brake issues

Gibson486

Member
When travaling at low speeds, it sounds like my brakes need to be replaced. It has this crumbling metal on metal sound when the brakes are applied. Is this normal? My brakes still have 75% life on them. Last time I heard this sound was when I had to replace my rotors on my previous car. I thought the dealer would check it during their inspection after they changed my oil, but I guess they never did.

Also, my brakes squeel sometimes. Usually after sitting for more than an hour. ANy of you have these problems?

My 3 is an 07 and has 16 K on it.
 
I have the same problem as we speak. Check your rotors if they are loose. Thats what my problem is. Find the torque poundage and torque it out to the right pound per torque. It could be that, or your bearings are going?
 
The rotors are held on by the wheel lug nuts. I think you mean to say check the wheel lug nut torque. Which should be about 90-95ft/lbs IIRC.
The brake squeal is something a lot of Mazda3 owners have complained about. Did they just start squealing recently? Is it coming from the front or rear? The rear pads will wear more quickly than the fronts because Mazda uses different compounds. So the fronts may appear to have plenty of life but the rears may need replacing.
 
It started happening at about 13k. The dealer says that my brakes are fine. It's kind of annoying b/c a car less than a year old should not have these problems.
 
I agree, a one year old car shouldn't. I thought there was a TSB for squealing brakes. Maybe you can look it up and ask them about it. It may only be for the 04-06's though.
 
mine started doing that around 10Kmiles. i guess its just like that, because my brakes were always given the green light, until recently(34Kmiles). It usually happens when the brake system is cold/just beginning the day
 
i get the squeak now too, started around 18k. i figure i'm just going to get some better brake pads when i renew them. what worries me is the sort of, speed wobble i get when slowing down from high speeds. it feels like there is a flat spot or something.
 
that doesnt seem right. is your brake pedal vibrating? if it is, then your discs might be warped. how hard are you breaking?
 
i don't think the pedal is vibrating, it's just the steering that gives a sort of shake when i start braking above 50, once it gets down around 50 it isn't very noticeable. i'll have to check it out again tomorrow.
 
i would venture to say you're right about the warped part. looks like i'll be needing to upgrade my rotors earlier than expected. i was looking at the brembo big brake kit (front) for the 2.3 mazda 3's, but i don't know if i want to be paying that much lol. anyone have any other quality brands of slotted/vented rotors they can name off the top of their head?
 
damn i would hate that noise on mine. havent heard it yet...
but my friend's speed3 was squeekin like that and they said that it was when he slowed down from fast speed the brakes heated up and caused it to make that noise. i whink they fixed it somehow though...
i ahve 65XX miles and still havent had any problems (knock on wood)
 
I wouldnt worry about doing a big brake upgrade on an NA car. In fact i wouldnt do a big brake upgrade on a car thats under 300 horses. Even then, i'd upgrade the pads and put in steel braided brakelines, maybe some better rotors.

Mazdathree2.3-if you did warp your rotors, see if it can be fixed by a lathe. if not, you know what to do(new rotors)
 
Mine too!

I have an '08 GT with about 8,400 miles on it. Tonight I just noticed that I am hearing a high pitch squeaking noise (think locomotive coming to a stop, metal on metal). Sometimes it is faint and and sometimes it's louder. Now, I have had the tires rotated twice and taken off to paint the calipers. I rechecked the wheels and torqued each lugnut. Any ideas? It only makes the noise when I turn to the left. Surely, my brakes cannot be going out at only 8K miles - that would be some kind of record for any car I have ever owned. What could it be?
 
I just checked the brakes and noticed that the front pads are worn or maybe mounted a little on a an angle, kind of like this \ / . Is that normal? Also there appears to be some kind of orangish almost chalk like corrosion at the ends of the front pads (end making contact with rotor first, I believe). Is that normal?
 
probably not. my understanding is that brakes are suppose to wear evenly. have them checked by the dealership at your next appt
 
Dealer inspected brakes and they were find. Possibly something lodge up between the rotor and caliper because there was a loud screech this morning when I backed up and then nothing since.
 
I don't have experience with your problems persay but the rear brakes on my car burn profusely on most days. If it's the right temperature outside then the front ones do too.
 
I have had the same problem with my 3 ever since I had the rear brakes done. You can pretty much bet that if it is cold or wet/raining outside, my brakes are squeeling. I think better aftermarket pads will fix the problem, I just haven't gotten around to doing them yet.
 
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