Loud grinding noise when braking.

gswede · Post by **gswede** » 04 May 2016, 11:46

Without the shims the brake shudder can be quite extreme. Especially when brakes are hot, and as you say, when coming to a full stop.
Remember mine shuddered like crazy, the whole car shook, impossible to tell if it comes from the front or rear. Shims fixed it.
Often times it seems as they go missing after a brake pad swap..

Nontechgirl · Post by **Nontechgirl** » 04 May 2016, 14:15

Thank you 850 LPT! I will add this to the list.

Nontechgirl · Post by **Nontechgirl** » 04 May 2016, 14:28

Thanks gswede! Shims are at the top of my list. Honestly, after all the research I have done, I'm pretty sure it's the shims. And again, we haven't checked the back brakes thoroughly, so I suspect it's the shims in the back. The back rotors look good and the pads have about 30-40 percent left in them. I've got a nice list going for the dealer.

gswede · Post by **gswede** » 04 May 2016, 16:05

No prob

30% left I'd change the pads and make sure shims are installed.

Post by **abscate** » 04 May 2016, 18:54

Nontechgirl wrote:Thanks gswede! Shims are at the top of my list. Honestly, after all the research I have done, I'm pretty sure it's the shims. And again, we haven't checked the back brakes thoroughly, so I suspect it's the shims in the back. The back rotors look good and the pads have about 30-40 percent left in them. I've got a nice list going for the dealer.

You actually have brake shoes inside the rotors in the back, which, especially if you have an automatic trans, often degrades into dust from non-use. That might be another source of noise.

Nontechgirl · Post by **Nontechgirl** » 04 May 2016, 19:09

abscate - Good to know! Adding to the list. Again, thank you very much!

Nontechgirl · Post by **Nontechgirl** » 06 May 2016, 16:23

Okay, I just got back from the dealer. And the winner is.............. gswede! He was spot on. But kudos to all the others who helped and gave valuable info. Everyone was on the right track.

YES, it was the rear shims! I swear, we all (me and the past mechanics) thought it was in the front. And, the vibration is SO loud, we all thought there was some type of grinding. The service advisor at Volvo knew within one minute what the problem was. He said it is very common in my car (I'm not sure what he meant - Volvos, 1995 or 850 or all), and that he has been working on Volvos for about 18 years, so he knows every sound and nook and cranny of this car. He said that I will most likely have this issue again in the next few years, as the shims don't seem to last that long. The parts were not in, so I go back next week. They will replace the rear pads and shims - all for about $175. I didn't have to pay today, so I think it's a good deal.

I guess I learned a lesson here. For minimal issues, I'm sure my local mechanic can fix. But for issues where they don't know what the problem is, I will go to the dealer. I just wish the first mechanic I went to several months ago would have been honest and said he didn't know what it was, instead of saying it was my front brakes and replacing everything. Oh well, the brakes were close to needing replacing anyway.

I will certainly come back here too, should I need any help again. This is a very trusted forum and I am so thankful I found it!

Sending you all a big hug for helping and answering my questions here. You were a big help. I went to the dealer loaded with your info, just in case they didn't know what the problem was. Better to be well informed.

Again, A BIG THANK YOU TO YOU ALL!

Post by **polskamafia mjl** » 06 May 2016, 17:13

Nontechgirl wrote:He said it is very common in my car (I'm not sure what he meant - Volvos, 1995 or 850 or all)

The P80 platform in general.

Let us know if the shims fix the problem.

Post by **BEJinFbk** » 06 May 2016, 20:24

Most larger population centers usually have reputable and reliable
independent shops that have serious Volvo expertise. In many cases,
they're a better option than the dealers. Especially with our older
P80 platform cars. It's worth sniffing around for a good indy.

Nontechgirl · Post by **Nontechgirl** » 06 May 2016, 22:55

Thanks, BEJinFbk. I wish I could find a good local mechanic that knows Volvos in and out. I mentioned in my earlier posts that I have been to 2 different local mechanics/shops, of which the second one, 4 mechanics drove and looked over my car for over an hour to no avail. The first shop is called European Auto and said they knew my car (they said the problem was the front brakes, which it was not) and the second shop has a mechanic that has worked on foreign cars for 20 years. Even the owner of the second shop did not know what the problem was, and suggested I go to the dealer. At least they were honest. I don't live in a big city, so that is why I went to the Volvo dealer. I was tapped out and could not afford to keep shopping around. I spent a lot of money replacing the front brakes, which in actuality, was not the problem.

The good folks here in this forum had the best answers, and had there been no dealer near me, I would have gone back to the second shop again (which I trust) with the info provided here to see if they could fix it.

Just thought I would share my info here in case someone else comes along with the same issue as I had, which was not about mechanics, it was about the horrible vibrating noise that no one could figure out.

Loud grinding noise when braking.

Re: Loud grinding noise when braking.