smoke and burning smell from wheel well

mattlee04gt · Apr 19, 2011

today on the way home from work i smelled a burning odor coming from my car. i pulled over to notice smoke coming from the wheel well. changed my front pads and rotors saturday. car doesn't seem to be driving differently at all. could it be the brakes? or is it my hub?

BlownFiveLiter · Apr 19, 2011

It's probably a brake dragging. Did you notice any difficulty compressing the pistons when you installed the new pads? Sometimes new brakes just burn off stuff that's in the pores of the cast iron, too. The coating they put on the rotors, to keep them from rusting gets deep into the pores and it's probably got a little residual coating yet to burn off, if the brake isn't dragging. If it's driving normally and you don't see any obvious signs of something burning, just keep an eye on it. It may not be a bad idea, to bleed the brakes and replace the fluid with new stuff if you find it to be dragging. There could just be some contaminants in the fluid and it's time for a change.

GDawg · Apr 19, 2011

You didn't mention if the wheel well where the smoke is coming from is where you also changed the pads. I would assume so. Sounds like your pads are dragging.

mattlee04gt · Apr 19, 2011

GDawg said:
You didn't mention if the wheel well where the smoke is coming from is where you also changed the pads. I would assume so. Sounds like your pads are dragging.

it is. what do you mean by dragging?

trinity_gt · Apr 19, 2011

mattlee04gt said:
it is. what do you mean by dragging?

He means the pads are forcibly in contact with the rotor, generating friction and heat.

It might mean an assembly problem, incorrect pads or rotor, the caliper sliders or piston are sticking or you may have some sort of hydraulic issue.

Did you have any issues doing the job? Was the piston difficult to move back into the caliper? Did the sliders come apart easily? Did the wheel spin freely before you put the car back on the ground? Did you have to bleed the brakes at all? How does the pedal feel?

mattlee04gt · Apr 20, 2011

trinity_gt said:
He means the pads are forcibly in contact with the rotor, generating friction and heat.

It might mean an assembly problem, incorrect pads or rotor, the caliper sliders or piston are sticking or you may have some sort of hydraulic issue.

Did you have any issues doing the job? Was the piston difficult to move back into the caliper? Did the sliders come apart easily? Did the wheel spin freely before you put the car back on the ground? Did you have to bleed the brakes at all? How does the pedal feel?

no. yes. yes. no. and feels normal. drove it today and had no issues except for a very faint same smell as yesterday. no wheels are any warmer than another. i dont get it.

GDawg · Apr 20, 2011

mattlee04gt said:
no. yes. yes. no. and feels normal. drove it today and had no issues except for a very faint same smell as yesterday. no wheels are any warmer than another. i dont get it.

The pads might have been really tight on the rotors but have settled in now.

mattlee04gt · Apr 20, 2011

hope so. i'll keep an eye on it.

merc123 · Apr 22, 2011

Check your fluid. If you have a squishy pedal or braking isn't normal you might have boiled the fluid which will require a flush.

fast97gt · Apr 22, 2011

the only question not asked, and not mentioned but did you not do a break in period after words?

mattlee04gt · Apr 23, 2011

haven't had any other problems out of it again. still keeping an eye on it though.

smoke and burning smell from wheel well

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