Suburban Brake Defect
Question:
I guess the "baby Blazer’s" ABS is a little different. I don’t even have to compress the caliper to remove it from the disc, just pull the pins and take it off. There is NO "at rest" pressure on the pads… – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > I’ve been told it’s common for the rear shoes to crack laterally like you > mentioned. Also, some of the reasons folks are burning through front pads > in 5,000 miles may have to do with the pads they choose. You need > semi-metalics. The softer ones disintegrate. > One other thing to check. The ABS system helps wear these brakes out > faster. With ABS there is higher "at rest" pressure on the brakes, causing > faster pad wear. > I’ve had good luck with the Duramax pads sold at GM dealerships. The last > time I did a brake job, I put the original equipmnt Delcos on. Also, as a > side note. On the third front brake job, I had to change out the rotors. > Went with Raybestos. They are alot less than original equipment, but aren’t > the cheap chinese rotors that need to be turned before 1st use. They feel > better than GM’s original. > –Allan > >I just replaced a set of gm pads on the front of my 99 burb after > >12,000 miles. I do lots of around town driving with a monthly long > >highway trip. I put the raybestos pads on this time and they stop > >MUCH BETTER. I will have to see how long they last, but I feel better > >that after 1200 miles I haven’t had to use all the stopping power > >once. I may do a panic stop tomorrow to see what they do. > I just finished totally rebuilding the front & rears on my ‘96 C2500.. > That > was the LONGEST brake job I’ve ever done.. The drums were a major pain in > the fanny to get off and replace the linings on.. I ended up resurfacing > both the front & rear (2 drums / 2 rotors) at a local auto parts place, > after which they commented that the drums were WAY out of round. The long > & short of it is that I spent about $125 and 15 hours of labor doing the > job correctly — they work MUCH better (like when the truck was new). > Interestingly enough, I found a crack running laterally on one of the left > rear shoes that was approx. 1 – 1.5 inches in length. I’m guessing that > it > was causing my abnormal wear on that side of the truck.. Hopefully this > isn’t a normal occurance? > — Rick
Response:
I’ve been told it’s common for the rear shoes to crack laterally like you mentioned. Also, some of the reasons folks are burning through front pads in 5,000 miles may have to do with the pads they choose. You need semi-metalics. The softer ones disintegrate. One other thing to check. The ABS system helps wear these brakes out faster. With ABS there is higher "at rest" pressure on the brakes, causing faster pad wear. I’ve had good luck with the Duramax pads sold at GM dealerships. The last time I did a brake job, I put the original equipmnt Delcos on. Also, as a side note. On the third front brake job, I had to change out the rotors. Went with Raybestos. They are alot less than original equipment, but aren’t the cheap chinese rotors that need to be turned before 1st use. They feel better than GM’s original. –Allan
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->I just replaced a set of gm pads on the front of my 99 burb after >12,000 miles. I do lots of around town driving with a monthly long >highway trip. I put the raybestos pads on this time and they stop >MUCH BETTER. I will have to see how long they last, but I feel better >that after 1200 miles I haven’t had to use all the stopping power >once. I may do a panic stop tomorrow to see what they do. > I just finished totally rebuilding the front & rears on my ‘96 C2500.. That > was the LONGEST brake job I’ve ever done.. The drums were a major pain in > the fanny to get off and replace the linings on.. I ended up resurfacing > both the front & rear (2 drums / 2 rotors) at a local auto parts place, > after which they commented that the drums were WAY out of round. The long > & short of it is that I spent about $125 and 15 hours of labor doing the > job correctly — they work MUCH better (like when the truck was new). > Interestingly enough, I found a crack running laterally on one of the left > rear shoes that was approx. 1 – 1.5 inches in length. I’m guessing that it > was causing my abnormal wear on that side of the truck.. Hopefully this > isn’t a normal occurance? > — Rick
Response:
The bulletin also recommends replacing the differential valve on the rear pipes…
– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> As a Chevrolet technician, I see a lot of what you’re concerned about. Have > you checked the adjustment and operation of your rear brakes? There should > be a 60%/40% braking split front/rear. A defective proportioning valve could > also be the root cause of your concern. Additionally, Chevrolet has a TSB > concerning brake lead/pull, which says to replace the shoes and drums on the > rear. I own a ‘92 Chevrolet K1500 Blazer, and the brakes have never given > me any problems since cleaning/lubing slides and maintaining the rear shoes. > >General Motors -1992-1999 SUV’s Brake Defect > >Brakes pull right or left or ? – replacing brakes frequently? > [snip] > Hell yes.. Bought a used ‘95 ‘Burb 2500 LS 2 years ago. Last month I > put on the 5th set of front brakes in a total of about 45k miles. I > tow a small trailer on occasion (1500 lbs total weight) but mostly use > the thing as a family truckster. > I put new brakes on it the day I bought it (including new rotors) and > have since replaced both rotors 3 times and had the dealer do two of > the brake jobs. They tell me "Everything is working fine" when I have > them check it out. > This vehicle is GROSSLY underbraked and I’ve taken to manually > downshifting as I come to a stop to try and prolong brake life. I’ve > bitched to Chevy NUMEROUS times about this and they say the brakes are > adequate for the vehicle. > The funny thing is the brakes on my 4Runner are nearly as large and > it’s a tad over HALF the weight of the Burb. No way those front > brakes are enough for this monster. > One thing that DID improve the braking was to take everything apart > and THOROUGHLY scrub the livin’ hell outta the caliper sliders and > then polish them with a cotton wheel in my bench grinder. At > reassembly time, I lubed the hell outta the pins and replaced all the > rubber bushings. I also put a generous dollop of grease on the ends > of the caliper where they "mate" with the spindle casting after > sanding these surfaces smooth. > Pedal pressure is down and bit and it does seem to stop a bit better, > but I’m still pullin’ the wheels every 3-4 weeks to check the brakes. > I don’t trust ‘em one bit..
Response:
>I just replaced a set of gm pads on the front of my 99 burb after >12,000 miles. I do lots of around town driving with a monthly long >highway trip. I put the raybestos pads on this time and they stop >MUCH BETTER. I will have to see how long they last, but I feel better >that after 1200 miles I haven’t had to use all the stopping power >once. I may do a panic stop tomorrow to see what they do.
I just finished totally rebuilding the front & rears on my ‘96 C2500.. That was the LONGEST brake job I’ve ever done.. The drums were a major pain in the fanny to get off and replace the linings on.. I ended up resurfacing both the front & rear (2 drums / 2 rotors) at a local auto parts place, after which they commented that the drums were WAY out of round. The long & short of it is that I spent about $125 and 15 hours of labor doing the job correctly — they work MUCH better (like when the truck was new). Interestingly enough, I found a crack running laterally on one of the left rear shoes that was approx. 1 – 1.5 inches in length. I’m guessing that it was causing my abnormal wear on that side of the truck.. Hopefully this isn’t a normal occurance? — Rick
Response:
I just replaced a set of gm pads on the front of my 99 burb after 12,000 miles. I do lots of around town driving with a monthly long highway trip. I put the raybestos pads on this time and they stop MUCH BETTER. I will have to see how long they last, but I feel better that after 1200 miles I haven’t had to use all the stopping power once. I may do a panic stop tomorrow to see what they do. – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->General Motors
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