VX steering shudder when braking/shock absorber replacement

[Lex]

Thanks Pollushon,

Calipers aren't leaking though and my mechanic told me to leave them alone if they're OK. But again... preventative maintenance.

Can you do caliper kits and pistons yourself like the old Holdens? On my HGs I've always done these myself and never had to send calipers in for reconditioning.

The discs are no doubt top quality but a bit out of my price range for a second car. I have to keep an eye on costs as I have the A/C compressor to replace shortly and they're not cheap! ...but that's a topic for another thread

I'll speak to my brake supplier tomorrow and see what they recommend. They've always been very good with advice and price.

I'm hearing all these terrible stories about Pedders. I would have thought a big name like that would have been reputable. Shows how much I've been around!

You guys on here all know so much about your cars, you're extremely passionate and do a lot of research. I'm a stock standard guy so I tend to only research what I need to do. Being on the forums here I'm learning a great deal.

My daily driver HG was so simple with its suspension. All it ever needed was control arm bushes and new shocks. So simple and so easy to work on

I've rebuilt my calipers. The rear drivers side would slightly lock up. Not release properly. First l tried replacing with another set. Same problem, so l rebuilt the first set l took off. On the drivers rear caliper there was a sleight build up of crap, that would stop the piston from fully returning. Once they were rebuilt, they worked properly.

 

[Pollushon]

It's pretty rare calipers leak but your mechanic should know that no matter how well or often you flush them crud and moisture ends up trapped in the piston housing you can't get out, the inner seals become coarse and uneven, the dust boots let crap in and the slide pins wear. Man they cop some heat too, day in day out. It's one of those things you don't realise the difference til you do it. I do mine every 100k but I am hard on brakes. Calipers fundamentally haven't changed in ever, if you can do a HG you can do a VX, there's just two pistons per

 

[Sam_100]

I had a similar problem with brake shudder.. Started after I changed the fronts from OEM to Delco rotors. After a couple of machines switched to DBA slotted rotors. No joy. Would have to machine the rotors after every 5-7K km before it came back. Didn’t matter if the machining was done off or on the vehicle. Eventually went back to the OEM rotors and the problem was fixed.

 

[Darcon666]

LMFAO about Pedders, to use their quote "Straight advice, specialist you understand and... No Bull..." but we will take you to the cleaners, put you into debt for years, rape you and your wallet.

 

[mirrabucca]

I had the dreaded brake shudder at about 60,000 k's. Had the same problem with the car before this one - a 1991 Magna.
Step one - get discs machined. Much cheaper to take them off and take them to a reputable brake place. Make sure the disc mounting surface is clean before replacing them I did a runout check when I replaced them. All good for about 40,000 k's till I hit a puddle under hard braking...
Step 2: Put Bendix premium pads on. Bought a pair of slotted rotors and put them on. I then got the OEM discs machined so I could just swap them out when necessary (besides, it will only get dearer). That lasted around 50,000 k's. When it started to judder, I swapped the discs back to OEM (the reground ones) and got the slotted ones reground, ready. Now at 342,000 k's its got the DBA slotted on and the OEM's are ready for putting on when necessary. Pads? Cant remember but I get probably 80,000 to 100,000 k's. Its an auto and I do slow down on the gears mostly (without being stupid). And I do slow down rather then panic stop.
That's the front. The rears I did not long ago, around 280,000 k's? Cant be sure, there is a thread on it. I replaced the pads (original) and discs (original unground).. That's a job I wont have to do again!
So, after all that, go Bendix Premuim pads.

 

[Dunlop]

That suggest that it's not the rotors.
I would check tie rod ends, rack ends, rack mounts, worn bushes in the rack, lower control arm bushes and ball joints.

Probably better off taking it in for a suspension check at a suspension place.

Just a quick bit of advice here - if you take it to a specialist, I'd suggest you try to avoid Pedders - I had an experience where they said I needed to change the rack of a Pug 504 and it was a ball joint. Check reviews...https://www.productreview.com.au/listings/pedders-suspension-shock-absorbers

 

[Bay 13]

Stay away from Pedders, have you tried swapping the wheels around to see if its not the rim or tyer by replacing it with the spare, keep switching with the spare on each one too see if it goes away.
Pedders will tell you all your bushing will need to be replaced, then they will recommend new shocks and springs, new strut mounts, the list will be 2k min...

 

[VFCalais2017]

I had a similar problem with brake shudder.. Started after I changed the fronts from OEM to Delco rotors. After a couple of machines switched to DBA slotted rotors. No joy. Would have to machine the rotors after every 5-7K km before it came back. Didn’t matter if the machining was done off or on the vehicle. Eventually went back to the OEM rotors and the problem was fixed.

Thanks Sam_100,

I'm going to price OEM rotors through Holden if they're still available. I've always used genuine parts where available but for something like brakes you would think you could trust reputable brand aftermarket components.

Otherwise I'll look around to see what other affordable options I have available to me.

 

[VFCalais2017]

I had the dreaded brake shudder at about 60,000 k's. Had the same problem with the car before this one - a 1991 Magna.
Step one - get discs machined. Much cheaper to take them off and take them to a reputable brake place. Make sure the disc mounting surface is clean before replacing them I did a runout check when I replaced them. All good for about 40,000 k's till I hit a puddle under hard braking...
Step 2: Put Bendix premium pads on. Bought a pair of slotted rotors and put them on. I then got the OEM discs machined so I could just swap them out when necessary (besides, it will only get dearer). That lasted around 50,000 k's. When it started to judder, I swapped the discs back to OEM (the reground ones) and got the slotted ones reground, ready. Now at 342,000 k's its got the DBA slotted on and the OEM's are ready for putting on when necessary. Pads? Cant remember but I get probably 80,000 to 100,000 k's. Its an auto and I do slow down on the gears mostly (without being stupid). And I do slow down rather then panic stop.
That's the front. The rears I did not long ago, around 280,000 k's? Cant be sure, there is a thread on it. I replaced the pads (original) and discs (original unground).. That's a job I wont have to do again!
So, after all that, go Bendix Premuim pads.

Thanks Mirabucca,

I've always used Bendix pads on the car. I prefer a softer pad though so that it doesn't damage the disc. I'd rather wear pads down than keep replacing discs.

 

[VFCalais2017]

Stay away from Pedders, have you tried swapping the wheels around to see if its not the rim or tyer by replacing it with the spare, keep switching with the spare on each one too see if it goes away.
Pedders will tell you all your bushing will need to be replaced, then they will recommend new shocks and springs, new strut mounts, the list will be 2k min...

Thanks Bay 13,

Message understood about Pedders... steer clear! Lol

My father and I checked the car yesterday. He liked underneath while I bounced the front and rear of the car. No noises or loose or work bushes. Driving car forwards and backwards and checked for front torsion bar bush wear and everything was fine.

He suggested it might just be tyre noise and I'm inclined to agree now. The shocks are fine and no worn bushes. The tyres are Bridgestone Turanza Ecopia and are noisier than the old Toyo Proxes C100 Plus of which I ran two sets in a row.

The Ecopias have done 46,000kms and still have half the tread left on them so no time to change real soon.

No I haven't tried swapping the wheels over but it's worth a try. My gut is telling me that it's discs because it's happened to me twice before and each time the new discs fixed it.

I'm going to look at my options with different discs and pads. The car is semi-retired now and doesn't get a great deal of use. Next year it may go into full retirement until it turns 30 and is eligible for club registration. The discs should last a lifetime on the occasional club run