Strange: Caliper hitting inside wheel after rotor change
guitarfish
01-23-2007, 07:13 AM
This is odd...
I have a 2002 Grand Prix GT, my son has a 1997. Many of the parts are the same, including the front brake rotors. Last week I replaced my rotors with new ones. I had the old ones resurfaced, and we installed these on my son's car last night.
When we test drove it, there was a knocking sound when braking hard. After about an hour of diagnosis, we found that the top outer part of the brake caliper was shiney, as was a line around the inside rim of the wheel. Somehow, the caliper and the wheel are close enough to rub.
I compared the old rotors to the new ones. Both have the same measurements as far as I can tell. The center of the rotor that sits between the hub and the wheel must be a bit thinner, which would allow the wheel to sit in closer - that's all I can come up with.
Has anyone heard of this before? I've gone through so many rotors through the years, I don't know who made the set in question. I can't imagine why the clearance would be so small that this could happen.
I'm going to have my son's original rotors resurfaced and put those back on, and hope that's the end of it.
I have a 2002 Grand Prix GT, my son has a 1997. Many of the parts are the same, including the front brake rotors. Last week I replaced my rotors with new ones. I had the old ones resurfaced, and we installed these on my son's car last night.
When we test drove it, there was a knocking sound when braking hard. After about an hour of diagnosis, we found that the top outer part of the brake caliper was shiney, as was a line around the inside rim of the wheel. Somehow, the caliper and the wheel are close enough to rub.
I compared the old rotors to the new ones. Both have the same measurements as far as I can tell. The center of the rotor that sits between the hub and the wheel must be a bit thinner, which would allow the wheel to sit in closer - that's all I can come up with.
Has anyone heard of this before? I've gone through so many rotors through the years, I don't know who made the set in question. I can't imagine why the clearance would be so small that this could happen.
I'm going to have my son's original rotors resurfaced and put those back on, and hope that's the end of it.
GTP Dad
01-23-2007, 07:33 AM
Check the bolts on the caliper and make sure they are correctly aligned. If the caliper didn't hit before the change it shouldn't hit after since you didn't change the wheels just the rotors. The caliper location and height should stay constant regardless of the rotor as long as the rotors are the same diameter. It the rotors were too large they would hit the inside of the caliper.
One other thing to check is the thickness of the center of the rotor. If it isn't as thick as the old ones then there is a possibility that the wheel was moved too close to the caliper and that would be a reason the wheel would hit.
One other thing to check is the thickness of the center of the rotor. If it isn't as thick as the old ones then there is a possibility that the wheel was moved too close to the caliper and that would be a reason the wheel would hit.
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