Need help with brakes grinding/squeaking noise

[krazy88s]

Hello all,

I have an appointment tomorrow with Tesla to fix a sound every time I brake. It sounds more like a grind than a squeak. It started 1-2 months into ownership (picked up car Aug 2018) and was very prominent in the past 6 months.

It’s been reported by multiple users already. Problem is...I took the car on a road trip to the Sierras where the temperature was in the low 30s, and now the sound is gone! Perhaps the temperature has something to do with it? I’m sure that something is grinding against something else.

Should I still take it to Tesla tomorrow? Would they know what to do based on the symptom?

Thanks.

 

[KenC]

Yeah, definitely have them look your brakes over.

 

[afadeev]

I have an appointment tomorrow with Tesla to fix a sound every time I brake. It sounds more like a grind than a squeak. It started 1-2 months into ownership (picked up car Aug 2018) and was very prominent in the past 6 months.

Hmm, sounds like you had a rock stuck between the caliper and rotor, or rotor and dust shield.

Problem is...I took the car on a road trip to the Sierras where the temperature was in the low 30s, and now the sound is gone! Perhaps the temperature has something to do with it? I’m sure that something is grinding against something else.

Should I still take it to Tesla tomorrow? Would they know what to do based on the symptom?

If they can't replicate the problem, they wont be able to "fix it".
And even if they claim they "fixed it", you won't be able to confirm, since the sound is no longer present.

Personally, I would cancel the appointment, unless you have something else you can get them to address for you.

YMMV,
a

 

[t-rizzle]

Hello all,

I have an appointment tomorrow with Tesla to fix a sound every time I brake. It sounds more like a grind than a squeak. It started 1-2 months into ownership (picked up car Aug 2018) and was very prominent in the past 6 months.

It’s been reported by multiple users already. Problem is...I took the car on a road trip to the Sierras where the temperature was in the low 30s, and now the sound is gone! Perhaps the temperature has something to do with it? I’m sure that something is grinding against something else.

Should I still take it to Tesla tomorrow? Would they know what to do based on the symptom?

Thanks.

I have Mobile service coming next week to look into this on my car. I've had it since May and it's been like that almost the entire time. I figured it's because I can hear the brakes because there is no motor but the grinding / friction sound has gotten louder so might has well have them check that I have proper function brakes / pads etc.

 

[krazy88s]

I have Mobile service coming next week to look into this on my car. I've had it since May and it's been like that almost the entire time. I figured it's because I can hear the brakes because there is no motor but the grinding / friction sound has gotten louder so might has well have them check that I have proper function brakes / pads etc.

Please report back! They didn’t let me make a mobile appointment for it.

 

[t-rizzle]

Please report back! They didn’t let me make a mobile appointment for it.

Will do. I didn't select mobile service as it just defaulted to it and it said they would reach out of mobile service couldn't do it. I'm confirmed and the app still says service will come to my address. I'll let you know. What did they do / say about your car?

 

[krazy88s]

Will do. I didn't select mobile service as it just defaulted to it and it said they would reach out of mobile service couldn't do it. I'm confirmed and the app still says service will come to my address. I'll let you know. What did they do / say about your car?

I ended up cancelling the appointment. Mainly because I hate going to the SC.

 

[Joshan]

sounds like a rock caught in the rotor. They usually work themselves out without damage.

 

[webbah]

Grinding could indicate a problem with the brake pads and how they are seated. Do you see anything off when looking at the rotors? Any scratches, grooves, etc?

Squeaking can happen as we often don’t use our brakes much at all with the regen braking and road grime, salt, etc builds up on the pads.

If I get squeaks I just head to a nice country road or the mountains and “bed in” my brake pads again. There are tons of YouTube videos on how to properly do brake pad bedding in. Essentially you find a nice road where you won’t have issues with other cars and heat the pads and rotors up with multiple accellerations and near stops from ~50 Mph to 10 Mph. Try not to trigger ABS and don’t come to a full stop. The idea is to heat the pads and the rotors evenly which allows some of the brake pad material to attach to the rotors smoothly and evenly. This also removes any grime, salt, etc from the pads and rotors. Most importantly though is to first make sure that you don’t have any foreign objects like a rock or stone caught between the caliper and the rotor.

Finally, after completing this process go for a drive on the freeway and cool everything down BEFORE parking. You don’t want the pads to adhere to the rotors if they are overheated from the process.

I do this every few months and it solves all my problems. I also have more sensitive brake pads to noise as I’m running the Unplugged Performance Track and Street pads and this sorts me out.

 

[Nocturnal]

I'd wager that your mountain driving used the brakes more than you normally do and it cleaned off dirt/rust from the rotors.

 

[KenC]

Take a close look at your rotor to make sure there's no scoring.

 

[krazy88s]

I'd wager that your mountain driving used the brakes more than you normally do and it cleaned off dirt/rust from the rotors.

I doubt this was it. I took it for several road trips since it started. In fact it got worse for the last couple of months. This is what I was told by someone from the SC but I knew it couldn’t be when it persisted despite intentionally using the brakes more for 6+ months

 

[t-rizzle]

Please report back! They didn’t let me make a mobile appointment for it.

FYI.. Tesla mobile never came out. They called and said if they think it's what I'm describing I would have to go in for them to lube the rotors and pads. They told me to try setting regen to low and go to 20-30mph and then essentially slam on the brakes. I did that a few times going from 20-40 and pressing the brake and getting down to 5-10mph and also drove around on low regen for ~200 miles and still the same thing. I have an appointment to take the car in on 11/25.

 

[talkingevs]

I have the same issue I think and posted it on another post. Does it sound like this?

 

[krazy88s]

I have the same issue I think and posted it on another post. Does it sound like this?

That did not sound like mine. Mine was a high screech.