Sounds Like Brake Time

Archer999 · #1 04-28-2007, 01:59 PM

I have a ‘92 SVX w/235 k mile on it and it runs great. My car's front brakes have been squeaking for at least 3 yrs. procrastinating as always, I kept putting my brakes off for another day.

Lately the squeaking has subsided and now there is an alarming sound coming from the passenger side tire when I apply the brake. Ok so here goes at my best description of the noise, it makes a 'clunk... it kind of feels like the rotor slips forward about 4'' inches.

I will be putting the car in the shop this Monday. My question is, could I have damaged the caliper, or are the worn out pads and rotor for that side just slipping a little bit?

Oh yeah, just for a side note, I will be going with drilled rotors and ceramic pads for the new parts. Has anyone ever upgraded the brake lines to one of the many brake kits around..... I just want to know how hard of a job it is to replace the lines in case I decide to spend the extra $ for the lines.

JaySVX · #2 04-30-2007, 07:19 AM

You can get 4 stainless steel brake lines from svx motorsport for around $100, which is a pretty fair deal. As far as the sound, run your fingers along the rotors from inner to outer edge, and see if you feel any grooves. If so, your pads got so low they damaged the rotors, and you will need new ones. If not, you may just be hearing the warning sound that some pads have built in to indicate that it's time to change the pads. I just picked up 4 new rotors, and 8 new pads for 220$ + shipping, and they're working quite well. I plan to upgrade to the ceramic pads shortly, as the current pads leave a bit of dust on the rotors, causing it to squeel at times. They're 37$ for 4 from autozone online or in store.

Changing brake lines, i believe you'll have to drain the system. To do this i would open the bleader lines on 2 calipars and pump the brakes. When fluid stops draining, you can remove hte lines without a problem, and install the new ones. I'm hesitant to advise this though, as i ruptured the master cylander in my explorer after draining the brake fluid this way, but it has a "special" system that requires a special bleeding tool as well, so perhaps someone else can advise on this before going ahead with it.

dannmarr · #3 04-30-2007, 04:23 PM

I recommend staying with Subaru rubber brake lines. I replaced mine with SS and two have broken at the connectors. I also noticed that the insides are made of some type of plastic.

benebob · #4 04-30-2007, 06:39 PM

The insides of any line will be rubber or a sythetic rubber. SS only means it has SS mesh on the outside to help with the expansion/contraction. I too had problems with the SS lines with plastic connectors. Dayle says he now has ones with metal clips instead. IMO take the old ones to a hydro shop and have some made, locally they're about $120 for a set. The subaru ones are now 15ish years old rubber so they're gonna be kinda dried out even if you would go oem

ensteele · #5 04-30-2007, 08:19 PM

I like the SS Brake lines. They do have the metal clips on them though. The brakes are much more responsive.

dannmarr · #6 04-30-2007, 08:34 PM

Quote:

The insides of any line will be rubber or a sythetic rubber.

Not necessarily true. I bought mine from irotors and when the plastic ends that attach to the connectors broke, I saw the insides. They were NOT rubber. They were a plastic/PVC type of material. Maybe they make them better now, but I bought mine only a year ago.

benebob · #7 05-01-2007, 07:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dannmarr

Not necessarily true. I bought mine from irotors and when the plastic ends that attach to the connectors broke, I saw the insides. They were NOT rubber. They were a plastic/PVC type of material. Maybe they make them better now, but I bought mine only a year ago.

FYI plastic= sythetic rubber

dannmarr · #8 05-01-2007, 08:36 PM

I did a search on SS brake lines, and the insides are made of teflon. They are stronger than rubber. But the part that breaks more often, are the plastic boots that hold them to the connectors.

benebob · #9 05-02-2007, 05:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by dannmarr

I did a search on SS brake lines, and the insides are made of teflon. They are stronger than rubber. But the part that breaks more often, are the plastic boots that hold them to the connectors.

Some are some aren't. My local hydro shop will give ya a choice of 10 different inards depending on you're application. Teflon isn't good with some of the fluids either so you need to know what you're running and if it'll break down the material.

In reality true rubber is simply the best for inards but it costs too much which is why the rubber lines are only like 10% rubber.