Guest jclay Posted November 21, 2005 Share Posted November 21, 2005 Hi all, I've, or rather my car has (97 Legacy L Wgn. 2.2, MT) has recently developed a problem in the rear drivers side brake. I originally thought it was a bearing issue, as I was hearing a similar metal on metal scraping sound. I've checked, and it's not the bearings. The smell of burning brakes while driving, and an occaisional grinding noise while stopping have led me to the brakes. Other symptoms include a sluggish feel to the car in general, and a noticable decrease in gas milage. Yesterday, I pulled the brakes apart, and noticed that the inside pad was worn unevenly, but in a weird way, the bottom edge of the pad was worn away, while the rest of the face of the pad was even and looked fine. While putting everything back together, the caliper piston compressed very easily, too easily in fact, which leads me to thing that the caliper isn't functioning properly. Any thoughts? Could it be that I'm in dire need of a brake bleeding, and that my brake fluid is so bad off that I've lost pressure, or is the caliper shot and in need of replacement? If so, the usual questions apply, how to change, costs, etc. etc. I must admit that I'm not sure if these are drum brakes in the rear? Thanks in advance for all input and suggestions, and a Happy Thansksgiving to all. Jared Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tunered Posted November 21, 2005 Share Posted November 21, 2005 usually brakes that wear like that are dragging,cant really understand all of your post. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted November 21, 2005 Share Posted November 21, 2005 Well it sounds like you have a frozen brake caliper. The slider is dirty or rusted solid. You need to take the slder apart and clean it then lubricate it. If it is too far gone it will need to be replaced. (thats if i read the post right). nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jclay Posted November 21, 2005 Share Posted November 21, 2005 In light of prevoius responses, could the brakes be "sticking?" Please advise! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 Lucky Texan Posted November 21, 2005 Share Posted November 21, 2005 Ignoring for the moment the weird wear on the bottom egde of the pad. Is the thickness of the pad material of the inner pad approx. the same thickness as the outer pad? If so, there must be something more strange than a stuck caliper going on. If the difference is very noticeable, then something is preventing the caliper from sliding.(it slides to bring the outer pad into contact with the rotor such that the amount of force is virtually equal on both sides of the disc. It must be free to slide. Rust or damage could prvent this, or possibly a pinched or bad brake line is acting like a check valve or?????) Has ther been any suspension work done recently or has the car 'tagged' the curb or been off road or hit a pothole? No ABS or other indicators lit on the instrument cluster? What was the last service issue done to the car? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Setright Posted November 22, 2005 Share Posted November 22, 2005 I vote for rust/dirt on the slider pins. Take it apart, clean it, lubricate with a high temperature grease and you should be ok. I would strongly recommend doing both sides AND fitting four new pads. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jclay Posted November 22, 2005 Share Posted November 22, 2005 Hi all, thanks for the input thus far, it gives me a starting point. To answer some of the questions that have come up, yes, disregarding the odd wear on the bottom of the inside brake pad, the pads look to be approx. the same thickness. When i had the brakes apart the other day, i didn't notice any issues with the brake lines, although I know that I'm in desperate need of a bleeding. Also, i haven't hit any potholes or curbs recently that I can think of. There hasn't been any work done since i bought the car last March, although i did change the rear pads since. Is this still sounding like rust/ dirt on the slider pins? If so, can someone please explain the proceedure to clean and lube them? That would be much appreciated! Thanks again in advance, Jared Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted November 22, 2005 Share Posted November 22, 2005 Actually this is one of the easiest things to do on a car. GO pick yourself up a manual and you can see how its done. SOmetimes the sliders can be saved, sometimes they cant, nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tunered Posted November 23, 2005 Share Posted November 23, 2005 Actually this is one of the easiest things to do on a car. GO pick yourself up a manual and you can see how its done. SOmetimes the sliders can be saved, sometimes they cant, nipper go pick yourself up a manual,what if his car is broke down? nothing urks me more than somebody telling me to buy something,if he had a manual he wouldnt need your help. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nipper Posted November 23, 2005 Share Posted November 23, 2005 Well you know, if his car was broken down, by the two or three days it would take to explain to him, and the pictures, it would be much faster then bouncing back and forth on threads. And just what is WRONG with having the manual when working on a car. Brakes are REALLY importatnt, its not like hes replacing a radio or something else that is not a saftey issue. I can take somone by the hand via emaail and tell them how to change brakes, but sometimes somone needs a picture or exploded veiw who has never done it before. i really dont understand your comment, or where it comes from. Can you PLEASE explain to me WHY it would be wrong to see in pictures where things go, or a more fully explained procedure to repair something then over the boards. None of us are perfect here, and may miss a step or not fully explain something. With the manual we can at least show a person where to look, what the part looks like, where it comes from, where it goes. It is far better then weh you have to keep refering back and forth to pasotings or emails. Talk about things that get me mad.... By the way, if he was broken down on the side of the road, how would he get to a computer? You have an owners manual that covers most roadside emergenices and maintanence , So i guess he should ignore that too. It would be differnt if we could stand next to a person and show them, teach them how to do it. In this case a manual is a source of information and can help TEACH somone how to do things. I NEVER said not to ask questions. nipper Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tunered Posted November 23, 2005 Share Posted November 23, 2005 nipper,my point was he was expecting to get some help,not instructions to buy a book.having said what i have i fully understand what you are saying,im not ragging on you.but basic instructions might help him get it done. please accept my apoligy. ed Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 Lucky Texan Posted November 23, 2005 Share Posted November 23, 2005 Perhaps this is just an odd failure of a replacement pad? Some material just broke off or something? here's some brake info; http://forums.nasioc.com/forums/showthread.php?postid=2004938 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jclay Posted November 23, 2005 Share Posted November 23, 2005 Hi, I wanted to thank everyone who posted. I also wanted to say for the record, that I do have a chiltons, but find it to be vague. I use it in conjuction with the help from people here. As far as my brake situation is concerned, I did a search on previous threads, and will start by a more thorough inspection of the caliper, and filing off some rust from around the rim of the rotar. I will look at the slides, to see what, if anything, I can determine. This will most likely lead to more posts/ questions. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1 Lucky Texan Posted November 23, 2005 Share Posted November 23, 2005 Hi, I wanted to thank everyone who posted. I also wanted to say for the record, that I do have a chiltons, but find it to be vague. I use it in conjuction with the help from people here. As far as my brake situation is concerned, I did a search on previous threads, and will start by a more thorough inspection of the caliper, and filing off some rust from around the rim of the rotar. I will look at the slides, to see what, if anything, I can determine. This will most likely lead to more posts/ questions. Thanks! Any chance someone could stomp on the brakes while you're observing the caliper? Maybe a bolt is broken or it is twisting in some strange way? Just trying to think about the geometry required to make the pad wear as described. weird Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimscat Posted November 23, 2005 Share Posted November 23, 2005 I just went through this on my 93. it sounds to me that your slides are frozen. Subaru does make a rebuild kit (for my 93 anyway) comes with new o rings and caliper boots. I could not get the clips back in and the pads rattle. I should have bought new calipers but here in my area the best price I got was well over $200 bucks apeice. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ctoth Posted November 23, 2005 Share Posted November 23, 2005 you should try greasing the contact points where the slider makes contact with the bracket for the pad. It might be sticking there. -Chris Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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