Brakes Making Vibrations and Weird Noises

[hdubf80]

Hi Everyone,

I have a 2015 ///M3 with steel brakes and about 4000 miles on the odo. I did the break in procedures for the brakes and tires properly but I've been having some issues since the beginning while braking especially when its a hard stop or slowing down from high speeds. The brakes make a loud grinding/vibrating noise which fills up the cabin and can be felt through the wheel. My service tech checked the car and said everything was ok. I thought it would go away after a few thousand miles but it hasnt. Anyone ever experienced this or have any input on what it could be and how i could remedy this? This shouldn't sound like that on a brand new car and is kinda embarrassing with passengers. Thanks in advance for your feedback.

[TRZ06]

Originally Posted by hdubf80

Hi Everyone,

I have a 2015 ///M3 with steel brakes and about 4000 miles on the odo. I did the break in procedures for the brakes and tires properly but I've been having some issues since the beginning while braking especially when its a hard stop or slowing down from high speeds. The brakes make a loud grinding/vibrating noise which fills up the cabin and can be felt through the wheel. My service tech checked the car and said everything was ok. I thought it would go away after a few thousand miles but it hasnt. Anyone ever experienced this or have any input on what it could be and how i could remedy this? This shouldn't sound like that on a brand new car and is kinda embarrassing with passengers. Thanks in advance for your feedback.

This has been covered several times in various threads.

Bottom line... It's the pad compound.

[hdubf80]

Originally Posted by TRZ06

This has been covered several times in various threads.

Bottom line... It's the pad compound.

Thank you for the reply and the clarification. Hope there is a easy fix for this...

[KmanEng]

Happens on mine too. Only under heavy braking. I don't think I've ever had a passenger in the car when I've driven that hard though.

[hdubf80]

Originally Posted by KmanEng

Happens on mine too. Only under heavy braking. I don't think I've ever had a passenger in the car when I've driven that hard though.

This is my only complain with the car. And for a $80,000 + car bmw needs to address this issue especially with all the money they make. I hope enough people complain about this so they provide us with a decent fix.

[bradleym]

Originally Posted by hdubf80

This is my only complain with the car. And for a $80,000 + car bmw needs to address this issue especially with all the money they make. I hope enough people complain about this so they provide us with a decent fix.

There isn't really anything for BMW to do -- it is likely a matter of how you treat the brakes when brand new. I didn't see this issue on my F80, but have had other cars where i'd experience the 'shimmy' while braking from say, 70-50, sometimes so bad the steering wheel would shake.

to the best of my understanding, this is caused by clamping the (hot) brakes after a stop while they are new, before the pads have settled in. under these conditions, it can happen that a microscopic amount of the pad will transfer to the rotor and form an imperfection that is impossible to see, and only exhibits this behavior at certain speeds.

the only fix i know of is to replace the rotor (perhaps merely turning it will work -- i'm sure these are expensive rotors) and pads. then, for first few miles, be very careful not to sit at stoplights or elsewhere with the brakes clamped tight when they are hot. with the dct, this isn't too difficult, and it is what i did when the F80 was new. in my volvo, i simply use the handbrake after stopping to keep the car stationary.

after, say, 100 miles your pads/rotors should be well matched and this is no longer an issue. hope this helps.

[TRZ06]

Originally Posted by bradleym

There isn't really anything for BMW to do -- it is likely a matter of how you treat the brakes when brand new. I didn't see this issue on my F80, but have had other cars where i'd experience the 'shimmy' while braking from say, 70-50, sometimes so bad the steering wheel would shake.

to the best of my understanding, this is caused by clamping the (hot) brakes after a stop while they are new, before the pads have settled in. under these conditions, it can happen that a microscopic amount of the pad will transfer to the rotor and form an imperfection that is impossible to see, and only exhibits this behavior at certain speeds.

the only fix i know of is to replace the rotor (perhaps merely turning it will work -- i'm sure these are expensive rotors) and pads. then, for first few miles, be very careful not to sit at stoplights or elsewhere with the brakes clamped tight when they are hot. with the dct, this isn't too difficult, and it is what i did when the F80 was new. in my volvo, i simply use the handbrake after stopping to keep the car stationary.

after, say, 100 miles your pads/rotors should be well matched and this is no longer an issue. hope this helps.

NOPE

I have driven multiple F80/82 M's and they all do regardless of miles

[SakhirM4]

Originally Posted by TRZ06

NOPE

I have driven multiple F80/82 M's and they all do regardless of miles

Don't have that problem with my M4, so they don't all do it.

[bradleym]

Originally Posted by TRZ06

NOPE

I have driven multiple F80/82 M's and they all do regardless of miles

pretty definitive, eh?

i've driven several F80s as well, including my own -- there has been no vibration under braking, and the only sound was at the beginning, under braking they sounded a bit like the energy recapture system on a p1 car, but that went away after a bit.

if not what i described above, what IS the cause of this issue?

[Powerslide]

My brakes do this too - off and on - sometimes it is there - sometimes it is not. It most commonly happens while decelerating above 40 mph. I've had 2 sets of front rotors/pads replaced under warranty and 1 set of rears under warranty for "warped rotors."

I brake the same way on the F8x as all my previous cars - have never had this issue on any other car. For the last set of rotors and pads I made sure to break them in exactly as stated in the owners manual - and noticed no vibration or sound during that break-in period. But then several hundred miles after the break-in mileage had been surpassed - it came back again - but only 50% or so of the time.

