Brakes

[MAliBu!999]

MAlibu Breaks,
I would like to know if anybody else that owns a malibu has brakes problems? my front brakes wear out so quick! There is wierd grinding sounds coming from the front wheels or breaks! The back brakes seem to come loss all the time! Can anybody relate or have some information?

[kemarten]

I replaced my front brake pads in April due to a grinding noise. All my pads were fine except for the passenger side interior brake, the pad was completly gone. It is now Mid-October and the grinding has started again (passenger side) but now there is also a grinding noise when I turn at slow speeds after braking (i.e. moving around the parking lot). Is this strange or does everyone have to change there brakes twice in one year??

[BOOZER]

We only use OEM pads for GM N-BODY's. I cant give you the brand of an aftermarket pad we havent
had a problem with on this car. There always seems to be a noise problem or just short life.
We discount the GM pads at $85.00 from a list at around $120.00 but you dont get any comebacks so
you be the judge.
You did'nt say what brand & model pads you used but sometimes you cant buy the $19.95 specials!

[pgmalibu01]

Oh boy have I had problems with brakes. GM has replaced them 3 times in 32000 Mi. with the same result, they pulse and wear out every6-8K miles. (I have had to fight with GM to get them to do anything) They say the brakes are designed to be replaced often. I say that is goobledegook. I checked out the brakes and found that the calipers actually bend when the brakes are applied. So much so that the inner pads wear while the outers don't. I believe this causes the rotors to warp. The inner pad heats up while the outer doesn't. The only fix I know of is to replace the calipers. I am still fighting with GM but I will eventually throw the originals away. I suggest you complain (and complain LOUDLY) to GM. Write to Kurt Ritter VP of Chevrolet in Detroit.
Also check out The NHTSB website for complaints on this vehicle.

[BOOZER]

So your saying you press the pedal hard though to flex a caliper ? How much did it deflect, & why will a replacement caliper not do the same thing ?????Sounds like your the guy I see hitting the offramp at 80 mph!
Curious what pad your dealer is installing, they service more than one. There is am oem & a "durastop" brand that GM has. The durastop is an
aftermarket pad thats cheaper & we dont use them on the N-body for numerious reasons, wear-noise.
Also excessive inboard pad wear is caused buy a caliper thats not floating freely.
GM policy on brakes=12 month,12,000 miles with cetrain exceptions, their a wear item.
When was the last time the rears were serviced or
just had a clean/adjust ??

[pgmalibu01]

I know it seems improbable but the calipers flex at REST. I took off the wheels, mounted an indicator to the front of the caliper (to negate the motion from the normal caliper float on the steering knuckle) and measuerd the deflection. The damn thing opens up more then 3/16 of an inch WITHOUT THE POWER ASSIST. Why did I do this you ask? Because after I saw how the pads were wearing I knew something was wrong. The first time I inspected the brakes I had my son step on the brake while I watched, just to see what was going on. I couldn't believe my eyes so I wanted to quantify what I observed. I own a machine shop so I made the indicator bracket. What sticks in my craw is that neither the service manager at the dealership nor a field engineer from GM were interested in looking at the caliper. In the mean time GM replaced the pads 3 times and the rotors once. (There is a TSB on the rotors). GM replaced the pads with the latest ones they recommend to fix this issue. NONE OF THESE THINGS WORKED. here it is 8000 mi later and the car is pulsating and squeling worse than ever. Now they won't even talk to me. As far as the brakes only lasting 12K, don't you think it is convenient that GM wrote that spec after all of the brake problems they've had with this car? Yes there is an updated spec. As far as I am concerned you should get 40+ on a set of brakes if the system is working properly. No, they are screwing the people who buy this car. Have you heard of other cars going but 12K? Ive been asking, and anyone with a late model vehicle is going well over 36K+. The car this one replaced went over 65000 before the fronts were replaced, yes it was front wheel drive. It really bugs me that no one is looking into the WHY of this problem. It is a great car otherwise.

[pgmalibu01]

I forgot to mention the rears are fine.

[DESP]

I had front brake issues with my '01. After 35,000 KMS I had to replace my pads and rotors (they were warped beyond machining limits). The pads I put on were the best NAPA sold ($120CDN) the replacement rotors were done under GM warranty. At 65,000 KMS my rotors were warped again. Now with no warranty left I replaced the second GM rotors with a set of cross-drilled and slotted "sport" rotors ($125CDN/set). I've put another 20,00 KMS on these rotors and they've been great. And I still have lots of life left on the NAPA pads - which have never made any excessive noise or vibration and have been really low on dust.

[pgmalibu01]

Thanks for the info. Did you happen to notice the wear pattern on the pads you replaced? What troubles me is that everytime the pads have worn two things happen. The rotors warp and the inboard pads alone are worn out. The outers look brand new. On my car I am not convinced it is strictly the rotors or pads that are defective. I haven't put any aftermarket pads or rotors on because I am still fighting with GM. I may get new calipers, but no determination has been made yet. I am going to try Raybestos calipers and cross drilled rotors when I need to. Check the wear patterns next time you do the brakes. You might be surprised.

