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sqeeling brakes...Help! I'm out of ideas

tnxj

NAXJA Forum User
Location
Knoxville, TN
Over the past 6 months I have done (and redone) the front brakes on my fiance's 99 XJ 4 times. At the time of the initial brake job I also did an identical brake job to my 98 XJ (except Bendix instead of Wagner because Advance was closer to the house) and have had zero issues. Plus I have done many, many brake jobs before and never had any issues so I don't think it is a case of ignorance (but who knows, I don't claim to know everything).

So here's the history:

Intitial brake job: new calipers on both sides, new rotors on both sides ($40 full cast [matched to the measurements of the old ones since they appear to be slightly different than the cheaper composites]), and new Wagner ThermaQuiet pads....One week later....squeels under light pedal

Round two: Trade the pads for new Wagners under warranty, this time I use Blue sticky brake quiet goo from the Help! section and have a talk with the fiance about babying them for the first couple of hundred miles.....one week later....squeels under light pedal

Round three: Take the Wagners back for cash, go to Advance and get a set of Bendix pads. Put them on (again using the blue stuff) and all is well for a month or so. Then it squeels at slow speeds. By this point it is Midterm at vet school, so I let it ride for a while.

Round four: Trade the Bendix pads for some new ones under warranty. Have the rotors turned just in case they're at fault (no pulsation, only takes 1 pass to clean them up). This time I put the pads on dry again. 2 days later... squeels under light pedal.

Meanwhile my 98 with the original pads is doing great. The only difference is my jeep doesn't have ABS and has the cheap composite rotors.

Needless to say, I'm frustrated and out of ideas. Any thoughts?

Oh yeah, I guess I should add that I have checked the gap with a feeler gauge and while I do not remember the exact numbers it was well within the specs with no shims and there is no visible wear to the bracket (unlike my 98 with 100K more miles which did require shims).
 
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What grade pads (gold, silver, etc...). It sounds like your pads are glazed. If you pull them out and sand them, they should quiet down.
I prefer the Silver pads. They don't last as long, but are not as hard and are less likely to make noise.
 
They were/are the highest grade OEM type pad for the XJ at O'Reilly's (Wagner ThermaQuiet, I think BestBrake is their discount line) first and now Advance Auto Parts (Bendix, I believe WearEver is their discount brand).
 
Did you change the caliper bolts? My 94 needed new calipers and I had the same problem after the job only to find the only thing I did not change or put lube on was the caliper bolts. I replaced them the next week and now they are quiet and in my opinion still suck for braking. Awaiting cash for my ZJ rear disc conversion. I think it's going to be a long wait:wierd:
 
I'm following this thread, have a similar situation with my wife's 98 Blazer. Have replaced the pads with new twice, lubed the caliper bolts, and swapped pads from one side to the other. I've also sanded the pads on the sidewalk, to scuff the glazing off. Any ideas would be great.
 
Round 5: Took everything back apart, sanded the contact surfaces on the caliper to remove any built up funk from successive disc brake quiet applications, lubed all of the caliper slides as well as caliper bolts with synthetic grease, sanded the pads, generously sprayed everything down with brake parts cleaner, re-verified that all of the gaps were within tolerances, and applied blue disc brake quiet to the back of each pad and the contact surfaces of the calipers. No squeel....for now. I'll keep my fingers crossed that this time it will be permanent, or at least the normal life expectancy of a brake pad. Thanks.
 
tnxj said:
They were/are the highest grade OEM type pad for the XJ at O'Reilly's (Wagner ThermaQuiet, I think BestBrake is their discount line) first and now Advance Auto Parts (Bendix, I believe WearEver is their discount brand).

The highest grade is usually the "gold". They are made of the hardest material and are supposed to have a longer life. I don't get the highest grade--I get the second (silver), because they are slightly softer and don't squeal as much.
 
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