Maybe it is just the pad compound - maybe it is winter road conditions - or - sometimes I feel that maybe I don't apply the brakes hard enough. Hopefully one of us will figure it out - as this has been reported by quite a few forum members...

[hdubf80]

Originally Posted by Powerslide

My brakes do this too - off and on - sometimes it is there - sometimes it is not. It most commonly happens while decelerating above 40 mph. I've had 2 sets of front rotors/pads replaced under warranty and 1 set of rears under warranty for "warped rotors."

I brake the same way on the F8x as all my previous cars - have never had this issue on any other car. For the last set of rotors and pads I made sure to break them in exactly as stated in the owners manual - and noticed no vibration or sound during that break-in period. But then several hundred miles after the break-in mileage had been surpassed - it came back again - but only 50% or so of the time.

Maybe it is just the pad compound - maybe it is winter road conditions - or - sometimes I feel that maybe I don't apply the brakes hard enough. Hopefully one of us will figure it out - as this has been reported by quite a few forum members...

Would getting aftermarket pads remedy this?

[jritt@essex]

It sounds like you may possibly have uneven pad deposits on your discs. As described above...at some point when the brakes were hot, some pad material got stuck to the face of the disc. That pad material creates a high spot, and every time the disc spins past the caliper the pad hits that hump on the disc causing a vibration. The only potential solution if that is the problem is to scrub the disc and start over with a fresh bed-in procedure.

That said, if the noise is really that sever and causing an actual grinding noise (not vibration) in the cabin, it could be something different. Have you actually pulled the pads out and inspected them? Believe it or not, sometimes debris gets caught in a caliper (small rocks, etc.), and can make a mess of things.

These issues are tough to diagnose without actually seeing the car. Describing noises is always tricky!

If you do want to try a different set of pads, we have a great Ferodo compound that is perfect for the street/autoX...DS2500. We have it front and rear for the F80.

Front

Rear

[hdubf80]

Originally Posted by jritt@essex

It sounds like you may possibly have uneven pad deposits on your discs. As described above...at some point when the brakes were hot, some pad material got stuck to the face of the disc. That pad material creates a high spot, and every time the disc spins past the caliper the pad hits that hump on the disc causing a vibration. The only potential solution if that is the problem is to scrub the disc and start over with a fresh bed-in procedure.

That said, if the noise is really that sever and causing an actual grinding noise (not vibration) in the cabin, it could be something different. Have you actually pulled the pads out and inspected them? Believe it or not, sometimes debris gets caught in a caliper (small rocks, etc.), and can make a mess of things.

These issues are tough to diagnose without actually seeing the car. Describing noises is always tricky!

If you do want to try a different set of pads, we have a great Ferodo compound that is perfect for the street/autoX...DS2500. We have it front and rear for the F80.

Front

Rear

Ill see what my SA can do next time i take it in for a wash

[TRZ06]

Originally Posted by hdubf80

Ill see what my SA can do next time i take it in for a wash

I've gone thru that with my SA.

They even pulled the rotors, measured them for runout, everything within spec.

SA (shop foreman) even went out of his way to drive the 3 M's that were on the lot, they all did it.

He even acknowledged the noise, but said there was nothing to do and called it normal.

[TRZ06]

Here is my paperwork

[Powerslide]

Originally Posted by TRZ06

Here is my paperwork

In addition to the groaning noise - did you also feel a little bit of vibration through the steering wheel? Sometimes I get the vibration through the steering wheel - sometimes I don't (decelerating above 40 mph).

[hdubf80]

Originally Posted by Powerslide

In addition to the groaning noise - did you also feel a little bit of vibration through the steering wheel? Sometimes I get the vibration through the steering wheel - sometimes I don't (decelerating above 40 mph).

I get the vibration with the groaning/drone noise under hard deceleration above 40. Im wondering if it's an issue with the deposit on the disc how come it doesn't do it below 40 and how come it comes and goes? This is the my only issue I have with the car and for it to be an ///M is upsetting. I expected more from their engineers

[AUTOX08MC]

My experience is that drilled rotors make a very distinctive noise that could be described as groaning/droning at times

[TRZ06]

Originally Posted by AUTOX08MC

My experience is that drilled rotors make a very distinctive noise that could be described as groaning/droning at times

That's not true at all.

I have had many cars with stock drilled rotors now (including the E90 M3), and none of them do what these brakes do.

[phantome46]

I have exactly the same issue with mine - its been into the dealers twice and both times they have given it back saying nothing is wrong.

I think for such an expensive car this should not be an issue. I carefully bedded my discs and pads in as per advice and mine has developed as the car has got older.

Wish there was a fix for this?

[hdubf80]

Originally Posted by TRZ06

That's not true at all.

I have had many cars with stock drilled rotors now (including the E90 M3), and none of them do what these brakes do.

Same here. My e60 M5 never had this problem.

[hdubf80]

Originally Posted by phantome46

I have exactly the same issue with mine - its been into the dealers twice and both times they have given it back saying nothing is wrong.

I think for such an expensive car this should not be an issue. I carefully bedded my discs and pads in as per advice and mine has developed as the car has got older.

Wish there was a fix for this?

Me too. Its ridiculous to have this issue. Disappointed is an understatement.