Grinding Sounds From Rear

brandonkraemer

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Dec 28, 2013
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2003 TDI 1.9L 5spd ALH VE mkIV Jetta Wagon
So I am thinking this is a frozen caliper or e-break line issue.

Car has sat for a long time, I've been traveling quite a lot the past few years, I put a couple 100 miles on it in between long road trips.

Then Co-Vid... so it sat even more. Recently started driving it on short trips, max MPH 55...

I was getting the initial squeaking sound from blowing off the rotor rust but now I get a pretty nasty grinding sound from what sounds like the right-rear wheel when turning right or breaking and it's especially bad when breaking downhill.

I'm not sure what to look for physically on the car to know if my hunch is correct. Thoughts?

Thanks.
 

csstevej

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2001 golf tdi 4 door auto now a manual, mine, 2000 golf 2 door M/T son's,daughters 98 NB non-TDI 2.0, 2003 TDI NB for next daughter, head repaired and on road,gluten for punishment got another tdi 2001NB,another yellow tdi NB
Pop the wheel off and see if there is any pad left.
If not you could have a
frozen caliper
Frozen/corroded sliding pins
Stuck e brake cable.
Gotta take apart to see what you got.
 

h.ubk

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1997 Jetta TDI with 1Z Engine
You could also just jack the rear end up and try spinning each wheel around to see if there is normal play. If you have a sticking caliper, you should have excessive heat and should be able to feel it by burning your hand on one side while the other side just feels a little warm.

h.ubk
 

brandonkraemer

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2003 TDI 1.9L 5spd ALH VE mkIV Jetta Wagon
Not driving a lot lately so I just go around to this issue again.
It took a lot of PD Blaster and a couple hours but I got the tire off and this is what I see.
I'm not expert at this but this looks like the breaks are stuck in engaged mode so... frozen caliper?

Lots of rust too... suggestions on if this is DIY fixable... how bad is this, etc.. are welcome!

 

csstevej

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2001 golf tdi 4 door auto now a manual, mine, 2000 golf 2 door M/T son's,daughters 98 NB non-TDI 2.0, 2003 TDI NB for next daughter, head repaired and on road,gluten for punishment got another tdi 2001NB,another yellow tdi NB
Did the tire turn before you removed it?
If it turns fairly freely it’s not your caliper.
The pads normally just touch the disc.
What does the inside pad look like? You can view it from the back of the caliper through the square is hole that’s there. You can see both pads, they should be somewhat even.
The rust around is normal.....especially where you live.
You could also have a bad wheel bearing..
 
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brandonkraemer

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2003 TDI 1.9L 5spd ALH VE mkIV Jetta Wagon
The back right wheel, the one I posted photos of and took the tire off of yesterday, it turns reasonably freely with the car jacked up and the e-break off. There is a rubbing sound when I turn the tire and there is some friction. The back left wheel, the side I didn't think the sound was coming from... turns even less freely, much more friction, but I haven't taken this tire off or used any PD Blaster on the hub, etc... I engaged and disengaged the e break and tested both wheels, the e break seems to be functioning normally.

I haven't taken the tires back off to inspect the pads but it seems like the friction I am feeling is not normal?
 
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csstevej

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Light friction is fine, if you go to, spin the wheel and if it takes two hands to turn it you have an issue as I stated before with one of those parts.
If you can get a couple of revolutions from doing that your fine.
Chances are the left caliper is frozen or the sliders are frozen.
Either one isn’t difficult to fix.
 

Powder Hound

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If it seems to be just the sound, it could also be that the dust shield is bent and scraping the rotor. They make a terrible sound, but it isn't really damaging anything.

Good luck sorting this out.

Cheers!

PH
 

USMCFieldMP

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2014 Jetta TDI
If your caliper/ebrake was stuck, it would generate a lot of heat and the rotor and associated rust will typically turn more of a bright red color, instead of the typical brownish rust color. I had the ebrake cable literally freeze in the winter on my MK2; this was the result of taking it for a 1/4 mile spin around the block.

Front brakes, unaffected, typical brownish dirty rust color



Rear brakes, reddish, "we got reeeeaaally hot" rust color.




I don't think that's your problem. You would know if your ebrake was sticking. I'm betting you need to check your wheel bearings, but also you most definitely need to lubricate your slider pins - a bit of maintenance that 95% of people don't do. You can get a whole new set from NAPA pretty cheaply. I just ordered some for the MK4 calipers that are going on my MK2. I replaced the boots, as well. You don't have to, but they were damaged on one of the calipers I grabbed from the junk yard.

 

brandonkraemer

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Very interesting about rust color and useful info about the replacement parts.

Is PD Blaster the right thing to use to lubricate break parts?

So a couple things to note...

The grinding sound gets a lot louder with the breaks applied at lower speeds.

The wheels turn but I am using two hands to do it, and there is some friction there.

My rear left caliper was replaced in 2014 and the car has only had 25k driven on it since then.

I have pretty much ruled out the ebreak being the issue.

EDIT:

So I think you're right it is leaning towards a wheel bearing or a multitude of issues.

Is there a best order for getting into this... like calipers before bearings or vice versa?

bk
 
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Tdijarhead

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Did you check the caliper slide bolts? Those things freeze all the time especially the lower one. Remove clean and lube.



The pads will always be in contact with the rotor, just very light contact.


My daughter just had an issue with her beetle rear brakes. One side was a bad caliper (replaced) and the other side was a stuck pad. Brake manfacturers often make the metal part of the pad to wide to slide freely. I check the fitment of every brake pad I install and use my bench grinder as required.
 

USMCFieldMP

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2014 Jetta TDI
Is PD Blaster the right thing to use to lubricate break parts?
Absolutely not. PB Blaster and WD-40 aren't really meant for lubricating parts in any sort of meaningful long term way.

Permatex makes a variety of brake parts lubricants that you can get at Auto Zone/Advance/NAPA/Amazon.

https://www.amazon.com/Permatex-09977-Countermans-Choice-Caliper/dp/B000HBNUPE/

One of the ways to check for a bad wheel bearings is easy; especially in the rear. Lift the wheel off the ground while it's still properly torqued to the hub. Grab the tire and try to shake the wheel assembly. If it has play to it, it's bad. If it doesn't have play to it, I'd try to rule out the caliper before coming back to it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-vRR2eMm9zA
 
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brandonkraemer

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2003 TDI 1.9L 5spd ALH VE mkIV Jetta Wagon
This ended up being a frozen caliper on the rear drivers side. Same position that I replaced 4 years ago. New pads on all 4 corners and new caliper fixed things up.
 

JB05

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Thankyou for the update. I too had to replace both rear calipers that had frozen up. New TRW calipers from idparts and things are fine. MPG's increased as a result.
 

Metal Man

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The first thing to check with a rear brake issue is the lever on the caliper for the E brake. With the brake released the lever should return up, if it doesn't you then need to determine if the cable is holding it down (seized) or if the caliper itself is sticking.
 
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