Recently I've started getting vibrations through the steering wheel when braking from high speed (80ish plus)... it feels a bit like how it does when you have a wheel that isn't balanced properly - not confidence inspiring.

I have uprated grooved discs and pads - I haven't warped my discs have I?! Sure I've pulled it up from high speed a few times but not doing anything I would consider especially harsh braking wise...

Any advice on what might be causing this would be much appreciated - discs are less than a year old so if they are warped I'm sending them back !

 

Could be warped discs, or possibly a build up of crap/resin on them. Check to see if there are any "shadows" on the surface of the disc that resemble the shape of the brake pad. This can be caused by sitting with your foot on the brake pedal for a while after stopping (eg at a set of traffic lights) and brakes are hot.

 

Cheers John - I'll have a close look at the discs shortly. Will a few hard pull up's clear any rubbish off the discs or do I need to get the sand paper out?

 

I used to have the same problems with another car.
Light or progressively braking from high speeds got the car vibrating badly.

If it's pad deposits, you can alleviate the problem by doing a few aggressive slowdowns from higher speeds. i.e. get the brakes nice and hot. Then drive around without stopping for 10minutes or so to let them cool down. Not something for trying if there's any traffic around though.

I recommend checking the discs out before trying the above in case there are other problems. Really, you want to know there's no large cracks in the disc but rusty areas or areas which should be swept by the pad that are covered in cr*p indicate a sticky pad, slide or piston. Which should be attended to before trying to clean up the disc surfaces.

J.

 

Yes that's the exact problem - If I brake hard then I don't get the vibrations, it's only when lightly or progressively as you say.

I do a lot of stop start driving - accelerating up to 40ish, then braking down for a set of lights, then again. I do tend to leave my foot on the brake so hoping it is just deposits on the disc surfaces. I inspected the discs earlier and couldn't notice any deposits though.

I'll try a few aggressive slowdowns from high speed as you've suggested, see if it cures it.

It is an annoying problem and I'm sure this sort of vibration doesn't do the steering components any good. I also noticed that one pad is slightly more worn than the other - so perhaps there is some other issue here... might be time for a set of AP's.

Thanks.

 

yeah I have got the same problem, fitted new front drilled/vented discs and green stuff pads and I now have vibrations...:

 

http://www.stoptech.com/tech_info/wp...rakedisk.shtml

Its a long read, but some good info.

Buck

 

Good read - thanks.

I had my brake pads and discs cleaned up at the weekend and it didn't solve the problem...

Another avenue I will be exploring is checking that the hubs and bearings etc are all as they should be - will be having the run out checked in a couple of weeks and I although I am not convinced there is anything wrong with the hubs it looks like the only possible option if the discs themselves are not warped as such. It's an annoying and frustrating problem.

 

Have you checked the rears too? I had a vibration through the steering wheel under braking, it was the rear pads overheating and picking up on the disk.