Hot Front Left Rotor

I'm fairly certain it's not the bearing. I know what that sounds like
from the front right one going. I think my best bet is to schedule an
appointment with the mechanic and get the left front brake looked at.
I don't have the tools to do it myself.

On Apr 6, 12:47 am, "Ralph" <thanks.nos... DeleteThis @woodland.net> wrote:
> Although I am a happy Corolla owner and do all my own service, I don't know
> for sure what is wrong with your car.  The service conditions seem not
> abnormal.  I would defer to a more experienced group member's analysis of
> your car's condition, for example Ray O.
>
> It is remotely possible that you have a caliper binding - I am not able to
> tell from the information, especially as it is not pulling left on braking..
> There is a driveway test that you can perform to detect a dragging caliper,
> which is noted below.  You may have a bearing going - is there any noise
> associated with this wheel?
>
> Disc brake pistons are pressure-applied by many tons of force.  The pistons
> are 'sprung back' -- released -- by the recoil of the rubber piston ring.
> It has a square cross-section, and sits in a square groove in the wall of
> the cylinder.  When brakes are applied, the rubber is deflected forward as
> the piston is pressed along over it, much like a cardboard box deforming
> from a square to a parallelogram.  Although applying hydraulic force is
> great, the releasing force is slight.  There is no 'return spring' to re-set
> the piston.  There is a tiny boundary layer of air over the surface of the
> rotor which also serves to separare the rotor and pads once hydraulic
> pressure is released.
>
> When a caliper binds or seizes, the rubber piston ring reaction is not
> strong enough to move the piston back by recoil.  As a result the pad stays
> in contact with the rotor, although not under force of braking pressure.
> The friction causes heat, burning and an associated odor.  If friction
> heating is strong enough, the pad will come unglued from its metal backing
> plate.  Interestingly, if rotors are badly rusted like something out of the
> mud at the wreckers, they can cook your pads right off in a couple of miles.
> The little grey slab of friction material will be totally free.
>
> Checking for a dragging brake:  (Observe all safety procedures to raise the
> vehicle.  Loosen lug nuts with wheel on ground first.  Of course, you will
> want to block all 3 other wheels both directions before jacking up the car
> so  it can't swivel off the jack).
>
> Tip:  If you drive up onto a couple of pieces of 2 X 6 laid flat you may be
> able to fit a piston jack under the control arm, so that you won't have to
> hoist the vehicle very high.
>
> If a brake is dragging, the wheel will not spin freely when the car is
> jacked up.  Apply the brakes firmly, then release, then spin the wheel by
> hand.  Do you feel resistance, or does it spin freely?  (You may need to put
> the car in neutral to free the drive train).
>
> If you remove the wheel, lever the pads back away from the rotor, then
> (without touching the brakes) replace the wheel and it spins freely, the
> conclusion would be that the brake is dragging.  Be careful not to harm the
> pads or rotor when levering the pads away from the rotor.
>
> To confirm, you would again apply the brakes firmly, maybe pumping a couple
> of times to ensure that the piston is fully extended.  Then release the
> service brake pedal and check the resistance to spin.  There will be
> resistance if the brake is dragging.  If in doubt about the amount of
> resistance, compare with the other side wheel.
>
> Good luck,
>
> Jack
>
>
>
> 1998 Toyota Corolla, 100,000 miles, Oil Changed Recently, Muffer
> Hanger Recently Changed, Brakes Changed (pads & rotors) in December.
>
> The vehicle does not pull left. I'm not sure if smells like burning
> brake friction material. Also, the vehicle is parked during the week
> and driven on the weekends typically.
 >> Stay informed about: Hot Front Left Rotor 

Please tell us the basic details of your vehicle: year, make, model,
odometer reading, recent service conditions, and, repair history.

A hot brake may be a dragging brake, which is a concern. Does the vehicle
pull to the left on a sharp stop? Is the smell you report one of burning
brake friction material? You may have smelled this in the past when a heavy
truck stoped suddenly near you.

Did you replace rotors, pads or calipers recently? Was the vehicle parked
for an extended period?

Good luck,

Jack


"C Yohman" <chance.yohman.RemoveThis@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:b45b6b0f-ad16-4b66-a4b0-9bca967ab26c@d45g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...
> My front left rotor was hot after driving 2.5 miles today. I have
> noticed since Thurday it gets noticeably hot compared to the right
> front rotor. The car also seemed to shake a little Thursday, but it
> might have been the roads. The winter has been harsh here in Maine.
> What I have noticed, moreso Thursday, is a smell emanating from the
> front left rotor. Is this normal? Should I be concerned?
 >> Stay informed about: Hot Front Left Rotor 

Sounds like a stuck caliper. Is it pulling that way..?
 >> Stay informed about: Hot Front Left Rotor 

Can I drive around in the car? Should I schedule an appointment right
away?

