Hi all,

As of late with the better weather I'm winding my windows down while driving and I can constantly hear my back end squealing when I brake. It doesn't seem to occur at low speed just when slowing down from a faster speed. I've had the rotors replaced or machined around 15,000km ago so I'm quite certain they are not the cause. Am I right to assume that the brakes are worn down and need to be replaced?
If so, - which pads should I get - QFM or Bendix? (Don't mean to open a can of worms!). I'm not really interested in any of the "performance" brake pads as I don't drive my car like a race car and I am confident the difference they would make without investing into better rotors would be negligible. I'm happy to do the work myself and I do have a written manual, but is there any special procedure or step that I should be aware of in the process of replacing the pads?

I've also got a bit of a hissing noise that sounds like something is rubbing at the back of the car. Its not a loud abrasive & harsh noise - rather like consistently rubbing a bit of steel wool together. My local KTAS near work was adament that this could the handbrake shoes or cable but I'm not sure. Is there any way I can check?

Lastly - I have not flushed my brake fluid since I bought it about 2 years ago. The spent some time being off the road for a good month or two so it wasn't driven that much - do I still need to flush the fluid? Anything I should take note of for the magna's when doing the flush? Any recommendations for which brand fluid I should use?

Thanks for all the help folks!

Regards,
TheKovac

Although it should've been checked when you had your discs machined, it may be worth your while to check their thickness just in case they are undersized - this will affect your braking performance.

As far as the hissing\rubbing noise go I'd be pulling off the rear brake disc and having a look at how much meat is left on the drum shoes and giving them a clean with some brake clean. Its also a good time to adjust your handbrake at the drum (aim for 6-8 clicks on the handbrake till it engages fully). The hissing\rubbing noise could also be from the pads vibrating in the caliper cradle in which case you can apply some anti squeal on the pad backings that meet the piston, and apply some moly grease to the caliper pins and the pad backing edges where they sit and meet the caliper cradle.

Personally I've found the QFM HPX and Super X range of pads to be great - never any issues with them as opposed to the Bendix Ultimates I had previously which were rubbish when cold and very dusty & noisy. I'd also highly recommend you change your brake fluid now as brake fluid is hygroscopic (absorbs moisture) and loses its effectiveness over time regardless of its use. 2 years is the usual service interval for flushing brake fluid - Castrol Super Dot 4 is my preference but anything with a Dot 4 or Super Dot 4 rating is fine to use - don't use Dot 5 as it is not compatible due to a different chemical compound and will damage your braking system.

cant help with the squel but i also suggest the qfm over the bendix for the same reasons nem listed

Definately the QFM, not just saying this because I sell them as I do also sell 2 other brands but for quiet and dust free, you can not go past them and they also operate under higher temps than many other pads as well

As Dan stated, do the brakes properly, you may even have a stone or twig stuck under there somewhere but best to give them a good look over

Sorry for the delayed response - but thanks heaps everyone for the help! A special thank you to Nem for his comprehensive writeup.

Unfortunately I've been flat out like a lizard drinking so I have not been able to look at the brakes yet.

Update: Today I handed my car into my local KTAS to have the tyres rotated who have now informed me that my front brakes are completely shot with almost nothing left on the pads. That is fine - but I question why does it seem that I get noises from the back then? The mechanic is adament this is because the noise "travels". I'm a bit skeptical to be honest. They want to charge $180 to replace the pads with the cheapest Bendix pads you can find. I would rather fit QFM pads if anything and prefer to do it myself - I just hope I don't have any issues with the "mechanic" letting my car go (I've heard of horror stories where they were refusing to let the car go due to being "unsafe" or threatening to void their free lifetime tyre rotations).

So I've done a bit of a search and I've got a service book for this car so if the fronts are shot then I will replace them. Any extra tips or links to good helpful guides? Everything seems pretty easy to follow bar the part with pushing the piston in so I can fit the new pads. Does anyone have a step-by-step guide on what exactly needs to be done at this point? Is there a video? I'm jsut not sure how to mount the clamp and then how its suppose to retract so I can fit in the new pads. I'm happy to buy the tool I need, if I need it, just what is called and where can I get it from? (link pls!)

Retracting pistons is easy. With the car jacked up and the wheel removed, use a screwdriver to gently lever the pad away from the disc. If the piston doesn't want to move, move the screwdriver to a different spot or use 2 at different points. Keep doing this until the piston is fully pushed in. Then unbolt the caliper and change the pads. Reuse the shims behind the pads. Brakes can get noisy if the shims aren't reused.