hi,

i have an 82 with 78k miles. my front rims seem to be hotter than what i would expect. after about 5 miles the front right is warm/hot to the touch and the front left is hot. i read the older post 'hot brake' on replacing the rubber tubes and mine have been replaced with the steel braider lines some time ago. (done before i bought it a year ago) i have driven it about 20 miles andthe rims seem just as warm/hot as after 5 miles, maybe a little hotter. i took off the front left caliper and the pads a good and i cleaned the boots etc. ther ejust seems to be to much pressure from the pads to the rotors. or do these run warm/hot as normal?

mark v

|UPDATED|5/26/2004 11:36:04 AM (AZT)|/UPDATED|

They always have the pad in contact with the rotor, so they do get warm when the brakes are not being used.

The heat from braking really heat them up if you do a lot of braking. Normal driving will make them warm, and you likely can't touch the rotor or pad, but touching the rim should not be a problem.

Do the wheels turn easily after releasing the brakes? If so you are probably okay. If they drag there is a problem

Problems include the hoses, sticking pads, sticking calipers, and master cylinder not releasing.

with the tire on it does rotate freely but with the pads always in contact. with the tire off the rotor is a little hard to get moving at firt but does rotate.

i can touch the rim after use and it is hot but still touchable. but i would not want totouch it for very long.

i also has an 88 Chrysler Conquest with rotors all around and they spin much more freely and are almost never hot to the touch unless driven very hard. i just assumed these would be basically the same.

thanks, i will look into it a bit more.

mark v

As soon as you return from a trip jack up the front wheel that seems hottest and see how freely it turns. If the caliper is locking up due to a bad hose it will be especially hard to rotate, as it cools it will free up enough to rotate, but will be tight, which sounds like your description. Does the Vette pull to the hot side when driving? Especially when you apply the brakes? Can you smell the burnt brakes? Mike

Also, if the rotors are hard to turn, try cracking open the bleeder valve to see if they release. Of course, this will make it necessary to bleed the front brakes. If you can't get fluid through the bleeder when bleeding, try disconnecting the brake line at the hose fitting and see if you get fluid there. If so, bad hose. Do you really know how old they are? Mike

i do not know really how old they are.
i will try the bleeder but i can push in the pads and hear/feel the fluid returnibg back to the master cylnder. i first opened the fluid lid.

mark v

this is another thing to look at ...

have you checked your front wheel bearings..

this can cause a huge amount of friction heat..

the hubs on the front of my 80 chevy 4x4 were getting very hot and the paint actually burned off..

changed the wheel bearing and they barely get warm now...

Well, if there's evidence of fluid returning to the master cylinder when the pads are compressed then it's not likely the hoses. But how much resistance is there when turning the rotor? I also like Ben's suggestion of the wheel bearings, tho. Something to look at. I too had a bearing problem in an old beater Chrysler. Cooked em. Looked like someone burned them up with a torch! Mike

thats a very good point, the bearings, i will check them tonight.

mark v

Mark,

An overlooked point in comparing your vette to your Chrysler, is that the vette weighs 3,400lbs. I don't know what your Chrysler weighs, but that's a lot of inertia to slow down. Good luck in finding your answer.

Alan