On Apr 5, 8:43 pm, pisanoc....TakeThisOut@webtv.net (Charles Pisano) wrote:
> Sounds like a stuck caliper.  Is it pulling that way..?
 >> Stay informed about: Hot Front Left Rotor 

On Apr 5, 8:43 pm, pisanoc....RemoveThis@webtv.net (Charles Pisano) wrote:
> Sounds like a stuck caliper.  Is it pulling that way..?

It does not seem to pull in that direction.
 >> Stay informed about: Hot Front Left Rotor 

Although I am a happy Corolla owner and do all my own service, I don't know
for sure what is wrong with your car. The service conditions seem not
abnormal. I would defer to a more experienced group member's analysis of
your car's condition, for example Ray O.

It is remotely possible that you have a caliper binding - I am not able to
tell from the information, especially as it is not pulling left on braking.
There is a driveway test that you can perform to detect a dragging caliper,
which is noted below. You may have a bearing going - is there any noise
associated with this wheel?

Disc brake pistons are pressure-applied by many tons of force. The pistons
are 'sprung back' -- released -- by the recoil of the rubber piston ring.
It has a square cross-section, and sits in a square groove in the wall of
the cylinder. When brakes are applied, the rubber is deflected forward as
the piston is pressed along over it, much like a cardboard box deforming
from a square to a parallelogram. Although applying hydraulic force is
great, the releasing force is slight. There is no 'return spring' to re-set
the piston. There is a tiny boundary layer of air over the surface of the
rotor which also serves to separare the rotor and pads once hydraulic
pressure is released.

When a caliper binds or seizes, the rubber piston ring reaction is not
strong enough to move the piston back by recoil. As a result the pad stays
in contact with the rotor, although not under force of braking pressure.
The friction causes heat, burning and an associated odor. If friction
heating is strong enough, the pad will come unglued from its metal backing
plate. Interestingly, if rotors are badly rusted like something out of the
mud at the wreckers, they can cook your pads right off in a couple of miles.
The little grey slab of friction material will be totally free.

Checking for a dragging brake: (Observe all safety procedures to raise the
vehicle. Loosen lug nuts with wheel on ground first. Of course, you will
want to block all 3 other wheels both directions before jacking up the car
so it can't swivel off the jack).

Tip: If you drive up onto a couple of pieces of 2 X 6 laid flat you may be
able to fit a piston jack under the control arm, so that you won't have to
hoist the vehicle very high.

If a brake is dragging, the wheel will not spin freely when the car is
jacked up. Apply the brakes firmly, then release, then spin the wheel by
hand. Do you feel resistance, or does it spin freely? (You may need to put
the car in neutral to free the drive train).

If you remove the wheel, lever the pads back away from the rotor, then
(without touching the brakes) replace the wheel and it spins freely, the
conclusion would be that the brake is dragging. Be careful not to harm the
pads or rotor when levering the pads away from the rotor.

To confirm, you would again apply the brakes firmly, maybe pumping a couple
of times to ensure that the piston is fully extended. Then release the
service brake pedal and check the resistance to spin. There will be
resistance if the brake is dragging. If in doubt about the amount of
resistance, compare with the other side wheel.

Good luck,

Jack



>>>>>>>>>>
1998 Toyota Corolla, 100,000 miles, Oil Changed Recently, Muffer
Hanger Recently Changed, Brakes Changed (pads & rotors) in December.

The vehicle does not pull left. I'm not sure if smells like burning
brake friction material. Also, the vehicle is parked during the week
and driven on the weekends typically.
 >> Stay informed about: Hot Front Left Rotor 

"C Yohman" <chance.yohman RemoveThis @gmail.com> wrote in message
news:b45b6b0f-ad16-4b66-a4b0-9bca967ab26c@d45g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...
> My front left rotor was hot after driving 2.5 miles today. I have
> noticed since Thurday it gets noticeably hot compared to the right
> front rotor. The car also seemed to shake a little Thursday, but it
> might have been the roads. The winter has been harsh here in Maine.
> What I have noticed, moreso Thursday, is a smell emanating from the
> front left rotor. Is this normal? Should I be concerned?

I read some of the other posts and your responses. Since you don't have a
noticeable pull, I doubt if the caliper is binding - that is, the piston is
probably not stuck.

