when I brake lightly i get a crazy vibration that almost throws the car off road, i get a real bad pull to one side and my whole car like convulsize(sp) it happened after I hit a real big bump, I dont think its my brakes, can it be my suspension? shitty coilovers and ingalls kit, some days its not too bad other days it real bad, non of my rims seem bent so im not sure what the problem can be, any ideas to check?

Sean

 

i'd go ahead and check rotors, then check tire balance on the wheel thats on the side it pulls toward. but a front end alignment will probably fix your problem. check all these (usually when you have the front end aligned, they do these checks anyways.)

 

the brakes are fiarly new, the calipers are new, the rims are new and balanced, and the alighnment was done a few weeks ago, can a solid pothole hit affect alignment

 

Yep... that sounds like the problem

 

^^^ yeah that post was real helpful

Vibration when braking is almost always the rotors, there's really not anything else it could be. Have you loosened the lug nuts and tightened them without using a torque wrench lately? How about spraying cold water directly on the brakes after driving? These are the main causes of rotor warpage on regular daily-driven cars.

 

number of things can cause that...

warped roters (even if they're new, they still can get warped by rapid heating and cooling processes, or water hitting the roters after a drive

tire got a lump on sidewall or soft spot, causing it to make a lum lum lum lum lum lum noise, but not sure about while breaking

or tire balance is off, a weight got knocked off ur tire/rim causing you to be unbalanced, but thats a maybe

or your rim got bent, which isnt good, unless its a minor one.. but still, bent rim =

 

must make the girls go crazy!!

 

are there any black spots on any of your rotors??? if so, you want to either upgrade to new rotors, or else get those rotors resurfaced... i have some really bad warp damage on my driver side rotor, going down the strip @ 104 mph, i get lots of vibration... i have yet to fix that!

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by ..::91TEG-G2::.. &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">number of things can cause that...

tire got a lump on sidewall or soft spot, causing it to make a lum lum lum lum lum lum noise, but not sure about while breaking

or tire balance is off, a weight got knocked off ur tire/rim causing you to be unbalanced, but thats a maybe

or your rim got bent, which isnt good, unless its a minor one.. but still, bent rim = </TD></TR></TABLE>

I think all of those things would cause a vibration at all times, not just while braking.

It's gotta be the rotors if it only happens when braking.

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by PatrickGSR94 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

I think all of those things would cause a vibration at all times, not just while braking.

It's gotta be the rotors if it only happens when braking.</TD></TR></TABLE>


oops, yeah, i 4got to put that down.. DUH.. i put it down on another thread and guess i 4got to put it on this one.

but yeah, especially when you break on warped rotors, that'll cause you to shake/vibrate

 

Your lugnuts might be loose. i know it sounds stupid but it might be true though..

 

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by PatrickGSR94 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">

I think all of those things would cause a vibration at all times, not just while braking.

It's gotta be the rotors if it only happens when braking.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I'm inclined to agree with patrick. The brakes would be the first thing i'd check, the fact that the symptoms occur while braking is indicative of a brake related problem. However, i still would check the other things like wheel/tire balancing, lug nut torquing and the inspect the condition of the other suspension components along the front. The reason i suggest you check all is because, although the symptoms may be caused solely by a brake problem, that is not to say other problems may not exist as a result of "hitting a big bump".

my 2cents

 

thanks alot guys, I will look into it, it seems when the rotors get a little warm is when it starts, when cold they seem fine, and at hard braking its fine, its just at soft breaking once they are warm, so I figure rotors it is, thanks again for all the help

 

First off, 92_red_teg please have everything checked out alignment, etc.... Potholes will really do a number on your suspension. Sometimes they are so bad they damage a wheel bearing.

Second, the most common cause of shaking under braking is a rotor issue. This is just going to start a flame fest, but it is important to understand this:

Rotors do not warp from driving / braking. This is a myth that continues to be thrown around as the truth.

If you seriously bent/broke a wheel and damaged the hub/rotor, then maybe you can call it "warped".

This is a section I wrote from a thread over on G2IC: (please read) http://www.g2ic.com/forums/showthread.php?t=95188
There is a very crucial relationship between the pad and the rotor. The pad must lay down a layer of deposited material on the rotor surface to be effective. Using the incorrect pads for your application, or not properly bedding them in will ensure you have steering vibration under braking. When the deposits on the rotor become uneven the vibration will only get worse from there, as more and more material builds up on these high spots.

The most popular article that describes this condition is posted on StopTech's web site written by Carroll Smith.
http://www.stoptech.com/whitep...h.htm
I think it was Ben Ogle here on this board that pointed me towards Smith's books. I don’t' have it here in front of me, but it is some thing like "Tuned to Win" or something. Anyway, the books out there are written by guys who know far more than any of us. We should learn from their experience. I have also found from first hand stupidity that getting your greasy nasty paws all over a new/turned rotor is a bad thing. You want to try to avoid this.


http://www.baer.com/Support/Te...pID=4
http://www.baer.com/Support/Te...pID=5
http://www.stoptech.com/faq/data/faq25.htm
http://www.stoptech.com/faq/data/faq26.htm
http://www.hawkperformance.com/faq.cfm#Q3

 

Get yourself some scotchbrite pads and start cleaning the front rotors with them, thoroughly, then clean said rotors with solvent. See if this fixes or minimizes the problem. If it minimizes it, then try to go rebed the pads, which may fix it completely.

 

thansk alot, will be sure to look at the alignment and clean the rotors, thanks for all the greta info.