R/R Brake Squeaks Until Brakes Are Applied

My right rear break squeaks unless I'm on the brakes. It's not a constant squeak its a "squeak squeak squeak squeak" type of squeak. If that makes sense... It speeds up with vehicle speed and slows when I slow down without touching the brakes. I'm going to take the wheel off and look around but before I do that I wanted to get some ideas of what to look for. Also, my ABS light is on (in turn not allowing my trac. control to work...which I would turn off anyways but its kind of annoying). I will be going to my mechanic today to see if he can bull the ABS code for me. Also, brake pads look good from what I can tell through the wheels and brake fluid isn't low. I've had no issues with stopping.
 
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Lube the slide pins and where the pad touches the bracket.
Retorque the bracket to caliper bolts and the bracket to backing plate bolts.
Use some of the red anti-squeal lubricant between the inner pad and the piston and the outer pad and the caliper.
 
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Thanks guys. good info.
@ Jman900 I will be printing that out and doing some reading on it later on today. thanks
@ 95PGTTech after I replace my O2s Ill get this done. You think a brake shop automatically does this? or should I request it be done just in case? Usually I do stuff myself but when it comes to brakes I prefer to leave it to someone who will fix my car if something goes wrong haha
 
Thanks guys. good info.
@ Jman900 I will be printing that out and doing some reading on it later on today. thanks
@ 95PGTTech after I replace my O2s Ill get this done. You think a brake shop automatically does this? or should I request it be done just in case? Usually I do stuff myself but when it comes to brakes I prefer to leave it to someone who will fix my car if something goes wrong haha

Unfortunately, no. I'll admit that even when I do it at the shop, I'll check quickly to make sure the slide pins still move without binding and hit the hardware with a wire brush while cutting the rotors. Unless grease came in the brake pad box (usually not) the car is not getting it - customers typically bitch up a storm when even the smallest charges are added to a bill. My recommendations come from first hand frustration of chasing down a R/R intermittent brake squeal on my 98 Cobra - replaced pads, rotors, calipers.

Another thing you can do is loosen the anti-moan bracket clamp (on the axle) and retorque it after you torque the bracket-to-caliper bolts. This is obviously assuming the pads and rotors are new and the calipers are in good shape. Also, keep in mind that although many parts stores list Cobra rear brakes pads as the same P/N as GT and V6, they are same shape but thinner to account for the thicker rear Cobra rotor.
 
That is a good point on the thinner pads. Not many people know that and I forgot about that. The guy who owned the car before me for some reason did not use the regular lugs on this wheel. they are more like nuts for wheels. you can see the stud through it. Makes me wonder if something happened to this wheel. I will have to get it on a rack and look over it.
 
That is a good point on the thinner pads. Not many people know that and I forgot about that. The guy who owned the car before me for some reason did not use the regular lugs on this wheel. they are more like nuts for wheels. you can see the stud through it. Makes me wonder if something happened to this wheel. I will have to get it on a rack and look over it.

Most parts stores list them as all the same P/N. Not knowing this, I was chasing my tail bigtime the first time I had to do rear brake pads and rotors (my 98 Cobra was my first Mustang as well). Although I worked at a Ford dealership for a long time, I did 1-2 sets of rear brake pads on Mustangs and both were GTs (I was a diesel tech). Eventually I just used my bench beltsander that I use for fabrication and trimmed them down slowly as replacements were a 3 day order away.
 
This isn't my first Mustang. Just my first Cobra. I had a GT before this which is why I forgot the Cobra pads are thinner. They did smell like burning break the first time I took it for a cruise so this could be very possible. I don't know why it would only be on one side though.
 
I'd look into the caliper itself, sounds like it is not retracting the pad off the rotor when you release the brakes if you have a burning smell. Sometimes with these twist in calipers they twist back in with some effort but aren't working correctly due to the integrated parking brake.

The 98 was my first Mustang which was part of the reason I was chasing my tail, I did not know that about the pads. They fit on the bracket just fine but the caliper then doesn't fit over them and I'm sitting there like WTF!!!
 
i have found sometimes its a piece of something in pad itself,,

the set i have now squealed when hitting on 1st pump.2nd squeal would be gone..took about 6 months until it stopped..

if rotor was cut..not going in far enough and pad is rubbing on groove in rotor..

also there is anti-squeak for pad side to stop squeals,,found at any parts store..its like what they did on backside
 
Hey Black99SVT, did you ever fix this issue?

I'm actually having a nearly identical issue with my GT as well. This past year as I have started to drive with the windows down again, I noticed the same "squeak, squeak, squeak" varying with speed. I've got no idea how long it's been doing this for and I really only hear it with the windows down when I am near something that can bounce the sound back to me. At this point I am assuming it's the brakes since I noticed that the sound goes away when the e-brake is applied.

I actually had assumed it was coming from the left rear since that is typically where I thought I was hearing the noise from. However I took both wheels off today and noticed that the right rear caliper will actually move when the brakes aren't applied. The mounting bracket is tight however so it's the caliper itself that moves in relationship to the mounting bracket and the pads. And the movement I am describing definitely isn't movement along the travel of the slide pins. I think the squeak is coming from the clips that are on top of the pad rubbing against the caliper. When the brake is applied the caliper won't move and the squeak stops.

I tried tightening all the bolts and the caliper still moves. I even replaced the slide pins since I had a spare set in the garage but that didn't make a difference either. Is it possible that the caliper is slightly deformed causing it to move? I do remember when I did a brake job last year that I had an awful time trying to line up the slide pins and bolts on that side. Has anyone ever had a similar issue? Is my best option to replace the caliper and bracket?
 
Hey Black99SVT, did you ever fix this issue?

I'm actually having a nearly identical issue with my GT as well. This past year as I have started to drive with the windows down again, I noticed the same "squeak, squeak, squeak" varying with speed. I've got no idea how long it's been doing this for and I really only hear it with the windows down when I am near something that can bounce the sound back to me. At this point I am assuming it's the brakes since I noticed that the sound goes away when the e-brake is applied.

I actually had assumed it was coming from the left rear since that is typically where I thought I was hearing the noise from. However I took both wheels off today and noticed that the right rear caliper will actually move when the brakes aren't applied. The mounting bracket is tight however so it's the caliper itself that moves in relationship to the mounting bracket and the pads. And the movement I am describing definitely isn't movement along the travel of the slide pins. I think the squeak is coming from the clips that are on top of the pad rubbing against the caliper. When the brake is applied the caliper won't move and the squeak stops.

I tried tightening all the bolts and the caliper still moves. I even replaced the slide pins since I had a spare set in the garage but that didn't make a difference either. Is it possible that the caliper is slightly deformed causing it to move? I do remember when I did a brake job last year that I had an awful time trying to line up the slide pins and bolts on that side. Has anyone ever had a similar issue? Is my best option to replace the caliper and bracket?


I replaced my calipers, brackets, rotors, and pads, multiple times. Still had it. Replaced the hardware, greased, torqued, rinse and repeat. Kept having the same noise and I chalked it up to a very slightly bent axle or tube or a design flaw. Frankly, I can't hear it unless I'm windows down, no radio, push the clutch in and let the engine idle.