Noisy Parking Brake

[tcornelio]

Hi All,

I have a 2005 BMW X5 E53.

When parking on a hill i can hear an annoying noise when hitting the brakes whilst the car is being parked down hill.

Furthermore it is also quite noisy when i release the brake pedal when stuck in traffic for example, sort of like the noise an old car would make.

The above is for normal braking, when i apply the parking handbrake i can hear the same annoying old car noise. The parking brake doesnt seem to be very strong either.

Any ideas?

I have read that i may just need to change the parking brake shoes?

Thanks

[davintosh]

If the parking brake is weak, it'd be a good idea to replace the shoes; that would be a good opportunity to inspect everything else to make sure it's all good. Might not be a bad idea to check the disk brake pads before ordering the parking brake shoes to see if they need to be replaced as well. If you've done brakes before on other cars, this won't be a difficult job for you.

[tcornelio]

Thanks.

Yes i believe the brake discs need changing also.

I replaced the brake pads front and back only last month.

If i replace the discs do i need new pads also as my current discs are slightly warped (steering shakes whilst braking at high speed)

[davintosh]

If the pads are relatively new, they should be ok. One other thing to look at if you get a slight shimmy when braking is the front control arm bushings. Unless you can feel a pulse in the brake pedal, it's more likely to be suspension related. There are a lot of posts on the board discussing that topic, and properly diagnosing the problem; here's one: http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...r-braking.html

[tcornelio]

Ok...so i have investigated the noisy brakes over the weekend and this is what i have found.

The noise is actually coming from the front, forgetting the parking brake the noise comes whenever i apply and release the brakes. e.g. if i put the car in drive position and only press the brakes slightly allowing the car to move forwards i can hear this squeaky noise coming from the front.

I do know that the front brake pads where replaced a few months ago by the previous owner using after market brake pads. Could this be the issue? My car steering also vibrates whilst braking and going over 100km an hour.

Maybe someone can help here.

Thanks

[upallnight]

Verify that the anti-rattle clip is installed on the caliper. If the clip is missing that may be the source of your noise.

[tcornelio]

Thanks...How can i check that?

[davintosh]

The clip is pretty obvious; usually visible with the wheel on. #7 in the diagram below:


If it's missing, the noise is usually a clattering when you hit a bump. The clip is designed to keep tension on the pad so that it doesn't rattle. In looking over the symptoms you've described it doesn't sound like that's the problem though. It might be a loose caliper or something broken. Best bet is to pull the wheels one end at a time and check things over carefully, or take it to a shop and have it inspected.