I have a 1980 Toyota Cressida and I am having problems with the brakes squeaking at almost all speeds while braking. I have two week old pads on the car, when I installed them I generously applied brake quiet to the backs of the pads. does anyone have any suggestions as to what I can do to fix this problem?
Thank you for your time and consideration!
Did you also replace the rotors?
Tester
Did you use Toyota’s own proprietary brake pads?
In my experience, aftermarket brands of brake pads tend to be noisy when used on Toyotas.
I don’t know why this is the case, but I have observed it on numerous occasions.
Do you still have the anti-squeal clips that Toyota provided? You need to get them from the dealer and thry can be pricey. Without them, tho, the pads can vibrate, causing a squeal.
As VDC said above see if the Toyota pads are still available. If not I have had good luck with Bendix lately.
No I have not changed the rotors, thank you for the tip!
I don’t know if the factory pads are still available, I will look into that, thank you!
I don’t think I have the clips, but I don’t think the dealer will have them because I have found they stop carrying parts after 15 years… and my car is 34! I will look into it though thank you!
Does anyone know the science behind the squeaking? I understand It has something to do with the pads vibrating, but can anyone explain deeper?
Thank you all for your help!!!
^
It can also have to do with the composition of the pads.
After asbestos was outlawed for brakes, the material used for brake pads has changed many times, and some of those formulations are noisier than others.
As a Toyota owner I can say that Toyota pads with Toyota shims are the best bet however I have used the top of the line pads at Autozone (Duralast Gold Cmax) or Advance (Wearever Platinum Premium) and they are usually excellent. They both come with shims built right into the pad and, with a little bit of “disc brake quiet” applied, I have never experienced any squeaking in my Toyotas.
The rotors…IF XTREMELY Rusty will need to be replaced. They should NOT be deeply pitted with rust …>SOME rust is OK and will go away with use and usually polish up over time…but if they are too far gone they need replaced.
The BRAKE CALIPERS themselves can also be suspect…Are they working properly? Are the RELEASING properly? When you apply the brakes and bring vehicle to a stop…and then you take your foot OFF the brakes…does the vehicle then begin to roll easily? If the calipers are NOT releasing properly and are dragging…they will be noisy…and unsafe as well.
Let us know
Blackbird
If the rotors aren’t replaced when doing a brake job, the friction surfaces might not be correct for the proper transfer of friction material. This then allows the rotors to vibrate at frequency that can be heard.
Some brake pads require a certain break-in procedure after they’re installed in order to get the proper transfer of friction material. This also cooks the bonding agent in the brake pads just below the friction surfaces which prevents glazing of the rotors. And if the old rotors are glazed the pads can’t be imbedded properly which results in brake noise.
You can read all the things that can cause brake noise here.
http://www.aa1car.com/library/tr996.htm
Tester