Shake when braking

[mechanicaldj]

try bad front wheel bearings

[resuwrecked]

If it only shakes when you're on the brakes, then the rotors are warped, no doubt. Sometimes cars will show the vibration to a different degree at different speeds when braking. Some do it when braking from any speed. It can go from a shimmy in the steering wheel when braking from high speed, to a light or heavy pulsation in the whole car when applying the brakes at low speed. Gforcefd's pulsation issue sounds like it was from a dragging caliper because of a frozen slider, causing the rotor to heat up and become warped. I just replaced a Lf caliper that was sticking on my car. Make sure your brakes are not dragging then I would suggest replacing the rotors if you have stock brakes. There is not much meat there to begin with and having them turned will only result in them warping again sooner.

[mechanicaldj]

i had a shake from my brakes from new rotors , replaced rt wheel bearing, it stopped

[Fordverde]

mmmm Then nothing else to do that to take those brakes apart and see what comes up.

[Fordverde]

I notice something last night, if you go at 60m/h or more it shake without toching the brakes.... all the ball joints are new and the bushings also, ideas???

[worfdog]

Check the inner and outer tie rod ends. They may be worn.

[Fordverde]

Check the inner and outer tie rod ends. They may be worn.

They're new, no more than 3 weeks old

[drddan]

Shaking without brake at 60mph is most likely an out of balance condition.
Take it back to the place you had them done and ask for a recheck.
Also, tires are balanced with lead weights, that can come off, basically anytime, so they can be out of balance, even if balancing was just done.
If you can, watch them to see if its done right.

[Pu241]

Again, see the link below.
drddan is also correct!
It may only be a single tire.
This will help isolate the "bad" one.

http://www.fordfestiva.com/forums/showpost.php?p=297878&postcount=15

[Fordverde]

Ok guys, thanks a lot, I'll let you know how it ends up.

[Fordverde]

Yeap, it was the calipers!!!! two seals kits, new pads, a wheel brush and alot of cleaning. Lube up and ready to go!!, no more shaking!!!
Note to self: ALWAYS change the cooper washers!!!! Damn, I forgot to do that and when I finished, I had a leak. Change them and good as new.

[Tim]

So I finally got around to jacking my car up and giving it a once over. Everything seemed OK, and I didn't notice any excessive play in anything.

I replaced the pads on both front wheels. One side still had a lot of meat on it, and the other side had literally no material left on the pads. No idea what the previous owner was thinking.

Replacing the pads made a HUGE difference. I am amazed at how responsive the brakes are. I barely have to tap the pedal and the car stops. Plus it seems to do a much better job braking.

And most importantly, there is no more shake when braking! Amazing what an hour and $20 in brake pads can do.


-Tim

[Zanzer]

^^ Keep an eye on the side that was thin. Usually when one side has much more wear than the other that's a good indicator that the piston in the caliper on that side is sticking.

[Tim]

Thanks for the tip. I'll keep an eye on that side.

Oddly enough, only one pad (the one by the piston) was severely worn. The other pad still had a bit of material left.

I also believe this is the original cylinder, due to the rust and crud on it. The other wheel cylinder looked newer.


-Tim

[GenevaDirt]

the caliper was probably binding on the pins causing it to only use the piston side for braking. Taking it apart and replacing the pads probably helped fix that problem but you should watch it and pay attention to any braking changes.