The most likely cause of one side rotor being hotter than the other side is
that the caliper slide is binding, which a good cleaning and re-lubing the
caliper slides may cure. Another possible cause is that the friction
material have worn down to metal and you have metal-to-metal contact.

In either case, I would have the brakes looked at by a competent shop.

Where in ME are you?
--

Ray O
(correct punctuation to reply)
 >> Stay informed about: Hot Front Left Rotor 

"C Yohman" ...
> My front left rotor was hot after driving 2.5 miles today. I have
> noticed since Thurday it gets noticeably hot compared to the right
> front rotor. The car also seemed to shake a little Thursday, but it
> might have been the roads. The winter has been harsh here in Maine.
> What I have noticed, moreso Thursday, is a smell emanating from the
> front left rotor. Is this normal? Should I be concerned?

From reading this whole thread I am betting that something is causing the
pad to drag on the rotor. This probably is due to the piston not releasing
fully. One possible cause of this that I have not seen yet would be the
flexible brake hose getting gummed up or clogged inside. This might allow
brake fluid to pass toward the brakes when the pedal is pressed pushing high
pressure toward the brakes, but not allow the brake fluid to move back and
allow the brakes to release fully.

Based upon what I see as your confidence level in tackling this on your own,
I would suggest that you take it to a nearby shop that you trust. You now
know what the possibilities are from the good opinions here, and can talk
with some confidence to the shop guy.

Good luck and definitely come back and tell us what happens.
Tomes
 >> Stay informed about: Hot Front Left Rotor 

On Sat, 05 Apr 2008 18:47:08 -0700, C Yohman wrote:

> Can I drive around in the car? Should I schedule an appointment right
> away?
>
> On Apr 5, 8:43 pm, pisanoc... DeleteThis @webtv.net (Charles Pisano) wrote:
>> Sounds like a stuck caliper.  Is it pulling that way..?


I'd have a look at it. I had a stuck caliper and figured it might loosen
up, so I drove the car. Seven miles from home I had quite the smoke show.
I would drive 3 miles and stop for 20 minutes.

It may not be too serious, and depending on your mechanical skills and the
fact tomorrow's Sunday, it may not be a crisis.

Jack the offending wheel and put the car on a stand. Remove the wheel and
then the caliper. You probably don't have to remove the caliper from the
wheel. Get some emory cloth and a Dremel if you have one.

You want to remove the caliper and then the boot from the sliding pin on
the caliper, probably the top. I bet you'll see a lot of rust in the bore.
With the emory cloth wrapped around a drill bit or a dowel, 'hone' the
bore out until it's nice and smooth. Grease with some Sil-Glide and
reinstall the boot. Give the sliding pin a good polishing with the emory
cloth and give it a greasing with Sil-Glide, and reassemble. I did this
with two calpiers on my Supra and one on a Grand Voyager and they're still
fine. (Well, the Supra. I broke some bolts in the engine of the Gr V'ger,
and it's long since returned to scrap metal, hasn't it?!)

Unless the repair shop is square, "I'm afraid you're going to need a new
caliper. It's $92.50." (They're about $50 rebuilt...)


http://www.akebonobrakes.com/oem/brake_products/images/3d_exploded_caliper.gif

http://www.mr2turbo.info/pics/rearcaliper.html

This is an MR2 Rear Caliper, but the fronts are similar. Just about dead
center of the picture are the glide pins with the boots nearby.
 >> Stay informed about: Hot Front Left Rotor 

"C Yohman" <chance.yohman.RemoveThis@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:b45b6b0f-ad16-4b66-a4b0-9bca967ab26c@d45g2000hsc.googlegroups.com...
> My front left rotor was hot after driving 2.5 miles today. I have
> noticed since Thurday it gets noticeably hot compared to the right
> front rotor. The car also seemed to shake a little Thursday, but it
> might have been the roads. The winter has been harsh here in Maine.
> What I have noticed, moreso Thursday, is a smell emanating from the
> front left rotor. Is this normal? Should I be concerned?

FWIW it could be the hose too in addition to the stuck caliper theory. I
had this happen personally on the left front wheel of a '92 Dodge Dynasty.
The metal bracket that attached the middle of the hose to the back of the
strut rusted on the inside and since steel expands as it rusts it
constricted the hose. The pressure of applying the brakes was enough to
force fluid past the constricted section but once in the caliper the fluid
pressure couldn't get back out and as a result the brake stayed applied. In
my case the combination of the constriction reducing the pressure to that
side and the brake getting so hot that it started to fade the car actually
pulled to the right when braking. Mine was so bad that the whole rim was
too hot to touch after driving just a few city blocks. I had to replace
both hoses, both sets of pads, both rotors, and the caliper on the affected
side. I did both rotors as the one on the affected side got so hot that it
cracked in 2 places and I felt that the other might as well be replaced too
since I got new pads. The caliper I replaced because the heat cooked it and
the phenolic piston was starting to crumble.

