Brake pad modification

The_Librarian

The_Librarian

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As per the title.

So we started to hear an ominous, grinding noise at the left, front wheel of our Sharan. But we had the brakes checked, and according to the guy who did the inspection, they're ok.

So I removed the wheel to gain access to the brake pads. Outer pad is OK.

Inner pad is seri-assly iffy. This is due to some modifications made to the pads to make it fit.

inner1.jpg

inner2.jpginner3.jpg

So I ordered the correct ones from Midas (had to look them up in the brake parts catalogue) and will be picking up the (hopefully) correct ones this afternoon.

The images shown is the inner brake pad. It have a sort of clip which clips on the inside of the brake caliper piston, but it was removed because it did not fit. Because a metal piece was under part of the piston, it did not sit properly.

So, yea, brakes and modifications does not go well together.

I'm just glad we did not had a serious accident with the car with loss of brakes etc.

The disc itself is fine, whew.
 
Modifications done could have damaged the piston or holing, what it looks like is that the brae pads was not properly set making it a unequal grab when pressing down on the brake pedal
 
thechamp said:
Very unlikely, that part is under no stress and is flexible.
Click to expand...

It could simply have been badly made.

I wouldn’t say it’s under no stress, it sits right next to massive heat and friction which could easily take its toll on a weak spot.

What I can’t understand is how nobody would hear the bad flipping about every time you switched between reverse and forwards because it would make for a profound clunk every single time.

At the same time for the very reason that it’s loose and flexible I find it odd that it in itself would cause such even but scew wear. I would consider something else being wrong like the piston not working properly.
 
The part that is "modified" is the retaining clip that holds the brake pad in place in the piston. I've seen many backyard types cut it off, cause on some cars/pads it is a bitch to get into the caliper and piston.
 
SauRoNZA said:
It could simply have been badly made.

I wouldn’t say it’s under no stress, it sits right next to massive heat and friction which could easily take its toll on a weak spot.

What I can’t understand is how nobody would hear the bad flipping about every time you switched between reverse and forwards because it would make for a profound clunk every single time.

At the same time for the very reason that it’s loose and flexible I find it odd that it in itself would cause such even but scew wear. I would consider something else being wrong like the piston not working properly.
Click to expand...

I've driven a car that had that clip cut just like the op's. You don't hear anything, as the piston/caliper combination is holding it all together, it's only at the end of life that the uneven wear makes a noise of metal on metal (pad on disc).
 
pinball wizard said:
I've driven a car that had that clip cut just like the op's. You don't hear anything, as the piston/caliper combination is holding it all together, it's only at the end of life that the uneven wear makes a noise of metal on metal (pad on disc).
Click to expand...

I've driven a car where the clip was simply badly fitted and not closed up too much so it didn't expand properly inside the caliper and you would hear it every single time you went reverse/forward with a "clunk" as it moved.

So I can only imagine that would be far far worse with no clip at all, but maybe the clunk actually originates from teh clip itself and hence you don't hear it when it's completely gone.
 
pinball wizard said:
The part that is "modified" is the retaining clip that holds the brake pad in place in the piston. I've seen many backyard types cut it off, cause on some cars/pads it is a bitch to get into the caliper and piston.
Click to expand...

How strange, in my case I would say it was too easy to get it in and why it ended up being a bit loose and having some movement.

Learnt then to be much more gentle with it and make sure it expands.

I would think it far more work to cut it off/modify it than to simply install it properly.
 
upup said:
Just check your sliding pins, if they are not stuck.
Click to expand...
Nope, was not that. Rear pad was not 100% flush on the caliper. A little bit of metal was under the caliper body, causing the pad to sit skew. See the pictures I've posted above. You can actually see the outline of the caliper where it goes over a bit of metal.
 
pinball wizard said:
The part that is "modified" is the retaining clip that holds the brake pad in place in the piston. I've seen many backyard types cut it off, cause on some cars/pads it is a bitch to get into the caliper and piston.
Click to expand...
This ^^^ It's not so difficult if you know what you are doing but ye, them backyard mechies..
 
Oh, another thing which I haven't mentioned. But now I will as I have got the correct pads.

The brake pads which were installed, are actually a bit smaller (1 to 2 mm) lengthwise, which prompted said backyard mechanic to chamfer the hooks on the pad to make them fit into the cradle. And this is also a reason why that retaining clip was cut off as the pad was riding either too high or too low.

On the left is the new pad (unmodified) and on the right is the modified pad. Red shows the part that got cut off (probably with a baby grinder). Just wtf.

mod vs unmod.jpg

If it does not fit, get the correct part, ffs. It is your life (and others) that you put at risk!
 
The cutting of the retaining clip at the back would not have affected functioning of the brakes.
 
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