BodybyFisher Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 In July on my way back from Charlottesville, I was in about 60 miles (3 - 20 mile backups) in over 100 degree heat. After that trip I began getting a bad vibration on braking. I have a second set of rotors and I was going to swap them in today, thinking that my rotors had thickness variation. When I pulled the wheels, I noticed that my rotors were discolored from overheating. When I pulled the calipers I noticed that the pads were badly cracked both depthwise, and lengthwise, and they were lifting. I believe this is caused by excessive heat. Well I quickly found the cause when I tried to get the sliders out of the bushings, the sliders were frozen solid and it was hard to get them out. The slider 'lube' had dried up and turned gummy. I have to think that the heat created from the bumper to bumper stop and go traffic baked the grease and dried it up. This could also have been caused by inferior caliper grease also. I bought these rotors and pads slightly used (less than 1000 miles) and probably used caliper grease you buy at the parts store in the ketchup like packages you get at fast food restaurants. I replaced the pads and put on a set of resurfaced rotors and is nice an smooth, vibration gone with the exception of the vibration from the knuckle assembly which I am doing tomorrow. Discolored rotors from overheating Cracked pads Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bruce Nunnally Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Glad to hear another successful repair. One wheel's pads/rotor cracked I would guess sticking/dragging on that wheel. Multiple wheels' pads cracked up seems to suggest the brakes overheated due to situational use. Bruce 2023 Cadillac CT4-V Blackwing Follow me on: Twitter Instagram Youtube Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted October 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Glad to hear another successful repair. One wheel's pads/rotor cracked I would guess sticking/dragging on that wheel. Multiple wheels' pads cracked up seems to suggest the brakes overheated due to situational use. The interesting thing was that I didn't have any pulling or dragging, the sliders were badly frozen, locking the pads to the rotor, given how frozen the sliders were I am surprised I wasn't smoking from the front wheels. Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ted tcb Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Mike, I give you kudos for perseverance. It seems like the old girl is starting to insist that you spend every weekend underneath her, on your back, but not in a good way I figure you're almost finished, completing just about every repair, or is it simply time to start over on the older repairs now? 1989 FWD Fleetwood, Silver 1995 STS Crimson Pearl on Black leather 1997 STS Diamond White 1999 STS Crimson Pearl 2001 STS Silver 2003 STS, Crimson Pearl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted October 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Mike, I give you kudos for perseverance. It seems like the old girl is starting to insist that you spend every weekend underneath her, on your back, but not in a good way I figure you're almost finished, completing just about every repair, or is it simply time to start over on the older repairs now? You know its constant. But I took it for a ride last night and its amazing, the car is amazing. Today or tomorrow, I'll do the rear knuckle and when I get some extra cash, Ill order the front engine mount.. Lots of vibration on acceleration and it thumps pretty easily on take offs from a stop. Next on the plate however is the upper and lower intake manifold gaskets on my wifes 2002 Monte Carlo 3400. I hope that goes smoothly. Will post photos. Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted October 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Let me add that these were aftermarket brake pads, not AC Delco. I am not sure if that is related as I am sure that this was caused by my sliders being frozen causing the rotors and pads to overheat. On both sides I had difficulty pulling the calipers off of the rotors as the pads were clamped down on it. This is pretty amazing to me, as I am religious about cleaning and greasing the sliders. I have to think that this is related to the grease being inferior and boiling. For you cooks out there, the grease carmelized and became gummy. Sort of what happens when I overcook my Chicken Marsala recipe I bought some synthetic high temp caliper grease in a pint sized tube and greased the bushings as best I could. I want to add that I think that this 96 design has shortcomings and what I have been seeing with my brakes is the result of them. It is very difficult to get adequate grease on the slider and there are not a lot of nooks and crannies for the grease to be stored in the bushing. Once you grease the bushing and slider, and then push it through the bushing, the majority of grease is pushed out, very frustrating. So the slider is left with a thin coat of grease at best and the nooks and crannies hold a miniscule amount of surplus grease. I am curious when they abandoned this design. Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ted tcb Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Mike, I give you kudos for perseverance. It seems like the old girl is starting to insist that you spend every weekend underneath her, on your back, but not in a good way I figure you're almost finished, completing just about every repair, or is it simply time to start over on the older repairs now? You know its constant. But I took it for a ride last night and its amazing, the car is amazing. Today or tomorrow, I'll do the rear knuckle and when I get some extra cash, Ill order the front engine mount.. Lots of vibration on acceleration and it thumps pretty easily on take offs from a stop. Next on the plate however is the upper and lower intake manifold gaskets on my wifes 2002 Monte Carlo 3400. I hope that goes smoothly. Will post photos. I was at my garage yesterday getting an oil change. My mechanic was performing his 3rd intake manifold repair this week, all on late model 3.4l motors. He mentioned something about an updated gasket, less prone to failure ... as I recall, he said the job is around 4 hours. 1989 FWD Fleetwood, Silver 1995 STS Crimson Pearl on Black leather 1997 STS Diamond White 1999 STS Crimson Pearl 2001 STS Silver 2003 STS, Crimson Pearl Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted October 5, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Mike, I give you kudos for perseverance. It seems like the old girl is starting to insist that you spend every weekend underneath her, on your back, but not in a good way I figure you're almost finished, completing just about every repair, or is it simply time to start over on the older repairs now? You know its constant. But I took it for a ride last night and its amazing, the car is amazing. Today or tomorrow, I'll do the rear knuckle and when I get some extra cash, Ill order the front engine mount.. Lots of vibration on acceleration and it thumps pretty easily on take offs from a stop. Next on the plate however is the upper and lower intake manifold gaskets on my wifes 2002 Monte Carlo 3400. I hope that goes smoothly. Will post photos. I was at my garage yesterday getting an oil change. My mechanic was performing his 3rd intake manifold repair this week, all on late model 3.4l motors. He mentioned something about an updated gasket, less prone to failure ... as I recall, he said the job is around 4 hours. I spent $110 for the parts yesterday. My wife doesn't want me to do this job and I keep trying to tell her that if the job is not done the engine will be ruined. While we are getting divorced, I feel responsible for this job, the dealer gets about $1000 for it. There is a class action suit on the 3100/3400 engines, I will post a link later, for some reason I can't copy and post links. I need to restart, my laptop acts weird if I let it run for days not restarting it and just allowing it to stand by. Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JIMDTS Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 Hi Mike Eventually you will get your car fixed. Most of the time it’s not the lubricant that fails on the sliders. The lubricant get contaminated with brake dust & just gets all mucked up & freezes up. I use brake lube I have some friends who will use nothing but anti seize on the caliper pins. Sometimes I thinks it is better to use that I have never seen a caliper seize on cars that use anti seize on the pins. It has been my findings that new rotors are cheaper than used. By the time you buy used rotors get them turned sometimes it winds up costing more than just buying new ones. They do not have to be delco. If I recall there are only 2 major makers of rotors in the US & sometimes the parts are the same as delco just put into another box for resale. I don’t think heat caused your issues I bet it was brake dust or you could have bad calipers I have been down these roads some cars require a ton of unscheduled maintaince I just traded one of those cars in as they say sh** happens Good Luck JIm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KHE Posted October 5, 2007 Report Share Posted October 5, 2007 The brakes are designed to hold up to all types of traffic conditions - the failure was most likely caused by improper grease on the slider pins. I use the silicone grease that meets the GM spec. in the service manual - I have yet to have a problem with my '96 or the '97. While the '97 has the larger brakes, the '96 front brakes are identical to yours. Kevin '93 Fleetwood Brougham '05 Deville '04 Deville 2013 Silverado Z71 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ranger Posted October 6, 2007 Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 Mike, Where the dust boots intact on the slide pins? My daughter has the 3.4 in her '04 Grand Am. Am I in for a gasket change? What are the symptoms, coolant leak? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 Mike, Where the dust boots intact on the slide pins? My daughter has the 3.4 in her '04 Grand Am. Am I in for a gasket change? What are the symptoms, coolant leak? Yes the boots were intact, I think I must have used inferior caliper grease, you know the little packs they sell at parts stores that look like ketchup packs. She has had a coolant smell, coolant loss, slight overheating and the coolant in the radiator looks like honey, not sure why however unless oil is getting in the coolant.. Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 Mike, I give you kudos for perseverance. It seems like the old girl is starting to insist that you spend every weekend underneath her, on your back, but not in a good way I figure you're almost finished, completing just about every repair, or is it simply time to start over on the older repairs now? You know its constant. But I took it for a ride last night and its amazing, the car is amazing. Today or tomorrow, I'll do the rear knuckle and when I get some extra cash, Ill order the front engine mount.. Lots of vibration on acceleration and it thumps pretty easily on take offs from a stop. Next on the plate however is the upper and lower intake manifold gaskets on my wifes 2002 Monte Carlo 3400. I hope that goes smoothly. Will post photos. I was at my garage yesterday getting an oil change. My mechanic was performing his 3rd intake manifold repair this week, all on late model 3.4l motors. He mentioned something about an updated gasket, less prone to failure ... as I recall, he said the job is around 4 hours. I spent $110 for the parts yesterday. My wife doesn't want me to do this job and I keep trying to tell her that if the job is not done the engine will be ruined. While we are getting divorced, I feel responsible for this job, the dealer gets about $1000 for it. There is a class action suit on the 3100/3400 engines, I will post a link later, for some reason I can't copy and post links. I need to restart, my laptop acts weird if I let it run for days not restarting it and just allowing it to stand by. Here is the Canadian Class Action suit on the intake manifolds http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r18060155-...Manifold-Gasket Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigCat83 Posted October 6, 2007 Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 I'm originally from Massachusetts, having moved to Florida two years ago. Winter time up there raises h*ll with cars. The road salt just eats them up - you start having rust problems after 3 or 4 years. As part of my maintenance routine I would dis-assemble, clean and lube my brakes every spring (pain in the @$$ but...). The amount of brake dust, road salt and dirt that was in and around my brakes every spring was amazing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BodybyFisher Posted October 6, 2007 Author Report Share Posted October 6, 2007 The brakes are designed to hold up to all types of traffic conditions - the failure was most likely caused by improper grease on the slider pins. I use the silicone grease that meets the GM spec. in the service manual - I have yet to have a problem with my '96 or the '97. While the '97 has the larger brakes, the '96 front brakes are identical to yours. Yes I am sure it was related to inferior grease. I have to see if GM sells caliper grease separately. Pre-1995 - DTC codes OBD1 >> 1996 and newer - DTC codes OBD2 >> https://www.obd-codes.com/trouble_codes/gm/obd_codes.htm How to check for codes Caddyinfo How To Technical Archive >> http://www.caddyinfo.com/wordpress/cadillac-how-to-faq/ Cadillac History & Specifications Year by Year http://www.motorera.com/cadillac/index.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cadman1940 Posted October 8, 2007 Report Share Posted October 8, 2007 Mike, Where the dust boots intact on the slide pins? My daughter has the 3.4 in her '04 Grand Am. Am I in for a gasket change? What are the symptoms, coolant leak? Yes the boots were intact, I think I must have used inferior caliper grease, you know the little packs they sell at parts stores that look like ketchup packs. She has had a coolant smell, coolant loss, slight overheating and the coolant in the radiator looks like honey, not sure why however unless oil is getting in the coolant.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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