Nissan Repair: brakes, cement floor, brakes and rotors

Question
Wow, thanks for the very quick reply.  I am somewhat relieve. However, what is happening here?
Why am I getting a noise which sounds like when I take the trash down to to the curb by pulling it down the driveay?  Is it dirt, broken part, worn part or what?

By the way, Nissan is a great company. They replaced my ignition coils when the car was out of warrenty.  Because of that I plan on getting a nissan for my daughter.


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Followup To

Question -
Background:
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1999 Maxima
New Brakes and Rotors about two years ago
New tires 2 months ago
of Note -- i heard some squeaking and took it back; the tech pulled the driver rear brake and examined it for wear; he said it was fine

Problem
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Last night I heard a swishing sound when applying the brakes.  Like dragging a trash can across the cement floor.  It doesnt happen all of the time when i brake.  However, when it does happen, the sound continues when i start to go again.

Question
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What's happening here?
Is it covered by  a Nissan secret warrenty?
if Not, should i take it to Nissan or can a lower cost facilitiy do the job just as well?
Can I do something myself?

Help!
Thank you,
Rick


Answer -
Rick,

No, there is no secret warranty on this since the age.  If the car was still under the 3 year 36K warranty you could get them to address the problem.  The good news, if the pads are fine, is that to eliminate the noise you just need to go to Nissan and purchase a shim kit and install it or have someone else install it.  The kit comes with new slides for the pads and shims to get rid of the noise.  If the pads are worn too much replace them at the same time.  I have great luck with the factory pads and you can get them for about $64 bucks, on-line from courtesynissan.com where the dealer charges much more.  Email me back if you have any more questions on the brakes.  Oh, also have the brakes bled with Ford High Performance Brake Fluid.  You can get it from any Ford dealer for $5 bucks a pint and it will take two to do your system.  It has twice the boiling point of normal Dot 3 fluid.  And, since it is Dot 3 fluid it works well with your car.  Never use synthetic brake fluid as it will mess up your ABS.  You can do all this yourself if you have a set of metric tools, a good jack and stands along with something to block the wheels.

Answer
Rick,

The only way to know is to jack it up and look at it.  There are several causes for the noise you are describing.  The first is that the tire change could have resulted in the dust shield getting bent over and it is dragging on the rotor.  No bug deal as it just needs to be bent back.  Another cause is a rock getting between the dust shielf and the rotor.  Remove the small rock and the noise goes away.  other causes are the brakes are really worn out and need to be replaced or the slides are stuck and the pads are dragging on the rotor.  Lastly, since the new pads are asbestos free they build up dust that can cause the noise and that is easy to get some simple green and spray the rotors down and then hose them off.  These are the options of what is causing the noise.