[DESP]

Originally Posted by pgmalibu01

Did you happen to notice the wear pattern on the pads you replaced?

The factory pads wore more drasitcally on one side of the rotor than the other (which side I can't remember). The pads from NAPA seem to be wearing more uniformly.

[capricex]

my front pads are the problem, i have a 99, and even though they are effective front brakes i recently realized i go through them like water, i had one new set on, then the last time i put a set on they were gone in 3 months, and i drive well. I went back to the shop, and of course " i was the reason" they wore out so of course i had to prove my case and i got the ones now for free and the guy said that set was defective. now i'm not a mechanic, but i think the car has a slight top heavy weight distrobution that makes the front suspension take the road hard and eats away the front brakes. I went down on a spring break trip to atlantic city nj, and the malibu was packed full, because one of my friends was kicked out of his house the morning of, so it was 2 times packed and the braking and front suspention was great when it had weight in the back, of course though acceleration and gas milage became victim.

[410sintrunk]

I've gone through 3 sets of brakes in 66,000 miles. I havent had a problem with them since I replaced the rotors and pads the last time. This was the only time I went with the premium pads and rotors. My mech. told me that the part number that chevy reccomends for the rotor is too thin and causes excessive heat build up that causes pads premature wear (often cracking) and rotors to warp quickly. Spend the extra cash and get the premium parts - I havent regretted it.

[TonyMadrid]

The Malibus from 1997 - 2003 have problematic brakes and GM's fix is a shim kit that they call "Brake Align". The problem is the close tolerances for lateral runout. The rotors need to have no more than .0015" of runout. As the rotors wear the runout increase and once it goes past .0015" the brakes start to pulsate. The Brake Align solution is a shim that goes between the hub and the rotor. The shims come in three thicknesses - .003, .006, and .009. You have to use a dial gauge to measure the runout and determine where the high spot is so you know what shim to use.

I have a 2002 and just put on my third set of rotors. The car has 45,000 miles. After installing the new rotors I dial gauged the rotors and there was less than .001" of runout. I'm sure that in about 3 or 4 thousand miles that runout will increase and then I'll have to consider going to the shims.

A friend advised that instead of the shims I should find a service center that has an "on the car" brake lathe and let them cut the rotors while they are in place. They will have to have a machine accurate enough to cut within the .0015 tolerance.

Another problem that I learned about is that when you replace the rotors you have to clean up the hub mating surface as best you can, especially around the studs.

It is my belief that this whole problem is a manufacturer's defect that GM won't own up to. I believe that problem lies in either a poorly designed brake system or possibly a defect in the hubs that prevents them from running true. If the hub isn't running true then the rotors won't run true in relation to the pads. That is why the on the car brake lathe appears to be a viable solution.

In all the years that I have owned cars I always got at least 30k and sometimes more out of pads & rotors. but getting only 8k - 12 k is ridiculous and indicative of an inherent defect.

I could see if it were just me but I have been on other forums and I was amazed at how many people have posted about the same problem/complaint.

Guess I should've followed my instincts and stuck with the Blue Oval (Fords)

By the way the TSB on this problem is either 00-05-23-002B or 00-05-22-002B and you can download it in PDF format at the NHSTA Recall website.

Hope this is helpful.

Tony

[cjb24]

wanted to know if the cross drilled/slotted rotors will help the brake problem we are all having?

[hp1055cm]

I bought a 2000 Malibu Used in 2002 with 43,000 miles and do not know much of the prior history of the car. I wasn't too surprised when I had to overhaul the front brakes at 61,000 miles but my troubles were just beginning. I do not know alot about brake systems. Within a week of driving out of the brake shop I was back because of loud excessive squealing. The shop replaced the pads (with AC Delco)and I waited 3 weeks before returning with the same problem. They replaced the pads again and told me to drive it for awhile to see if the squealing would go away, which it did after about 4 weeks. It seemed like all was fine although the brakes gradually began to pulse and rumble. This week the rumbling noise got more severe and also had a loud grinding noise. It was apparent that something was contacting the rotars even when the pedal was not pressed.I took the car in today at 76,000 miles and 3 of the pads had moderate wear but one of the inside brake pads was worn beyond the pad. Luckily I was still under warranty and they overhauled the brakes again this time replacing the calipers.
From my perspective I got good customer service from the shop but heard varios opinions about the problem with each visit. On this visit they told me that the disc brakes on the Malibu were poorly designed and that the calipers were the primary source of the problem because they generated too much heat. I don't know the technical explanation but it seemed to make sense to me the way they explained it. Hopefully I will get better performance on these brakes.
I have been told that the rear drum brakes on my car are fine and have not required any service since I bought the car. It does seem to me that the front brakes bear the load of the car when stopping. As far as the GM specs being 12,000 miles on the brakes I think that is rediculous and I would expect to get about 3 times that it the brakes were properly designed.