I took the car in to Discount Tire because I could feel a lot of road feedback through the steering wheel and I figured I needed my wheels balanced. Easy $30 job, or so I thought.

The first thing I noticed after I drove the car again is it pulled ever, ever so slightly to the right. It never did that before. Then I got off the freeway and I smelled brake pad lining. Uh oh. My first thought is stuck caliper. I'm very easy on the brakes but I've done my share of hard driving on previous cars and I'm aware of the distinct smell it produces.

It doesn't seem to be dragging hard but one of them must be dragging for that kind of heat to be generated. I still can't isolate it but I'm thinking its the front left based on smell. I'm not at all experienced with brake jobs so I'm trying to get a good idea before I hit up a dealer for diagnosis...then my trusted guy for the job. I'm trying to keep the cost low on this and fix this before I rip a groove into my rotor.

Ideas? And could this be related to the wheel balance job?

It's hard to not blame Discount Tire when this happened right after they worked on it. However, a sticking caliper could have been what was causing the odd steering feedback to begin with (not unbalanced wheels) and they may have just exasperated an already developing issue somehow.

 

Update:

It was Discount Tire's fault. I took it to my local Nissan dealership where I get most of my work done and they comped me a full brake inspection since I've had work done there before. While the car was on the lift they spun all the wheels. They determined the guys at D.T. (last guys who touched the wheels) didn't properly torque the lug nuts on the front right side and as a result the rotor was loose and grinding. It was caught in time and there was no damage. I feel like I should get the wheel balance refunded from D.T. but its $30 and it seems like a hassle. Definitely not going there again - can't even put wheels back on correctly.

 

thats scary as hell.

I would raise a complaint and get your money back as well as have your lugs/lug nuts replaced on that corner.

 

Even if you don't want to go through the hassle for a refund, you should call and let them know what happened. If this is happening regularly, someone could get seriously injured or die if a wheel fell off. They need to figure out who did the work and either retrain them or fire them. In fact, if you call and let them know you're just concerned for safety and don't even mention money, I'd bet they'd be the first to offer up a refund back to your credit card or mail you a check.

 

I had driven on it for about 100-200 miles. I agree they should be informed. I can only imagine the potential damage that didn't occur. This is what the Nissan service ticket says - hopefully this is enough info to prove it was Discount Tire.

Condition: Customer wants to verify that rear calipers arent sticking. Customer claims that after a wheel balance when driving the vehicle customer could smell like burning brake pads. Verify and advise.

Cause: Due to Wheel Log Nut Torque

Correction: Brake inspection performed FB 8.5 mm / RB 7.5 mm Upon Inspection found wheel lug nuts unevenly torqued creating a wobble and unwanted brake pad contact sometimes - brake dust and dirt also found. Burning smell due to front brake pads disc quit. Lug nuts retorqued at 90 ft/lbs. Vehicle operating satisfactory at test drive - no other problem found.

*Complete 4 wheel brake inspection