Front brake disc getting red hot and smoking :O

[Mark A]

Hi guys,

Yet more trouble with my Focus .

I recently had the front brake discs and pads replaced with Mintex ones as mine were shot at. They have been great and even seem to have more stopping power than the old ones. But recently Ive been smelling a burning smell that i couldn't quite place where it was coming from. Today i smelt it much worse than usual and then when i pulled up at my house i could see some wisps of smoke coming out from the brake . The disc was red hot and black in colour but i haven't been hooning around, i just drove to the shop and back. The other disc was just warm as it should be.

Strange thing is i haven't felt it pulling to one side which i would have thought it would do. The car also rolls freely so the brake isn't jammed on.

Any ideas? I'm obviously going to get it looked at but I'd like to get an idea of what it could be before i take it in.

 

[Mark A]

Brakes are binding, you'll need to get them readjusted. You'll probably need new pads too now.

How come they seemed fine for a good few months and then suddenly started binding? Is it normal for this to happen?

Is it a specialist job or something i could have a go at myself? Any idea of cost if i do have to take it in?

 

[Mark A]

Could be either a seizing piston or corroded slider pins.

My CTR had to be recovered a few weeks back with a seized piston, exhibiting the same symptoms as yours. It was utterly jammed solid. I bought some reconditioned calipers (EBC) from eBay, and they've been fine since. Luckily I noticed it before the pad and disc were knackered.

The thing is it rolls freely, so i don't think the brakes are jammed on. Its also driving fine and doesn't seem to have lost any power.

If it was binding wouldn't i feel like a scraping sound while rolling along?

EDIT: Just been out to look at the disc again and its still a dark blue/black colour instead of silver. I guess this means the disc is knackered as well as the pads? Thats £40 down the drain and the £50 it cost to get them fitted . getting really sick of this car now.

 

[Mark A]

The brakes must be binding, there is simply no other possible explanation for them getting so hot. Problem is more likely a seized caliper piston than sliders, the later won't usually cause enough binding to get the pads smoking.

Would this still allow the car to roll freely? The car rolls fine and i don't hear any grinding etc, but then again the engine would probably block the sound out. Also the car doesn't pull to one side or anything, which i would have thought it would with it being just the one disc.

Is there any way to sort this out or will i have to take it into a garage? I'm pretty annoyed about this as i paid over the odds to get them fitted. Think i paid about £57 plus £40 for the discs and pads (Mintex). Now I'm going to have to pay the same again no doubt and this could happen again as i have no idea why its happened. Ive only done 1000 miles or so since i had them done as well.

Thanks for the help , I think ill get the wheel off tomorrow and see if i can see anything untoward. I'll try and free the piston (if its stuck) with a g-clap and see if that sorts it.

danza, Thanks, that does actually sound spot on. Just started to notice the smell, but it was faint and there was a small amount of smoke. So hopefully there dics aren't ruined. I think I'll take it to a different mechanic this time and see what they say.

 

[Mark A]

Surely if it was binding you'd have a massive amount of brake dust on the wheels? Get it jacked up and spin a wheel to see whether it encounters any resistance.

Yeah, Ive not noticed any extra brake dust. thats a good point actually, I'll have a proper look tomorrow and get the car jacked up.

Is it possible for it to bind intermittently? Because it does sound like the symptoms of a binding pad.

 

[Mark A]

Ive seen some on ebay for £30 each from a scrap vehicle, but there is no guarantee they will be in better condition than mine are. How much would i be looking at for a new callipers fitted from a garage roughly?

I'll have a look tomorrow anyway and see what condition the callipers are in.

I'm just glad the burning smell wasn't coming from the engine bay .

 

[Mark A]

Thanks for all the replies .

Just been out and jacked the car up and the wheel doesn't spin (not sure if its supposed to?). I can turn the wheel easily by hand but there is definite resistance there and a scraping sound can be heard. The brakes are cold as i haven't driven the car today (bar turning it round quickly so i could get the jack on a flat surface) and as someone mentioned they will get worse when they heat up.

Looking at the carriers they do look a bit rusty and not very smooth. So i could try and clean them up and put a bit of copper grease on? I have a feeling I'll be needing new callipers though . I'll check out the reconditioned ones people have mentioned. Going to let my dads new mechanic have a look at it as i don't trust the last garage, plus they ripped me off £57 just for fitting the pads and discs i supplied so god knows how much they would charge to sort this out.

Regarding the wheel bearing, wouldn't this make a strange noise while the car was driving? I don't remember the wheel its self feeling hot, it seemed to be just the disc.

 

[Mark A]

Just had a proper look and took the wheel off. The carriers look pretty corroded so i took a wire brush to it to clean it up a bit and put some copperslip grease on. The wheel is now turning but this is probably due to me trying to remove the calliper. Its deffo the pads binding as i couldn't even get the calliper off.

Could it possibly be that there is too much brake fluid in the system? The garage must have topped the brake fluid up and its spot on the max level line. I was thinking that this coupled with the brand new pads and discs could be making it touch the disc slightly? Or would that be far to easy .

If it was the carriers that are knackered, would that be cheaper to sort than if its the calliper? They dont look in great condition tbh.

 

[Mark A]

Could be corroded/ rogered sliders? I'd get them stripped down, grease the sliders and press the pistons back in.

Then see how you get on. Then again you could just give it back to the garage to sort.

Well i wont be taking it to the same garage. I don't think I can pin this on them as I'm not certain when the problem actually started. They didn't clean the sliders up or grease them though and my dad said they should have done really.

I will be taking it to a different garage so this will be costing me again . If there was a way to sort it myself I'd gladly do it. Ive cleaned the slider up and greased it and I'll take the car for a spin later and see if its helped.

I might also take a bit of the brake fluid out and see if that makes any difference.

One other thing ive noticed is the disc on the other side isnt silver in colour either, that too is black but not as bad as the drivers side.

Both look like this, rather than silver.

 

[Mark A]

Got the car back from the mechanic today, you guys were correct, it was a borked calliper. Got a reconditioned one fitted but he only did one side and he has also just put back the old pads, is this right?

Also got a new idle control valve fitted while it was there to see if it'll cure the surging idle problem i had. I also asked for an oil change and i supplied the filter and oil and hes swapped my wipers and topped up all the fluids. He better not charge too much for that as i didn't ask for it and wanted some of those flat blade ones.

Seems to be braking OK but still seems to be getting hot, then again i was driving a tad on the enthusiastic side . I think I'll jack it up in a min and see if the wheel spins, just to be sure.

Shineh!

Just need to paint the other one silver to match now .