When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
Hey there, my 2004 Acura TL has a strange problem I discovered when adjusting the handbrake the other day. I noticed that on both rear wheels, the rotor could be turned drag-free until a certain point for about 10-15 degrees, during which it would drag noticeably. I assumed this must be warped rotors, so I replaced them and the brake pads (they looked terrible too) and went to adjust the handbrake again yesterday, and I noticed that the problem is exactly the same. I have no idea what this could be. Could it be wheel bearings or something? I notice that during braking, there's a slight pulsing, but I don't know how serious the problem is.
Any ideas are appreciate, except maybe stupid ones. Thanks!
I assumed this must be warped rotors, so I replaced them and the brake pads (they looked terrible too) and went to adjust the handbrake again yesterday, and I noticed that the problem is exactly the same. I have no idea what this could be.
Yes, I got them adjusted properly but the dragging is bothering me.
don't know why but apparently it's easier to design an entire independent brake shoe system solely for the parking brake than it is to design a system to mechanically engage the brake calipers.
Yes, I got them adjusted properly but the dragging is bothering me.
I thought so.
There will be a little 'dragging' initially after adjustment. It will dissipate with drive wear to become a non-issue.
It only becomes a problem if it has an affect on the free wheeling brake fucntion of the rear rotor like overheating, excessive grinding etc while driving.
Rear brake adjustment can be finicky at times.
Really? That's odd. It's not constant, it's only when the wheel is at a certain angle, within a range of 10 degrees or so, so not much.
The parking brake, when you actuate the PB lever, is providing the satisfactory grip that you adjusted for?
If so, and there are no driveability issues with the rear brakes as mentioned above, I would not sweat it.
The same uneveness occurs on my CL-S six speed rear PB after an adjustment.
Yeah the handbrake is tight enough, I can just feel a slight pulsing when braking hard on the road. It's not terrible and since I'm on a budget still, I was probably just going to leave it alone unless it needed attention badly, at least until I've got the cash to fix it. I'm mostly just confused as to what in hell it could be that's causing the dragging only at a certain point.
The main issue isn't the pulsing, that's a small symptom of the problem. The problem mainly is that the rear wheels drag only for a small amount of rotation per revolution. Not sure it's a big deal since I can only detect the pulsing if I'm really feeling for it, but I thought it was weird that both rear wheels are acting like they are, even after replacing brake pads and rotors.
When I adjust mine, once I get the PB shoe locked, per below, I back off 6 clicks.
Try and turn the wheel again to get a feel as to how much drag is present.
If alot of drag is evident, back off one more click, turn the wheel again, so on & so forth.
Doing the same process on the other side.
Once I think I have it to my liking, then I fiddle with the PB lever to see if it is at
the adjustment height I like. If so, then a test drive is done. Sometimes revisiting
a few more times to get it 'dialed in'.
As stated, it can be finicky at times.
The process shown below is from the 07-08 TL Helms which is very similar to the
process in the 03 CL-S Helms.
When I adjust mine, once I get the PB shoe locked, per below, I back off 6 clicks.
Try and turn the wheel again to get a feel as to how much drag is present.
If alot of drag is evident, back off one more click, turn the wheel again, so on & so forth.
Doing the same process on the other side.
Once I think I have it to my liking, then I fiddle with the PB lever to see if it is at
the adjustment height I like. If so, then a test drive is done. Sometimes revisiting
a few more times to get it 'dialed in'.
As stated, it can be finicky at times.
The process shown below is from the 07-08 TL Helms which is very similar to the
process in the 03 CL-S Helms.
So, I should clarify: the dragging happens no matter how tight the shoes are. I was able to tighten the hand brake by spinning the rotor back and forth a little so that the drag spot was avoided. That way I could feel the tightness of the shoes without the drag spot throwing me off. But at a certain angle, no matter how tight the brake shoes were, the rotor dragged on both rear wheels.
IF it's not's the parking brake dragging or the main caliper, it more than likely is a bad spot in your wheel bearing that you are feeling.
Best way to check is back off the parking brake as far as it will go.
Remove the caliper.
Put rim back on and spin.
If you still have the drag it's certainly the bearing.
If no drag, it's either the parking brake or caliper since you removed them.
IF it's not's the parking brake dragging or the main caliper, it more than likely is a bad spot in your wheel bearing that you are feeling.
Best way to check is back off the parking brake as far as it will go.
Remove the caliper.
Put rim back on and spin.
If you still have the drag it's certainly the bearing.
If no drag, it's either the parking brake or caliper since you removed them.
It could be a damaged bearing, either internal or on the flange face where the rotor mates. Axial or radial runout could cause the uneven resistance with the park brake being separate.
the runout should be checked with rotor installed, wheel off and lug nuts tight. By the book, take the measurement on the pad surface of the rotor 10mm from the outer edge, if memory serves.
Harbor freight has a "Clamping Dial Indicator" for $35 if the OP doesn't have something similar already. perfectly adequate for this job.
If runout is ok, remove the rotor and check for smooth rotation of the bearing to check for other internal damage.
For some reason my email didn't notify me of these last few responses. I stupidly assumed it was the shoes and spent an eternity replacing them to no avail. Wish I could have seen this before because the bearing being bad is making a lot of sense now. I'll take the hub/bearings out and see what I can find out and replace them if they need to be.
Okay, so the right bearing/hub came off easy but the second I had to grind off half the bearing surface with a dremel because it broke off. The spindle that remains is pretty rusty near the backing plate and I nicked it a bit with the dremel. I'll upload pictures. Can I just fill it with some JB Weld or something? What do I do here?
JB Weld isn't going to hold up. Get a junkyard/recycler parts to replace it and go with a new wheel bearing. Same for the other side too but hopefully you can get the bearing off. Use some heat to help sweat it off the spindle vs cutting
Both wheels, you say...
Replace it...geez. And clean up that mess, too.
