Car is a Maxima 99 SE-L

When I park my car outside overnight and use it the next morning, i get a groaning noise during braking until it's warmed up. Also, sometimes when it's already warmed up during light to medium braking or removing my foot from the brakes from a full stop, it gives off a groaning/grinding noise and I could feel it. But during heavy braking this doesnt occur. What could this be?

 

Dunno, but i have similiar problems. The mechanic said i need to replace my rotors. I think he just wants money, why can't they be sanded down? Cheap help appreciated. Ps. Hito does it sound like its coming from your rear brakes?

 

Hmm, i have a 99 also. When i do light to moderate braking i hear a squeal (think its from the rear), unless they're wet from the rain or something. Then i hear nothing. When I have to do heavy braking at times i hear it too.. I guess i would explain it as a groaning also. Do you guys have abs, i don't. One time my brother was in the car and he heard the groaning sound and he was wondering if my rotors were warped but i dont think so. Also, for the squealing, my uncle looked at the brake pads (becaue i'm an idiot and i dont know what are good and what are bad by looking at them, and he said they were very new. I tried that brakleen stuff but that doesnt work. So yea, im pretty confused. If i were to upgrade my rotors, i think i would get zinc plated slotted brembos, i think there was a gd here before.

 

No ABS here. With rain I get squeals at warmup if I park outside for a few hours, but that goes away in like a min. If overnight, it goes to a squeal & groan combo. But the groaning/grinding randomly comes and goes with the release and depression of the brakes after warmup (from light to medium). As for where it's coming from? I'm not exactly sure, all i know is that it's severe enough for me to hear and feel it from my seat. I might just go and get it checked out... My braking power is all there, just annoying to have the groaning/grinding noise though, and something small could turn into something bigger.

 

its from the parking brake sticking, not the abs or rotors, its a common problem and i think the only fix is steel braided brake lines from what ive researched. Not a must fix now problem, just very annoying mostly and nothing to get worried about.

-rob

 

almost forgot, for more info heres a link

http://cartalk.cars.com

goto Actual Car Information on the top and click Car Report

should be under brakes:hydraulic system
and i have a 99se

 

Squealing is usually from a bad installation if it happens when lightly braking (no disc brake quiet or brake goop put on the backs of the pads before installation). If your brakes squeal WITHOUT them applied, then most likely the wear indicators telling you it's time to replace pads. Warped rotors will cause a pulsating feel in the pedal when brakes are applied. Groaning is normal when brakes are cold and brakes are applied lightly. Every car I've ever driven can be made to do it to some extent. Also, brakes will groan and especially grind if there is no friction material left on the pad and the backing plate is grinding into the rotor.

Parking brakes on 4th gens do stick. But steel braided brake lines like mentioned have nothing to do with the parking brake. Check the parking brake cables to see if they need cleaned up to keep them from sticking. If a brake is sticking, that rim will be hotter than the others after driving. You can also raise the rear, support it on jackstands, and spin the wheels to see if they seem like they're sticking. Then you can troubleshoot from there (parking brake, stuck caliper).

Dave

 

Mine only groans when i have to do hard braking though?

 

I've been having the same problem but it started about 1 month ago and it was only during very slow driving (3-5mph) and it has gotten worst. Now I can hear/feel the vibration when going at 40mph and its annoying the hell out of me. I took off my rims today to see what the deal was and I've noticed that my rear rotors were not as smooth as my front ones (not sure if its supposed to be that way). I'm positive that the sound is coming from the rear but not sure if its my calipers sticking.

 

Well I dropped my car off at the shop today. We tried to reproduce the problem but it just didnt happen. So while I was driving home to get my dad to follow me (so he could drive me home after i dropped off the car)it so happened that it occured but the mechanic was not with me! So i'm going to leave my car there overnight for them to check it out, and i'll have the news tomorrow afternoon. While the car was on the lift, we spun the wheels and nothing was sticking. We checked the pads and the front had tons of pad left, but the rear was a bit thinner, but not enough that it should produce sound. The mechanic didn't know what was wrong, as he said it was all perfect from the looks of it. So they're gonna be doing more diagnostic tests on it and stuff... i'll update tomorrow.

 

I get creaking and groaning when the car is stone cold. When it warms up, it goes away. I want to replace my brakes (85k) but no money now, need a cheap solution...I want new brakes!

 

My car has similar symptoms as talked about in the posts in this thread. I think the problem is caused when your brakes are cold and the ebrake was pulled up tight over a long period of time. the rear pads stick a little because the ebrake cable isn't full retracting and the calipers/brake hardware grind. once it warms up a little, the ebrake cable loosens up and the hardware returns to the "normal" postion. This is all just speculation based on my recent experiences.

 

I was reading another post and talking about bad bearings. It mentioned this humming sound and how it'd get worse while turning. Maybe you should get your bearings check out? I think I have a combo of siezed calipers and bearing problems. Hope you find what's wrong with your baby. Keep us posted.

 

Well, I got my car back. According to the shop, it was my rotors. So he placed new ones on and new pads. I asked why he didnt just cut the rotors, and according to him it isnt good to cut rotors for the maxima.

So, I haven't really had much time to test out the new rotors and pads. Will have to give it some time to find out whether or not this really was the cause or not.