Hello! I'm a total newbie to both the forum and the world of TDI. I have a new (to me) 2004 Jetta TDI GLS. I hope someone can give me an idea about what might be causing a thump that happens when I brake. And yes, it's a thump, not a squeal, squeak, grind or anything like that.
Whoever had the car before me put aftermarket rims on it and the right front caliper was hitting the spokes. It was hitting hard enough that there was visible wear on both the caliper and the spokes. I thought this was what was causing the thumping because it seemed to make sense. The thumping was faster when the car was going faster and slowed as I came to a stop. This seemed to correspond to the caliper hitting the spokes.
I ground down the caliper to the point that it is no longer hitting the spokes, and I still have the thump.
I did have a mechanic look at it before I realized that the caliper was hitting. He found that the brake pads on it were practically brand new and of really low quality. He also found that the inner brake pad was loose in the caliper. He was able to tighten it but there is still more play in that pad than in the outer pad. I'm skeptical that this play is what is causing the problem because the noise didn't change at all when he tightened it.
If anyone can give me a suggestion for what to try next, I would really appreciate it!
Thanks,
Erin
Whoever had the car before me put aftermarket rims on it and the right front caliper was hitting the spokes. It was hitting hard enough that there was visible wear on both the caliper and the spokes. I thought this was what was causing the thumping because it seemed to make sense. The thumping was faster when the car was going faster and slowed as I came to a stop. This seemed to correspond to the caliper hitting the spokes.
I ground down the caliper to the point that it is no longer hitting the spokes, and I still have the thump.
I did have a mechanic look at it before I realized that the caliper was hitting. He found that the brake pads on it were practically brand new and of really low quality. He also found that the inner brake pad was loose in the caliper. He was able to tighten it but there is still more play in that pad than in the outer pad. I'm skeptical that this play is what is causing the problem because the noise didn't change at all when he tightened it.
If anyone can give me a suggestion for what to try next, I would really appreciate it!
Thanks,
Erin