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Problem with brakes

L

Lt_hailBob

Veteran CEG'er
Joined
Oct 27, 2007
Messages
504
Location
Charlottesville
Whenever I'm going about 55mph (it happens at almost any speed if I slam on the brakes) or above and I tap the brakes with medium force the car jerks to the left. Anybody have any idea whats up with that? Its like the nose of the car wants to dive down and left a few degrees.
 
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Check your front calipers for damage, or sticking, or no friction material. Sounds to me like your right side front caliper is not functioning properly.

I would highly suggest going over your front brakes thouroughly (check out the rears while you're at it.)
 
You need to have a better look at the brakes. The quick check you performed doesn't tell you much about how they work in the real world with real world forces applied.

Some of the things to check with the caliper are torn piston boots, how evenly the pistons can be force back on one side compared to the other, the condition of the caliper slide pins and the condition of their lubrication.

Some other brake related things to check are the condition of the lining, the condition of the rotors, confirm proper lubrication of the pad backing plate where they slide on the caliper, and the condition of the hoses. A restricted hose will cause a pull to the opposite side.

Also check the suspension. In particular the lower control arm bushings. They have to be really sloppy to cause this, but others have reported worn bushings to be the cause of brake pull.
 
I'll check all that out thanks. I have new brake pads coming tomorrow and if I have to the NAPA store where I live will exchange the calipers in the front for 44 dollars a piece.
 
Good luck with Napa brakes....We put them on our blazer and they squeaked something horrible, were super spongy and lasted about 2 mos for their top of the line brake pads, we switched them and went with bendix.
 
Well if they suck then I'll buy some clorstuff pads. If it turns out to be a :censored::censored::censored::censored:ty brake line which it may be because it looks kind of dry rotted, how hard would it be to replace the lines myself?
 
I checked the front rotors and pads and they look fine but the rear right brake looks wierd. The lip of the caliper is a bright rust color and after I drive a while that smells like its burning. Could that be the problem and if so what is it?
 
Although it is less common for a sticking rear brake to cause a brake pull, it can. You need to inspect the rears in a similar manner as you did with the fronts, but with the added possible complication of the parking brakes. You could have a cable that is sticky. Also, the rear pistons do not retract by pushing them back. They must be retracted by screwing them back. There are special tools for that, but long nose pliers work reasonably well.

Fix what you found and then see if your problem is resolved.
 
Just did mine this past weekend, they aren't too bad. FWIW, it made a HUGE difference in how the car stopped. Did your pads bite into the rotors, or did you catch it in time?
 
So, witht teh rear brake problem resolved I wason my way to college and I got to the bottom of the hill that the college was on. Its a wet and Icy morning with the rain still pouring and the front right caliper starts to lock. I think, well I'm gonna need to replace it so I just drive up the hill anyway and by the time I get to the top of the hill, th efront right wheel well is smoking.
 
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