susan@ccivax.UUCP (Susan Micciche) (10/17/85)
Hello Everyone!
Any Scirocco owners out there? I drive an 85 and like the
car. There are, however, a couple of, shall we say, features, that
have me confused.
The breaks squeak. I've had the dealer check them out and he
says that they're ok. I haven't noticed a problem stopping, just
squeaking. I've also noticed that the front wheels get a lot
dirtier than the rear wheels. The dealer says this is "break dust".
Please help. Am I being paranoid, or is something fishy?
Susan Micciche
{rochester|rlgvax}!ccivax!susangvcormack@watmum.UUCP (Gordon V. Cormack) (10/20/85)
> Hello Everyone! > > Any Scirocco owners out there? I drive an 85 and like the > car. There are, however, a couple of, shall we say, features, that > have me confused. > The breaks squeak. I've had the dealer check them out and he > says that they're ok. I haven't noticed a problem stopping, just > squeaking. I've also noticed that the front wheels get a lot > dirtier than the rear wheels. The dealer says this is "break dust". > Please help. Am I being paranoid, or is something fishy? > > Susan Micciche > {rochester|rlgvax}!ccivax!susan I would have those breaks welded right away. Look what happened when Japan Air Lines ignored a few breaks in the rear pressure wall of a 747. The squeaking is probably caused by the components adjacent to the break rubbing together.
bcbell@inmet.UUCP (10/20/85)
** Brake line ** I don't have a VW but know a lot of people who do. Lots of them have squeaky brakes. Softer pads (sometimes) help. Brake dust is also normal for these cars. If you get tired of cleaning the wheels, you can buy a pair of aftermarket brake dust shields for about $40 which will keep the dust from blowing out through the holes in the wheels. R.M. Mottola Cyborg Corp. Newton, MA.
jimn@cornell.UUCP (Jim Nesheim) (10/21/85)
In article <314@ccivax.UUCP> susan@ccivax.UUCP (Susan Micciche) writes: > > Any Scirocco owners out there? I drive an 85 and like the > ... > ... > The breaks squeak. I've had the dealer check them out and he >says that they're ok. I haven't noticed a problem stopping, just >squeaking. I've also noticed that the front wheels get a lot >dirtier than the rear wheels. The dealer says this is "break dust". > Please help. Am I being paranoid, or is something fishy? > >Susan Micciche >{rochester|rlgvax}!ccivax!susan I don't think that there's anything fishy going on. I own an '85 GTI, and my car displays the same symptoms. As for the brakes, I've been told that they squeek because of the material the pads are made of ; some material that lasts longer at the expense of some noise. Dirty front wheels, well, I always thought it had something to do with front wheel drive. I've noticed it on almost all new front wheel drive VW's. I don't think that there is anything to worry about. Jim Nesheim jimn%amvax@cornell.arpa <or> jimn@amvax.tn.cornell.edu {ihnp4,cmcl2,decvax,vax135}!cornell!amvax!jimn
fritz@phri.UUCP (Dave Fritzinger) (10/24/85)
> Dirty front wheels, well, I always thought it had something to > do with front wheel drive. I've noticed it on almost all new front > wheel drive VW's. I don't think that there is anything to worry > about. > > Jim Nesheim > jimn%amvax@cornell.arpa <or> jimn@amvax.tn.cornell.edu > {ihnp4,cmcl2,decvax,vax135}!cornell!amvax!jimn The dirty front wheels are from dust from the disc brake pads. Nothing to worry about, just a result of front disc brakes that are mounted in the wheels. If you really want to prevent your wheels from getting dirty, you can buy shields that fit inside the wheel and prevent the dust from getting out. However, the cheapest solution is just to clean your front wheels more often. -- Dave Fritzinger, Public Health Research Institute, NY,NY {allegra!phri!fritz} "I think. I think I am. Therefore, I am,...I think." Moody Blues
schley@mmm.UUCP (Steve Schley) (10/28/85)
In article <314@ccivax.UUCP> susan@ccivax.UUCP (Susan Micciche) writes: > Any Scirocco owners out there? I drive an 85 and like the >car. There are, however, a couple of, shall we say, features, that >have me confused. > The breaks squeak. I've had the dealer check them out and he >says that they're ok. I haven't noticed a problem stopping, just >squeaking. I've also noticed that the front wheels get a lot >dirtier than the rear wheels. The dealer says this is "break dust". > Please help. Am I being paranoid, or is something fishy? I don't own a Scirocco, but I've owned two Rabbits and now an '85 Jetta GLI, and I have had some experience with their brakes (not "breaks"). First, disk brakes have a tendency to squeak. I've been told that this is normal, at least to some extent. I fixed a squeaking problem on a Rabbit by throwing out the "no-name" replacement pads I had gotten cheap and putting in VW replacement pads. On my new Jetta, I have some squeaking, but I don't know whether it's bad enough to bother with. There are plastic shims placed between the pads and the pistons that are supposed to reduce squeaking. Check to see that these are in place. There are products sold to combat disk brake squeaking. The stuff I have is a blue liquid, much like rubber cement. They say to paint it on the backs of the pads, then reinstall the pads. It helped a little on my Rabbit, so you might want to try it. A well-stocked auto parts store should carry this product. Finally, on dust. Your car has disks on the front wheels, and drum brakes on the rear. Both generate the black dust you saw, but drums don't put it on the wheels. Disk brakes do. (If I'm wrong, and you do have disks on the rear, as I do, you still will get most of your dust on the front, as that's where most of the braking is done.) There are two solutions. First, you can wash your wheels often, like once a week. If you don't, the corrosive dust will permanently etch your wheels, and they won't look so nice. Second, there are pie-tin shaped guards that can be mounted between the wheels and the brakes. I've not tried them; maybe someone out there who has can testify to their performance? Summing up, minor squeaking and dust generation are normal side effects of disk brakes. -- Steve Schley ihnp4!mmm!schley