when i put brakes on any of my vehicles i always buy the high grade pads and shoes and never have any issues. I recently put pads and rotors on my 2006 passat on the rear. I have cleaned everyhting and use the caliper slide lube, the disc break quiet stuff for the pads. The breaks squeek when they are warm and they only squeek then and if you are just idling through a parking lot. i have taken them back apart and cleaned and regreased. and checked everyhting. the pads are a different brand than what i normally buy. they are a more expensive brand semi metalic o.e. pad. the pads came with all new clips and retainers. But this is staring to drive me up the wall!! does anyone have any suggestions on what they prefer. metalic pads vs. semi metalic pads? i am gonna yank these off the car and throw them away and buying a different brand. A brand i have bought before!
I use ceramic pads: Wearever Gold from Advance Auto Parts. I’ve used them for years and always had good experiences. BTW, I don’t lube the back of the pads on my Honda Accord. I don’t know whether it is required on your Vdub.
Might be worth it to just go to VW and buy OEM pads there. Might cost more, but who needs the aggravation? Folks w/Hondas are wise to buy their pads at Honda in my opinion. Toyotas seem to be a little more forgiving. VW’s? I owned a Rabbit one time and used non-OEM pads without a problem provided I deglazed the rotors first.
Worth a shot anyway, you could try this: Get some 160 grit Al oxide sandpaper, and lightly sand the surface of the rotors, trying to get the sanding lines mostly running in the radial direction. Sometimes this will help new pads to seat and stop squeaking.
Doesn’t work in every situation. Usually the problem is incompatibility between the materials in the new pads and the discs, or that the new (non OEM) pads don’t quite fit the calipers like they should. But sometimes roughing up the surfaceof the disc works, so it is worth a try. The other alternative is just to wait, sometimes the squealing will eventually stop on its own. Or you’ll get used to it.
I was watchng an old Hitchcock movie the other day, made in the late 1950’s, and the cars in the movie would squeal like a banshee when they stopped. Esp right as they came to a stop. It seems like it used to be even in the late 60’s that car brakes squealed every time you’d stop, but since you had no alternative, you ignored it and didn’t even notice. Maybe it’s a Zen thing.
FWIW, I have never had brake noise right out of the box when installing factory pads and rotors at the same time.
Sure, it’s the most expensive way to go. But it’s the only way to be sure.
I usually use NAPA pads, but the last time the front pads on my Odyssey needed done I ran a mile up the road to Advance Auto Parts and got Wearever Gold Ceramic pads. They were only about $44 and seem to work perfectly.
do you use the parking brake ? this car has its parking brake on the rear calpers ,just maybe pads are not seated up adjenst the piston on the calp. try setting the parking brake a couple of times and see if that helps.
Did you thoroughly clean the new rotors before installation? New rotors may have a rust preventative substance on them that may or may not be visible. Once in use, the rust preventer may contaminate the pad material and cause problems.
You could try removing the wheels and cleaning the rotors with either Brake Kleen or an aerosol carburetor cleaner such as Berryman B-12. See if that helps any.
Last and not least, are you dead certain the squeak is the brakes? Just wondering about a squeaking control arm bushing, sway bar bushing or wheel bearing.