My 2003 Mitsu. Eclipse is having several issues (as evidenced by my previous posts). The front brake pads are new. The front left pad is wearing down substantially faster than the left. The front right (i think) makes a clunk when slowing down. The harder i brake, the more pronounced it is. I’ve heard everything from “there’s nothing wrong” to a stuck pin, to bad pads, to a collapsed line. Any ideas?
I think you have a bad rubber brake line on the left side. When they go bad they hold brake line pressure without releasing the caliper. Very common problem.
So the bad line wouldn’t cause it to always be braking? Just affect the overall performance while I’m applying pressure?
I would also carefully examine the suspension. A clunk sound could be caused by a faulty strut/strut mount or even worse, a worn ball joint.
As to the brake wear, jack the car up with the wheels off of the ground, apply the brakes once, and then check to see if the LF wheel rotates freely. If not, possibly a caliper piston hanging or the caliper binding on the sliders.
The bad line would release pressure s-l-o-w-l-y causing the left side to wear quicker, but a sticking caliper on either side could cause this. If the left side caliper is sticking on, or the right side is sticking off, the result of either is left side wear. If the left side front is sticking on and the right rear is doing the same, it is blocked ports in the master cylinder.
Could a stuck pin be the cause of the worn brakes? I know for a fact that it is not the suspension.
Just an update- tonight while driving, i realized that the noise only happens when i firmly apply pressure to the brakes, and when i let off them, there is a sound like they are coming out of a bind (if that makes any sense). As to which side, i cannot say for sure, though it is definitely in the front.