Squealing brakes, help !
 

Hey guys, I've got the base brakes and the cars at 25,000 kms and for the last few months I here squeals everytime I do a slow stop and on the highway too at any speed when braking to slow down. Had a mechanic check it out months ago, said I had plenty of pad, enough for years and showed me, they grinded the pad on the sides or something and the squeal went away for about a few weeks, I can't exactly recall. Told them the squeal came back and they said it was normal.. it's not normal bc every car on the road would squeal and it didn't squeal the first 25,000 kms from new.. summers coming up and I can't drive like this, it's really taking the enjoyment out, I can't stand it. Any suggestions would be appreciated, thanks in advance.

Do you know what pads are on the car? Are they OEM? Some aftermarket pads are going to squeal due to the pad materials used.

It could be a questionable install of your pads. You should have someone that knows what they are doing check the pads to insure that the clips are on the back of the pads that help to prevent squealing. You should also have them put brake grease on the back of the pads. With both of these in place, you should not have any squeal.

Final thought is that there are tabs on the pads that are 'wear indicators' to let you know when the pads need replaced. The indication is a squealing noise.

If you don't know how to do any of the above, find someone that knows brakes. This is not a complicated check/repair.

Before following BuckeyeZ's excellent suggestions, try bedding the brakes. Already several threads on this - search is your friend.

Last year I replace pads and rotors on the wife's Saturn. Soon after, started noticing they were squealing under similar conditions. Remembered then I forgot to grease the back of the pads. Picked up a tube of CRC Brake Caliper Synthetic Grease, pulled the pads back out and put a heavy smear on the back of the pads, and put it all back together. No more squealing.

If you try this and it does not fix your problem, replace the pads. For the base, a decent set of pads are not that expensive.

If it's the base brakes you don't need to bed anything unless you are on the track. At least that's what I was told by a mechanic. Street driving you don't need to bed the brakes.

To the OP, check your brake fluid as well.

I'll politely disagree. ALWAYS bed your brakes.

The brakes more than likely don't need bedding after all this time but the bedding procedure will burn off any rotor glazing that can cause squealing. Glazing may not be the problem, but the bedding procedure is quick, easy, and free.

ya all oem. and plenty of pad that should last years as i dont drive much. i guess ill take it to another shop. ill do my research on the "bedding"

if i have no other alternative, which pads should i go for, same oem ones or different? once again i have the base model, everythings oem on the car. and will new pads take the squealing away if i have no other alternative?

ill ask the shop what they think and see what they say, and ask them to use some of that gel someone above mentioned

Q&D Version:
1) Find a stretch of pavement where making panic stops will not interfere with traffic.
2) Get vehicle up to 40-60 mph (as fast as speed limit will allow).
3) Hit the brakes HARD and keep on them until your speed drops to 5-10 mph. Do NOT come to a complete stop. If you don't feel ABS kick in, you're not braking hard enough.
4) Keep moving for 5 minutes or so to allow the brakes to cool. Do NOT stop until brakes have cooled.

If glazing is the problem, you should at least feel/hear a big improvement after the first run. Repeat procedure 2-3 times if necessary. If that doesn't fix your problem, then start looking at the items mentioned by others.

the process cleans the surface of the pad.

if those are oem pads, they shouldn't squeal at all. i have a feeling the op is braking too lightly causing crap build up on the surface.

Thanks everyone, I'll try it out.