SharkByte

Well I did the spring upgrades to my Tib this weekend. I replaced the stock rotors with some new crossdrilled (front and back). I replaced the brake pads since I had it apart.

The next step was taking the winter tires and putting them in storage. I glady unpacked 4 new Konig Holes 17" w/ Nankang 205/40/17. Polished them all up and mounted them. Talk about nice!

Then I took the tib out for some exercise (she's been up on blocks for 2 months, ssautochrome have had a Cat "in shipment" to me for that long.. But I have a neighbor with a MIG welder...) Did the whole go fast, brake, go fast, brake until the rotors and pads were mated.

I have a teeny problem that I could use some advice on...

Now the car has a slight wobble in the steering wheel and she wants to pull left a bit. Plus, when braking, I can feel a bit of a pulse which becomes more pronounced as she slows down. My guess is that the driver side rotor isnt sitting flush against the hub (yes I cleaned it all up before installing the new rotor). Would this be an accurate guess?

canadianshark74

I got the wobble in the steering wheel, when I had Eibach springs and 17' wheels installed. My car goes in for new struts, and alingment next week.

You installed springs?
You will defineately need and alignment.

As for the pulsing in the brakes, Did you lube the calipers? Bleed the brakes?

That is all I can think of right now.

01tibby

1. glad you installed new pads. you are always supposed to install new pads with new rotors.

2. did you make sure to install the shims back on the side of the pad that doesnt touch the rotor?

3. make sure you bleed the brake lines whenever you are having a braking problem first. it solves most of them.

4. give the brake system about 3 days of driving and see if the problem still persists.

SharkByte

1. Yeah, was going to use the old pads - then thought about it and realized how stupid that would be. Pads are cheap - rotors arent

2. The new pads came with stainless steel shims pre-installed.. I've kept the old factory shims - but no they arent installed right now.

3. Never opened the lines to begin with... Used a c-clamp to compress the cylinders. Besides, the pedal doesnt feel squishy. It has a rythmic backpressure. The slower the wheels are turning, the slower the pulse... If I didnt know better I'd say the rotors where not an even width - but I do know better because I inspected them carefully before installing them.

4. Actually, it is getting worse... The pulse is increasing as the brakes wear in more.. So I know have to do something about this quickly (I dont want to end up having to buy another set of rotors - I have other car goodies to get!)

Now a strange thing happened on the way home today... I went over a manhole that bounced me around a bit (gotta love springtime roads).. Made a horrible sound - whump bam - wha bam (as the tires passed over the dip - the first tire making a distinct metalic thump). And immediately the steering wheel wobble went away! Stopped at the next street light -no pulse.... Interesting no? It returned after a short bit of driving (no horrible noises as it did so, just sort of crept back).

From this I gather that the problem is definitely in the front driver's side. When I got home, I re-torqued the wheel nuts (they were still tight). Went for a short spin, wobble/pulse still there. All I can think of is the rotor isnt sitting flush. Now I'm sure taking out the mallet and bashing on the rotor is a BAD idea. How can I "pursuade" the rotor to a) Unjam from its present cock-eyed position B) Sit flush against the hub without resorting to over-torquing the lug nuts?

Just on a whim, how can I check that the problem isnt somehow related to the bearing? Whats the proceedure to check that they are ok?

Thanks for the input guys!

01tibby

did you clean the hub surface with a wire brush? you might wanna give that a try. also, grease the caliper slider bolts up with some caliper grease.

SharkByte

Quote:

I got the wobble in the steering wheel, when I had Eibach springs and 17' wheels installed. My car goes in for new struts, and alingment next week.

You installed springs?
You will defineately need and alignment.

As for the pulsing in the brakes, Did you lube the calipers? Bleed the brakes?

That is all I can think of right now.

Sharkbyte:

No didnt install new springs (yet..grin) No I didnt lube the calipers... wouldnt that make a noise rather than a rythmic pulse?

canadianshark74

hmm, not sure, but its not hard to do, and doesn't cost very much.

SharkByte

I heard back from the manufacturer of the rotors... and I quote:

It's the zinc plating. Just drive it for 100 miles for the
rotors to brake in and if the pulsing still exist just let
me know and I will gladly exchange the rotor for you.

Thanks,
Speedy Dynamic


WOW... now that's service! I'm impressed.. I'll let you all know if it goes away!

Sparticus

yea....that is good service considering that there are so many factors that can lead to a break pulsation. i seem to think that the rotor isn't sitting smoothly on the hub. maybe some corrosion or something isn't allowing the hub to move evenly in a circle.

good luck

SharkByte

Good news! The replacement front Rotors arrived Thursday afternoon. Put them on that very same day. I've been driving in bliss ever since. The pulsing and wobbling are a thing of the past! I 100% recommend speedy dynamic. The new rotors they sent are even slotted.. They look sweet and feel sweeter. As a bonus, it was much easier to install the replacements than the original new set.. Didnt have to compress the cylinder!

I did notice that on one of the break cylinders that the dust boot is torn... Should I worry about it or just ignore it?