Brake Problem That East Charlotte Nissan Can't Seem To Fix!!!
 

hey guys I bought an 05 z with 15k miles on it in september. Shortly after I got it I noticed that when I am coming to a stop (< 20mph) and have the brakes only slightly applied I get a squeal coming from my my brakes. It doesn't happen when I'm going fast or when i have a relatively good amount of pressure applied to the brakes. I took it to the dealership last weekend and they replaced the pads and resurfaced the rotors and it was still squealing then I took it again today and they wrote on the ticket "replaced brake hardware" which they said was like $120 worth of work but they did it for free. But its still doing it, although after today it SEEMS like it might be slightly better. What do you guys think the problem could be?

i'd ask what the hell the brake hardware consists of....it is most definately the pads. Alot of higher performance pads squeal. I know mine sure do! but i have axxis ultimates and i knew they would be noisy

but they replaced the pads the first time

What type of pads you running?

I hate to say this but i don'tknow. The front one's that they replaced were like a silver color with a little bit of blue and copper on them if that helps at all.

Neither of the Nissan dealerships in Charlotte are very good :p.

East Charlotte ripped me off a few thousand bucks (my dad is in the process of suing them, actually) and Superior's service isn't too great. Go to Superior.

how did they rip you off?

A proper bed in sequence should help to reduce or eliminate the pad noise altogether:

http://www.stoptech.com/tech_info/wp_bedinstock.shtml

Wow I don't know where I could do that without getting pulled by the fuzz man. What makes you think its the pads? nopt doubting you just curious.

Pads are often the cause of many issues that people run into. If a brake system is not bed-in properly, the interface between the rotor and the pad isn't smooth. With the bed-in, pad material is spread on the rotor in an even fashion. Then it's pad material vs pad material on the rotor. This creates a smooth interface, and usually quiet as well.

Why hasn't the dealership advised or done this?

Because they aren't brake experts! My guess is that most of the people you're dealing with are just spouting back some very basic info they have in a manual under their desk (or what the techs told them). Most OEM's have certain procedures documented to troubleshoot a specific problem. If the solution isn't in that set of procedures, it essentially doesn't exist unless they have past experience that says otherwise. Asking a dealership to "go outside the box" is usually an exercise in futility. While there are some excellent exceptions (Performance Nissan comes to mind), that's why aftermarket tuners exist...specialized, performance-oriented service.
Keep in mind that a dealership spends far more time doing basic service on Sentras and Muranos, not performance tuning on Z's. Also, their customers typically know little to nothing about cars, which means their level of technical knowledge does not have to be tremendously high. The techs are usually competent, but the guy you're talking to behind the counter is passing on what he's been told. It's like the game telephone...you're probably losing something in translation!

Bingo!

ok but why isn't it in the manual if this is a common problem? not that i don't believe you just curious

Try Modern Nissan just north of LMS. I always got good service there. :P

East Charlotte is the biggest bunch of *******s and idiots I have ever run into.

Maybe they are forgetting anti-squeal on the backing plates???

mine are starting to squeal with light pressure as well. I have roughly 25k miles. I plan on replacing the pads soon...probably with some ceramics.

they replaced my pads and it still squeals not as much though

Another excuse to upgrade the rotors and brake lines. :D

Actually that made the problem worse than it ever was. Great advice.