IOW I wouldn't drive it much till it is fixed as if your rotor cracks it can
break apart and either have pieces jam in there and lock up the wheel or rip
the pads out and result in no braking from that side. Either situation
would be extremely dangerous and could cause you to lose control and crash.
 >> Stay informed about: Hot Front Left Rotor 

Brunswick, Maine

On Apr 6, 1:45 am, "Tomes" <ask....RemoveThis@here.net> wrote:
> "C Yohman" ...
>
> > My front left rotor was hot after driving 2.5 miles today. I have
> > noticed since Thurday it gets noticeably hot compared to the right
> > front rotor. The car also seemed to shake a little Thursday, but it
> > might have been the roads. The winter has been harsh here in Maine.
> > What I have noticed, moreso Thursday, is a smell emanating from the
> > front left rotor. Is this normal? Should I be concerned?
>
> From reading this whole thread I am betting that something is causing the
> pad to drag on the rotor.  This probably is due to the piston not releasing
> fully.  One possible cause of this that I have not seen yet would be the
> flexible brake hose getting gummed up or clogged inside.  This might allow
> brake fluid to pass toward the brakes when the pedal is pressed pushing high
> pressure toward the brakes, but not allow the brake fluid to move back and
> allow the brakes to release fully.
>
> Based upon what I see as your confidence level in tackling this on your own,
> I would suggest that you take it to a nearby shop that you trust.  You now
> know what the possibilities are from the good opinions here, and can talk
> with some confidence to the shop guy.
>
> Good luck and definitely come back and tell us what happens.
> Tomes
 >> Stay informed about: Hot Front Left Rotor 

Brunswick, Maine

On Apr 6, 1:45 am, "Tomes" <ask....TakeThisOut@here.net> wrote:
> "C Yohman" ...
>
> > My front left rotor was hot after driving 2.5 miles today. I have
> > noticed since Thurday it gets noticeably hot compared to the right
> > front rotor. The car also seemed to shake a little Thursday, but it
> > might have been the roads. The winter has been harsh here in Maine.
> > What I have noticed, moreso Thursday, is a smell emanating from the
> > front left rotor. Is this normal? Should I be concerned?
>
> From reading this whole thread I am betting that something is causing the
> pad to drag on the rotor.  This probably is due to the piston not releasing
> fully.  One possible cause of this that I have not seen yet would be the
> flexible brake hose getting gummed up or clogged inside.  This might allow
> brake fluid to pass toward the brakes when the pedal is pressed pushing high
> pressure toward the brakes, but not allow the brake fluid to move back and
> allow the brakes to release fully.
>
> Based upon what I see as your confidence level in tackling this on your own,
> I would suggest that you take it to a nearby shop that you trust.  You now
> know what the possibilities are from the good opinions here, and can talk
> with some confidence to the shop guy.
>
> Good luck and definitely come back and tell us what happens.
> Tomes
 >> Stay informed about: Hot Front Left Rotor 

Brunswick, Maine

On Apr 6, 1:45 am, "Tomes" <ask....DeleteThis@here.net> wrote:
> "C Yohman" ...
>
> > My front left rotor was hot after driving 2.5 miles today. I have
> > noticed since Thurday it gets noticeably hot compared to the right
> > front rotor. The car also seemed to shake a little Thursday, but it
> > might have been the roads. The winter has been harsh here in Maine.
> > What I have noticed, moreso Thursday, is a smell emanating from the
> > front left rotor. Is this normal? Should I be concerned?
>
> From reading this whole thread I am betting that something is causing the
> pad to drag on the rotor.  This probably is due to the piston not releasing
> fully.  One possible cause of this that I have not seen yet would be the
> flexible brake hose getting gummed up or clogged inside.  This might allow
> brake fluid to pass toward the brakes when the pedal is pressed pushing high
> pressure toward the brakes, but not allow the brake fluid to move back and
> allow the brakes to release fully.
>
> Based upon what I see as your confidence level in tackling this on your own,
> I would suggest that you take it to a nearby shop that you trust.  You now
> know what the possibilities are from the good opinions here, and can talk
> with some confidence to the shop guy.
>
> Good luck and definitely come back and tell us what happens.
> Tomes
 >> Stay informed about: Hot Front Left Rotor