Need advice about results from brake service

Howdy all,

First a little history.At about 32,000 miles I noticed that the brakes
(probably front) were beginning to make a metallic squeaking noise
(possibly worn to the wear tab). At this point they were still
stopping smoothly and well.

I took the car to a local brake shop and had front pads replaced,
front rotors turned, rear pads replaced, and rear rotors turned. After
getting the car back I noticed a scrubbing sound as soon as the pads
engaged the rotors and the stopping distances seemed to have increased
and on some occasions it seemed to take an unusal amount of distance
to stop while the brake pedal had a slight vibration and seemed to go
to the floor more readily than before ( I am accustomed on older
vechicles ) to reaching a point where heavy pressure from my foot
completely locks the brakes and allows no more pedal travel. ) and
reminded me of older vechicles with air in their brake lines limiting
braking power and giving an odd feel to the pedal.

I followed the brake shops advice and waited @ 2,000 miles for the
pads and rotors to wear in and I admit that the noise has been reduced
and the feel is a little better. The pedal still seems to travel to
the floor with not enough resistance, it doesn't seem to stop as
quickly as it did with the original pads, and their remains a subtle
vibration that either wasn't their previous to the brake work or was
not noticeable.

I took the car in to the dealer after I rolled past a stop sign where
I felt I had applied brakes early enough to stop in time but went
about a cars length into the intersection. The dealer looked at all 4
wheels and lubed "the pins" but said that nothing else was found
indicating a problem.

Q

1. Is the vibration a normal thing with new pads and resurfaced
rotors?

2.Should I expect a firmer brake pedal feel with a hard stop from the
pressure of the pedal instead of using all of the travel from the
pedal ?

3. Since this makes me nervous not having a satisfactoy
answer/explanation/solution what should I do next ?

Thanks,

Stan

 

<snip>

Stan,

Since you've never posted in this group before perhaps you could tell us
which year/model of Hyundai you're talking about.

It may make a difference.

 

1. Vibration is NOT normal. Period. The original servicing facility
should be able to correct this. It sounds like the rotors were not turned
properly.

2. The pads put on your car by the service facility may be of a different
composition than the ones originally on your car. This can cause a variety
of changes, including required application pressure. Can you lock the
wheels or cause the abs to engage if you try. If not, there is a problem.
Since the dealer was able to find nothing wrong, I suspect that you may
just need to press the pedal harder in order to stop the vehicle.

3. You should demand the vibration be corrected. You should also be able
to stop the car. If a dealer who is independent from the repair facility
deems your brakes are operating normally, then they probably are. While I
can't speak for the dealer, I would presume they were convinced that they
were able to stop the car properly. Regardless, if you can't stop the
vehicle, you will need to take whatever action is necessary for you to be
able to do so. This may require installation of Hyundai pads or other
pads with a softer composition than that which is currently on the
vehicle.

 

I don't represent myself to be an authority so the following are
strictly my opinions BUT,

1. Vibration or pusling during stopping is supposed to be SOLVED by
resurfacing rotors or drums, not CAUSED.

2. A spongy and.or low pedal is generally caused by either or both
air in the brake lines or a defective master cyliner. In any event it
is definitely not normal.

3. As to what you should do I would go back where I had the job done
and complain until they fix it, even if additional parts might be
needed.

Meanwhile soothe your nerves with a little Diana Krall, Anthony Wilson
and Jeff Hamilton!

 

Vibration is not normal after a brake job. either the rotors were not turned
correctly, or re-installed incorrectly.
Using brake pads of different composition will give different stopping
results.
Yes, Air in the lines can cause variance in the pedal height and travel.

Quite simply, If the previous brakes gave you a differnet "feel" there is
something wrong with the new installation. Be it Parts or installation, it
needs to be fixed.

One other thing, a brake job doesn't take 2000 miles to break in. Maybe
50-100. If they sent you out for 2000 miles, I would find another shop. they
expected in 2000 miles you would adjust to the brake deficiencies, not that
the brakes would adjust to the car.

good Luck!