QuestionQUESTION: Hi Ted
I just installed front rotors and front ceramic pads on 2003 Camry LE 4cyl. 130,000 miles; bought parts from O’Reillys. Rotors were warped; I had strong vibration in steering wheel when applied brakes plus a rubbing sound and a light squeal. Vibration and rubbing sound are gone; breaking is much smoother but light squeal still there; happens when I apply brakes at stop sign or a slow left/right turn; squeals about 90% of the time but not every time. I did clean rotors with brake cleaner and had no problems with install. I have changed rotors and pads on cars before. I noticed the metal pieces on the caliper bracket that the tabs on the brakepads slip into. Couple of the bottom metal pieces were lose but did not appear damaged and they looked like they were properly in place on the caliper brackets. I took extra care to make sure they were lined up correctly on the brackets but maybe I moved them when I put caliper back on; I’m thinking the metal pieces are rubbing against the rotors. Do these need to be changed? Any other ideas? Thanks so much, Don
ANSWER: I would recommend replacing those anti rattle springs, if installed correctly they can't make contact with the rotors, a lot of times brake squeeks are caused by either the wrong bad shims are aftermarket shims installed on the pads, Iwould suggest using a front brake hardware kit from the dealer, use brake lube, like 3M brand brake lube, do not use the sticky stuff that comes with some brake pads, apply brake lube directly to the back of the pad, install one shim then lube it and install the second shim, do not apply lube between the piston and the pad, I've used this method for years and never had any brake squeek complaints
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QUESTION: Thanks so much, ted; will do all that. One other item. The power steering line on my camry is leaking; it’s the front line(closest to the grill); there is a hose, about 8 inches long, that connects the fluid reservoir to a metal line. The hose looks saturated with fluid. The inside wheel well BELOW the reservoir is covered with fluid “overspray.” The side of the engine block is clean, the belts are clean, so it does not appear to be coming from some other part or area in the engine. And the outside of the reservoir itself is clean. In other words, the "saturation area" is confined to the hose, the metal line and the lower wheel well. I’m not having to add any fluid to the reservoir but again, it’s bad enough that entire lower wheel well is covered. I understand from the parts dept at toyota that I cannot buy just the hose; I have to purchase the entire line. $97, which is OK, if this will fix the problem. I can’t see a cut or leak in the hose and the clamps on the hose are tight. It does not appear to be leaking where the hose connects to the reservoir. Have you seen this problem before and what is the level of difficulty to replace the entire line? Thanks, Ted.
AnswerI think that you may have a front seal on the power sttering pump leaking, which can staurate the hose, if in doubt replace the hose, use a piece of hose which is made for power steering applications, this is a low pressure return hose, take the old hose off and go to any autoparts store, they can cut a new piece of hose for you, clean the entire area at a car wash using the high pressure sprayer and see if the leak is stopped.
