My wife's 95 Accord started making a squealing noise under braking. The car has been on these pads for ever, so I assumed that it was time for some new pads and machined rotors.

Well, over the course of the week, it got worse. Then one night, it got real bad, and I noticed that it would squeal even when I wasn't touching the brake pedal. After some experimentation, I discovered that it only squealed when the front right was under any kind of increased load.

Decelerating? Squeal. Accelerating? Squeal. Turn left? Squeal. Turn right? No Squeal. hmmm.

I jacked the car up & took the wheel off, and was scratching my head when I discovered that there was plenty of pad left.

What I DID find though was that the heat sheild looked very very close to the top of the rotor. Close enough that if I put any pressure on the back at all, it hit the rotor. I pushed it back and looked inside, and I could see a polished line inside where it had been rubbing. I leaned into it, bent it back about 1/2", and now the noise is gone.

The question is... how the hell does the brake rotor move in relation to the heat sheild? The wheel bearing feels tight and there is no play in the wheel at all.

 

It is probably the other way around. The shield more likely moving and coming in contact with the rotor.