Braking Problem

CTU_Agent

Everytime i brake just before the car comes to a stop I get a strange noise and judder through the brake pedal.... It sounds like a cable is being plucked and u can feel it and hear it tru the brake pedal? Any ideas wat this is? Its an 1995 Audi a4..any help would be appreciated....

BaZmO*

ns9bg1 wrote:

Everytime i brake just before the car comes to a stop I get a strange noise and judder through the brake pedal.... It sounds like a cable is being plucked and u can feel it and hear it tru the brake pedal? Any ideas wat this is? Its an 1995 Audi a4..any help would be appreciated....

It sounds like your brake pads are worn down. The brake pads are made out of asbestos (iirc) and they are held in place by a metal clamp, so when the pad bit wears down the metal clamp bit rubs against the the disc and that's the strange noise you are hearing.

Check the pads and see if they are worn down. If they are really badly worn there should be circular marks on the disc.

B.

Dades

Sounds like the pads alright.

The guy in Advance Pitstop nearly beat me up the time I brought my old Audi 80 for new pads. Of course I waited till the noise of metal on metal was too much for me to bear anymore. :rolleyes:

Get them sorted quick before you need a new set of brake discs, too.

CTU_Agent

its not the pads, they were recently replaced.

I should mention It was with AUDI last friday under a recall to have the tracking control arm replaced. Ive gone back to audi cause this problem only showed its ugly head once i left their garage... they say its nothing to do with them and had no bearing on the work they carried out.... I should mention its a fairly significant vibration .

Dades

So the problem didn't occur after the pads were replaced - but only after the Audi garage had it in?

How long in between the two?

I can hear the running water as the Audi guy washes his hands of it... :rolleyes:

CTU_Agent

Pads were replaced in December and Checked two weeks ago by Kwik Fit and deemed all ok. I was in with Audi this afternoon and your right they dont want to know. They said it wasnt anything to do with the work they done. They done the work on friday problem happend as soon as I drove the car after they finished...

prospect

Man, that is bad form,

I'd push them real hard, tell them the car was aok, and now this. I hate that kind of 'service'. Obviously they have no customer loyalty..

Name and Shame...

CTU_Agent

I know its terrible.... Ive contacted AUDI Ireland to discuss the matter further...

SouperComputer

when where the discs last replaced? 1995 A4, chances they need to bee changed.

usually vibration in the system is from a loose component (VERY rare) or warped disks (Common with a4's when driven hard, heavy car, not so heavy brakes!)

pads are nowadays made of kevlar, asbestos was scrapped a long time ago. Or at least is was meant to be?

CTU_Agent

U see i would have thought discs but Before audi got their hands on it, it was fine. As soon as i drive the car out of audi's carpark and brake, I get this problem.... ...

SouperComputer

hmm sounds dodge alright, if its the second you leave. They can be a bit odd until they bed in. That said, they should be well bedded in now.

you could pull a wheel off, put it up n a jack, run it in gear and load up the brakes. You might be able to see what the problem is.

528i

somebody drove the crap out of your car during a 'test-drive' and either warped the discs or left pad deposits on them while standing in traffic, eitherway, i'd say replace your discs first as the bushings etc. have already been done.

CTU_Agent

It wasnt that extreme.... as it turns out when they work on front steering or suspension components they remove the ABS Sensors, on this occasion however they never replaced one of them correctly. Of course AUDI wouldnt admit to this and I only found it out yesterday after I removed both wheels and checked them. Problem sorted....

Balfa

I'd hardly call it problem sorted. Anyone less mechanically savvy than yourself would still be in that situation. I think you should definitely keep up the correspondance with audi ireland until something's done about that garage.

Anyone can make the mistake of not putting something back after working on it, but when people don't even want to hear about something possibly being their fault, and owning up to their mistakes, that's appalling.

AMurphy

ns9bg1 wrote:

It wasnt that extreme.... as it turns out when they work on front steering or suspension components they remove the ABS Sensors, on this occasion however they never replaced one of them correctly. Of course AUDI wouldnt admit to this and I only found it out yesterday after I removed both wheels and checked them. Problem sorted....

The ABS haveing a nervous breakdown. (good detective work)
Another similar problem I have come across, is someone knocks 1 or more teeth off the speed sensor gear and again it plays havok with the ABS, resulting in the same problem you described.

lomb

where is the speed sensor gear Amurphy, is it in the gearbox?

AMurphy

The one(s) for the speedo or A/T would be in the GB.
The ones for the ABS are on the wheels/hubs/shafts or somewhere near there, one on every wheel.
Pretty much the same as your Cam/Flywheel pickup.

lomb

how do the abs ones work, they are measuring rotational speed correct? is there a physical gear?

CTU_Agent

Audi's Response to my issue, (This is a mail I recieved after contacting Audi Ireland about my problem)

I have been forwarded a copy of your e-mail by David Larkin of Audi Ireland
regarding the concern you have with your vehicle. I have also spoken with my
service advisors, workshop controller and mechanic responsible for working
on your vehicle, all of whom assure me that the noise/vibration from your
vehicle is the ABS braking system and not related to the recall campaign
undertaken by Park Service Centre.

We will gladly inspect your vehicle again, with you present, and show the
remedial works we have undertaken during our repair. If we can find fault
with anything we have carried out we will rectify it at our expense.
Alternatively, you can commission an independent assessor who will act upon
your behalf, to look at the vehicle with us, and again, if the fault is with
our repair process, we will not only repair the defect at our expense, but
also cover the cost of the assessors visit usually around EUR300)

Please contact me at your earliest convenience to make an appointment.

---

THEN .....This is the mail I received when I told them I had fixed the problem my self....

Thanks for your mail and whilst I certainly don't want to start any issues
between us, I must highlight that during the repair carried out on your car
and in all instances of this particular repair, at no time do we disconnect
or indeed work on the ABS sensors, as the repair is pretty standard. As to
what could have caused this to happen, I cannot say having not had an
opportunity to see the vehicle.
However, as you have stated the car is o.k. now, but if you have any further
concerns in this area please allow us to inspect it for you. If we can be of
any further assistance please do not hesitate to contact us

---

There you go...And you're right if I didnt have a clue what I was doin I would have had to fork out to have the problem fixed... and thats disgracful!!

Dades

ns9bg1 wrote:

However, as you have stated the car is o.k. now, but if you have any further concerns in this area please allow us to inspect it for you. If we can be of any further assistance please do not hesitate to contact us

In other words: Your problem is solved go away and stop pointing uncomfortable fingers.

I'd leave it that, TBH. No point in making enemies in your garage.

They might drain your brake fluid next time.

Borzoi

The Atheist wrote:

No point in making enemies in your garage.

Your former garage surely.

That would be Park Service Centre, a spin off of Park Motors? Because it's not the first complaint that I've heard about them.

CTU_Agent

Yeah id certainly think twice before going back to it... Its park service centre on the north circular road..(actually right beside the scene of that horrific crash this morning.)They could have easily taken it back in on the first occasion and checked what I checked and saved all the hassle....

MrPudding

I knew a guy that worked for Compaq and had an Audi company car. He always arranged servicing with a garage in the North when he had to go there for work. He had bad experiences in Dublin and got fed up.

MrP

AMurphy

lomb wrote:

how do the abs ones work, they are measuring rotational speed correct? is there a physical gear?

Yes and Yes, it normally uses a very simple toothed reing, not really a "transmission gear", but looks like it.

Here this should help;
http://auto.howstuffworks.com/anti-lock-brake.htm