a lifetime thing. your alignment could be thrown off at any time by hitting ruts or potholes, or running over things, etc. If your car noticeably pulls to either side, feels like it handles twitchy, steering wheel isn't straight, etc are all signs that you need an alignment. Also how the tires are wearing is another clear sign if something is off, like if the the tires are wearing mainly on the inside/outside/center/all even/etc.

I personally keep an eye on how the tires are wearing, and take the car in for an aligment if i feel it pulling one way or another. It usually ends up being about every other year or so.

Thanks everybody. I changed the pads myself this morning. I used Duralast semi-metallic pads from Autozone - total cost of the job was $24.95. The Duralast pads come with shims already attached to the backs of the pads which makes it easy.

The old pads were very worn - down to between about an 8th and a 16th of an inch.

Everything is working perfectly now.

Bikeman982

Thanks everybody. I changed the pads myself this morning. I used Duralast semi-metallic pads from Autozone - total cost of the job was $24.95. The Duralast pads come with shims already attached to the backs of the pads which makes it easy.
The old pads were very worn - down to between about an 8th and a 16th of an inch.
Everything is working perfectly now.

Good to hear that you were able to do the repair yourself and that it has fixed your problem.

Was that just the front brake pads you changed?

Have you also checked the rear brake shoes for wear?

Awsome!

Glad you got it fixed.

As everyone says, milage is not an indicator of brake wear.

I have put almost 100k on my 4rnr since i got it used, and have never changed the brakes (I prob should do it soon - maybe in the spring).

But I do a lot of highway driving.

tdk

Bikeman982

Doesn't everyone check all four brakes when they inspect?

A lot of people are changing the front disc brake pads, but nobody is encouraging the inspection of all brakes.

I recommend the rear be checked as well.

Normally, you would change the fronts twice for every set of rears since majority of the braking is done on the front.

But it doesnt hurt to have a look by taking a wheel off.

Bikeman982

Normally, you would change the fronts twice for every set of rears since majority of the braking is done on the front.
But it doesnt hurt to have a look by taking a wheel off.

That's true - FWD vehicles tend to go thru the front disk brake pads faster than the rear drum brake shoes.

When you inspect the brakes, it is best to check all the wheels.

A low brake fluid level can be a sign of when to replace brake pads. As the pads wear down, more brake fluid is needed to push the caliper pistons out farther to stop the vehicle. This causes the fluid level in the master cylinder to drop. This doesn't mean there is a problem however, as the fluid will rise back up when new brake pads are installed.

If you suspect that a low fluid is not from a brake pad wear, be sure to check for a leak in the system.

Bikeman982

A low brake fluid level can be a sign of when to replace brake pads. As the pads wear down, more brake fluid is needed to push the caliper pistons out farther to stop the vehicle. This causes the fluid level in the master cylinder to drop. This doesn't mean there is a problem however, as the fluid will rise back up when new brake pads are installed.
If you suspect that a low fluid is not from a brake pad wear, be sure to check for a leak in the system.

Good advice.

Sometimes you can see brake lines that look wet, indicating a leak.

If fluid gets too low, you won't have good brakes.