squeaking brakes and tire wear help!

[battlekat49]

i replaced my brake pads and rotors over a year ago on my 99 v6 and theyve squeaked on and off ever since. ive had to take it back apart atleast 4x and wiped down the rotor with brake parts cleaner and scuffed up the pads with 600grit to get rid of the glazing but sure enough it will start squeaking again a few days later. i also grease up the friction points on the tabs that the pads have.
the strange thing is that they tend to squeak when i first drive the car after its been sitting a while and tends to get less severe or stop altogether after a bit of driving.
i cant think of what else to do besides buying new pads but i figure if im gonna do that i might as well replace the caliper with something better, like the 2-piston caliper from an es300.
so my question is what other troubleshooting can i do before i just tear out the caliper and pads and upgrade them?

part 2 to my post is that i put h&r springs on my car (with the factory struts) for about a 1.4" drop in the front and 1.3" in the rear and i get an alignment done atleast once a year but i still get excessive wear on the inside of the front tires. ive read that anything less than 1.8 or 2" doesnt really require a camber kit but i figure i might as well get one but dont know if theres a difference in quality between a cheap $20 ebay ( http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/AVALO...#ht_1183wt_967
) camber it or the $50 H&R Triple C (http://www.horsepowerfreaks.com/View...iple_C_-_Front). i feel more comfortable getting the H&R kit.

Thanks in advance for your suggestions.

[DxElite]

For the brake squeaking problem, have you taken them off and inspect them? Sometimes if they're cracked on the face or on the side, it'll tend to squeal. I've had mines squeal after half a year and found that they were cracked so I got warranty replacements and the squealing stopped.

As for the tire wear, when you get it aligned they can adjust the camber for you. If it's really eating the inside that much, ask if they can adjust it to stop the excessive wear.

[Mike Gerber]

Do the brake pads you are using have antisqueal shims on the backs? If not, did you put any compound on the backs of the pads to absorb the vibration? Many times brake squeaking is caused by vibration of the pads in the caliper, not the pad material itself. The shims and/or the compounds applied to the back, absorb this vibration and eliminate the noise.

Mike

[battlekat49]

Originally Posted by DxElite

For the brake squeaking problem, have you taken them off and inspect them? Sometimes if they're cracked on the face or on the side, it'll tend to squeal. I've had mines squeal after half a year and found that they were cracked so I got warranty replacements and the squealing stopped.

As for the tire wear, when you get it aligned they can adjust the camber for you. If it's really eating the inside that much, ask if they can adjust it to stop the excessive wear.

like i said, ive taken them off and noticed that they were glazed over so i sanded them with 600grit til the gloss was gone. i cant be certain that i saw cracking on them but a part of me wants to say that there may have infact been a crack in there. i'll see if i have time this week to check them out again. the next time i check them im also going to go ahead and scuff up the rotors themselves with the 600grit then hit them with brake cleaner again.

as for the tire wear. they told me at the alignment shop that there is only so much they can do with the camber due to the changed geometry of my suspension and said that what they do is change the toe angle to reduce the tire wear on the inside. here is what the printout they gave me says:
Camber: (L) -0.5 degrees (R) -0.9 degrees
Caster: (L) 2.3 degrees (R) 2.6 degrees
Toe: (L) 0.04" (R) 0.04"

Originally Posted by Mike Gerber

Do the brake pads you are using have antisqueal shims on the backs? If not, did you put any compound on the backs of the pads to absorb the vibration? Many times brake squeaking is caused by vibration of the pads in the caliper, not the pad material itself. The shims and/or the compounds applied to the back, absorb this vibration and eliminate the noise.

Mike

i think they do. theyre duralast ceramic pads, and on the back it has a foil label with the brand on it. i would imagine that it would dampen vibration because it gives a bit of cushion. they gave me brake part lubricant when i bought the pads and i put it on the back as well as the tabs on either side.

[JohnGD]

Try Akebono ProAct ceramics? Check rockauto.com for prices. TN has a 5% discount code (don't know where). Google maybe?

www.akebonobrakes.com

[battlekat49]

Originally Posted by JohnGD

Try Akebono ProAct ceramics? Check rockauto.com for prices. TN has a 5% discount code (don't know where). Google maybe?

www.akebonobrakes.com

i couldn't find a code for the site besides one on a mercedes site that might already be expired. the price seems decent though.

[AkebonoDC]

Just a thought.If the pads are squeaking after the vehicle is parked then after driving it stops squeaking,it could be a moisture problem.Some friction materials are more sensitive to moisture than others.The friction material can absorb moisture during the time the car is parked.The pads are moist during the first several brake applications.Once the pads are heated and the moisture is forced from the pads the noise stops.I have witnessed this several times especially in very moist climates.

[battlekat49]

Originally Posted by DxElite

For the brake squeaking problem, have you taken them off and inspect them? Sometimes if they're cracked on the face or on the side, it'll tend to squeal. I've had mines squeal after half a year and found that they were cracked so I got warranty replacements and the squealing stopped.

i checked the pads and both pads on the front passenger side have small cracks on the face. i took the back plate off all 4 pads incase that was causing any squeaking also. as i rolled the car out of the garage it was still squeaking though. i wasnt able to tell if there was any squeaking coming directly from the front driver side so its sounding (no pun intended) like the cracks on the passenger side pads could be the culprit?

[JohnGD]

Maybe the problem is Duralast Ceramic??

That's why for typical non-performance driving I'd always recommend Akebono ProAct Ceramic. Check rockauto.com for prices. These are quiet even without shims.

www.akebonobrakes.com

Originally Posted by battlekat49

i think they do. theyre duralast ceramic pads, and on the back it has a foil label with the brand on it. i would imagine that it would dampen vibration because it gives a bit of cushion. they gave me brake part lubricant when i bought the pads and i put it on the back as well as the tabs on either side.