I just purchased an 89 firebird and i am replacing the front brake pads. It used to squeal when you are rolling then the noise would go away when you hit the brakes. My question is are the brake pads supposed to be touching the rotor all the time of just when the brakes are applied, and also are there any kind of clips that hold the outer brake pad to the caliper? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

WAZUP!

 

The pads should "drag" a little when the brake is not applied.

The outer pad is held on by 4 tabs that are on the pad. You need to bend them so the pad sits in the caliper tight or you will have a squeak later.

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ASE Mechanic/Machinist/Smog Tech

1999 NBM Trans Am
1986 Chevy 3/4 ton pick up
1981 corvette
1995 Kawi ZX6R

GO #3

 

Jon,

Some Delco-Morraine calipers had a spring clip used to position the inner pad in the caliper piston and would help prevent rattle. There is also a RTV adhesive designed for the purpose, but I've never had really good luck with either of these methods. The clips don't quite do the job completely, and the adhesive doesn't seem to tolerate the heat of braking very well.

Bending the support tabs to fit the caliper closely is a good solution on the outer pads, but the inner pads are always problematic. The pads should always be just barely touching the rotors, and some squeal on metallic linings is considered normal.

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Later,
Vader
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"Make Me Bad"
Adobe Acrobat Reader 4.0

 

A trick I use on problems with squeaking is to spray the backs of the pads with 3M rubberized undercoating.



------------------
ASE Mechanic/Machinist/Smog Tech

1999 NBM Trans Am
1986 Chevy 3/4 ton pick up
1981 corvette
1995 Kawi ZX6R

GO #3