new 2k3 - brakes squeal
 

I have had my new 2k3 SE for 3 weeks and have noticed that the rear brakes squeal when I first start out in morning or when I leave work at end-of-day,...in other words when the car is cold. On first day,I thought maybe some of the dealer-applied sidewall polish was the problem as that used to happen with my I30 for the first few brakings every time they cleaned my car after servicing, but with the Max the squeal persists. To clarify, it's on both sides in rear, only when I brake and only the first 3-4 times that I brake,...then it's perfectly quiet the rest of trip. I noticed that if I manage to go a few blocks before I first apply any brakes, there is no squeal.
Anyway, it's embarassing and unacceptable. Have an appointment at dealer but would prefer to avoid unnecessary dealer service saga if you guys tell me this squeal is about to end. Have about 700 miles on car at this point and the weather has been cold but pretty dry the entire time. Advice?

I have the exact same problem. But I think the noise on mine is coming from the front. It only happens when the car brakes are cold, after they are warmed up, the noise goes away. I thought when I last powerwashed the car that I got some dirt out of the rotors (make sure they aren't hot, so you don't warp them). I'm not sure if it squeals anymore.... BTW, I have 5000 miles on my 2k3 max.

i just started to notice the same prob, my brakes squeel a bit in the morn when the brakes are cold ony for the first stop after that the noise is gone. must be condensation build up, cause once i brake the first time it doesn't happen again.

Re: new 2k3 - brakes squeal
 

I have a 2K3 Max. with 10K miles and my brakes don't make any kind of noise. Since I live in Florida and we don't have snow fall I'd assume that your problem probably has to do with the salt used to melt the snow where you live so try to power wash the rotors to see if it goes away. Also since your car is still breaking-in, give it sometime for the pads to settle. :)

Re: Re: new 2k3 - brakes squeal
 

never thought about salt, which they use tons of. car has 27,000km on it and never did the problem till lately(winter). Must be the salt build up on the rotors overnight, i park on the street sometimes and that's when i get the problem. It's not serious at all so i never tooked it in fiqured something was build up on the rotors

thanks realtor

Re: Re: new 2k3 - brakes squeal
 

The salt theory is interesting and there is certainly plenty on the roads these past few weeks. However, I should point out that my car is garaged overnight. Therefore, from the time I arrive home with no squealing whatsoever 'till the time I start out in the morning with the squeal reappearing, the car has been sitting in the garage...same place as my I30 which never did this.

Hello.

Same here... Breaks squeak a bit when its cold. Weather has been around -10C lately.

It doesn't bother me too much. It goes a way very fast. What bothered me the most is the leaky sunroof when going through a touchless car wash (I posted this problem on another thread). The leaky roof is a rediculous problem. If my 9 year old Mazda has no leaky sunroof going through the same touchless, there is no excuse for a brand new 2k3 Maxima having this problem!!! I looked hard, and the sunroof looks perfectly aligned. NO wind noise, no nothing.

So far these are the only problems with 500km on the 2k3 Maxima.

James

I thought i was the only one having this problem. Like everyone else has been saying. I think it's due to the cold temperatures lately. I have no problems with them when it's condiderabley warm outside or when the brakes have been warmed up a bit.

I have similar problem. This happens only for about 5 seconds and only when the car is cold. I was wondering if this could be related to the materials that the brakes are made of.

Thought I would let you know that I took car to dealer for a look. They said that they've had this problem from time to time but are hearing more of it lately. Their official position is that it is normal for some sqealing to occur when cold due to condensation on rotors. However, they did describe that they typically apply some silicone to the rotors to minimize it. I can't say for sure yet whether this has improved the situation or not. I recall from another thread that the rear pads are of different materials than the front if I remember correctly. In any case, like I said earlier this never occurred with my I30, so I'm still not convinced that there is anything "normal" about this especially for a car in this price range.

Where, exactly, is this silicone supposed to be sprayed? I find it unsettling that anyone would mess with that type of spray around brakes of all things. Get's in the wrong place and you can wave as you sail past where you intended to stop.

According to the service advisor, Nissan has recently come out with a special silicone lubricant for brake purposes. He says that as of ~4 months ago, it's applied to the rotor surfaces as part of vehicle assembly and is also reapplied at 7500 mile service. Well, that's what he said. I can report that the brakes have not squealed at all since then and I have noticed absolutely no deterioration in braking performance.

By the way, just so you don't think I had a totally satisfying service experience, they did manage to screw up the very simple thing that I also brought the car in for,....they put the wrong color splash guards on. Even the service manager had to admit it was unbelievable.

:banghead:

Squeaky Brakes
 

I just had a TSB done for warped rotors because my brakes were squeaking like crazy! Well, new pads and resurfaced rotors--THey still squeak! I think it is the factory metallic pads. Seriously, I have talked to some people that use ceramic and they never have squeaking. The only time they will have squeaking with ceramic is when they get to the indicator. Nissan won't put on ceramic because the OEM is metallic. I talked to a guy at an auto repair place and he told me that he sees that problem all the time on Foreign cars with Metallic pads. He recommended paying the money and getting ceramic.

same problem
 

When it was warm outside, the rears(2000 I30) would squeal for the first 2-3 stops only if the car had sat out on a damp day.

Now since it has turned cold, each time the car sits for more than 10 hrs the rear will squel for the first 5-10 mins, then they are fine. Seems as the brakes warm, the noise goes away.

My 95 max did this, but not as bad.

What color is your car and what color are the mud guards?:eek:

Re: Re: new 2k3 - brakes squeal
 

I live in FL too :) My rears squeek first thing in the morning as well. If I keep the car in the garage, I don't get a squeek; if I leave the car outside overnight-I get the squeek. Since my squeek lasts only for the first initial stop at speed, (20MPH) I am really not too worried about it. My other cars have Metal Master brake pads, and I guess I am just comfortable with brake noises :)

At least in my case I think its a condensation issue on the rotors at first start-up. Excessive brake dust can also cause a squeek on normal pads, so if there is a lot of that, a good cleaning can sometimes be the answer.

Theres all kinds of anti-squeel stuff for brake pads, some can involve a simple spray around the surface of the caliper, and some will get on the pad. And some involve pulling the pads, and soaking them in the anti-squeel liquid.

They do work, but only for a short time. The same I would think applies to this 'silicon lubricant' the service manager is talking about. These are all only temporary soloutions, because as you drive, and temps increase, a substance applied to a pad will only last so long. The only way to cure the noise,(assuming its from pads) is to change the type of pads themselves.

The lighting was not too good when I went to get the car, but it sure looked like majestic blue mudguards on my sterling mist Max. I refused to drive it that way and made them take them off right then and there. They managed express overnight delivery of the correct ones and put them on the next morning. You'll love this,...when I asked service manager how the tech would not question putting the wrong color-coded guards on my car, he said that they train the techs NOT to think,..just do what they are told. Since the wrong color was ordered and dispensed by parts department, the installation was pretty much a given. Yikes!! :rolling_e

Any updates on getting the "morning" brake squeal resolved? Mine seems to be getting louder. But it is also getting increasing colder out too....

The service done a few weeks back still seems to have resolved my problem, although on a recent morning after slushy/salty road conditions of the previous day, the squeal returned but only briefly. Other than that, fine. But, you're right, it's getting colder agin, so let's see what happens.