Renualt CLio 1.2 brake and airbag problem

[Phoenix1]

Problem 1

This was long winded when i wrote it out so I'll try bullet points:

PROBLEM 1 - Brakes

1) Car bought 2yrs 7months ago - brake noise
2) Brake changed - assumed problem was due to car sitting about on forecourt for motnhs before I got it
3) New pads stop noise
4) 7 months ago new front brake pads
5) Same noise now, quick check shows no brake problems - any ideas?

PROBLEM 2 - airbag light

When you switch the car on the warning lights come on as normal to show they are working and disappear. Then after about 20 seconds (although sometimes up to 2 minutes) the airbag warning light comes on. Renualt want £75 just to look, any ideas? It might be coinsidence but both sidelight blow this week. Renualt suggested a loose wire but which wire and is the a diagram somewhere I can get my hands on so when a mechanic is fully checking my brakes we can look for an obvious problems.

[garcon]

Problem 1 - any obvious grooves on the discs? If the discs themselves are scored or uneven, they'll cause extra wear on the pads and are likely to make some odd noises. If this is the case, you might be able to skim the discs (basically take the top surface off), otherwise you may need new discs. Get a proper mechanic you can trust (i.e. not a Renault dealer fitter - he'd probably know less than you) to check them out.

Problem 2 - electrical problems on a Renault? Ooh, that's rare!! Can't really help here - it'd probably need an auto-electrician to check it out. Again, not a dealer - they probably hire an auto-electrician in to do anything electrical, hence the £75 just to look. And even then, you can't trust that they will - they'll just look for something relatively expensive to replace, which probably won't solve the problem. Then they'll say "well it can be tricky stuff this wiring" and charge you even more to replace something else irrelevant.

[Dave Brand]

What sort of brake noise? I assume it's squeal? As it seems to be reappearing after the pads have been in use for some time, it could well down to pad wear - it's possible, for example, that the pad groove is full of dust, that the pads have worn down to a critical thickness, the caliper mechanism may be sticking, etc., etc. Of course, it could just be cheap pads......

Believe me, brake squeal is a very complex problem - anybody who says he knows what causes it knows more than anybody in the friction material industry!

[garcon]

Too true - I had an Impreza with squealy brakes for ages. Never did track it down properly - could have been anything from pad compound to grooved/worn discs to excess brake dust getting into the mechanism and any number of other things. I gave up in the end and sold it with knackered discs!

[Phoenix1]

Renualt pads from Renualt dealer. Hubcaps have been off and jet spray put in to clear out brakes. Not some weak petrol station one either :-S

The squeak is high pitch.

[garcon]

All the time or just when brakes are applied?

[Phoenix1]

It only makes a noise when the brakes are NOT applied

[garcon]

Ah. Similar to mine at one point. Might need disassemble and reset the callipers (and clean them out properly). Could be build up of dust causing contact between pad and disc, which then gets 'sqeezed' when the brakes are applied.

[Phoenix1]

Thank you, will try that a week on saturday when the mechanic where I work can take a look properly. What sort of time does this take and is there anything I can do before other than try to hit the right areas with the jet spray?

[Dave Brand]

Originally posted by Phoenix1
It only makes a noise when the brakes are NOT applied

Known in the trade as 'twitter'!

Using a jet spray to clean brakes is NOT a good idea! Your problem may well be caused by the caliper not retracting properly, possibly due to water getting into the mechanism - subjecting it to a high presssure water jet could exacerbate the problem. You've got to do the job properly, which means removing the pads, cleaning everything thoroughly & lubricating the moving parts.

It may, of course, be a characteristic of the pads - don't assume that the manufacturer uses the best material for the job!

[Phoenix1]

Will try that - I'll let you know in a next week or course the more ideas the better but it looks like you all agree anyway :-)

[Phoenix1]

Sorted :-)

Loose wire for airbag

One of the pads was sticking sometimes (thankfully when it was being looked at this time!) All sorted by a mechanic friend in under 20 minutes rather than last time it happened Renault took 5 attempts and when I called up earlier in the week wanted £73 just to look at the airbag! (all they do in plug in a machine - I know I have done it before at work experience for the same company so £10 - £20 would be the most I would think they should charge).

Renault, over the phone to be fair to them on this one, said the noise was probably brake dust as they brakes are softer compounds then they used to use. However that's not an excuse for 7 months old brakes that have only done 4000 miles to be going up the creak, as it happened they where in perfect nick. Oh well my car is up and running again perfectly. Only one dint to remove now that someone so kindly left and then drove off without so much as a polite note - I'll note comment on the words used when saw that!

[garcon]

Glad to hear it's fixed Phoenix... As you say, at least someone at the Renault dealership was a) helpful over the phone, and b) had a vague clue what they were talking about...