Re: HELP: 93 Toyota Corolla vibration problem!

" krp" <krp2457k@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
news:nMkQj.1$PY5.0@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
> "Mike" <mik@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message 
> news:Pa8Qj.2038$NU2.35@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
>>>>>>>>>>> Replace both front brake hoses, replace the brake fluid, and
bleed 
>>>>>>>>>>> the
>>>>>>>>>>> brakes.
>>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>> Ray, I had them do this.  The problem still persists.  Could it
be 
>>>>>>>>>> a
>>>>>>>>>> brake booster problem?
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> I read through most of the posts before responding.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> It is very unlikely that a master cylinder is causing the
problem, 
>>>>>>>>> and it
>>>>>>>>> is
>>>>>>>>> unlikely that a misadjusted push rod is causing the problem
unless
>>>>>>>>> someone
>>>>>>>>> messed with the master cylinder or pushrod.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> It is possible, but not likely that a bad wheel bearing is
causing 
>>>>>>>>> the
>>>>>>>>> problem.  Wheel bearings generally make a lot of noise before 
>>>>>>>>> getting bad
>>>>>>>>> enough to actually cause a problem.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> A wheel or tire that is out of round either laterally or
radially 
>>>>>>>>> will
>>>>>>>>> cause
>>>>>>>>> a vibration, but not likely that the vibration will come and go
and 
>>>>>>>>> it
>>>>>>>>> will
>>>>>>>>> not make the wheel hot to the touch or bind the brakes so that
is 
>>>>>>>>> not
>>>>>>>>> high
>>>>>>>>> on my list.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> A bad CV joint will make noise, cause pulling, or fling grease
all 
>>>>>>>>> over
>>>>>>>>> the
>>>>>>>>> undercarriage before it causes an intermittent vibration and
will 
>>>>>>>>> not
>>>>>>>>> make
>>>>>>>>> the wheel hot to the touch or bind the brakes.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> If replacing the calipers did not change the problem, I would
have
>>>>>>>>> guessed a
>>>>>>>>> bad brake hose.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> I read that you are replacing the front calipers, make sure that
the
>>>>>>>>> slides
>>>>>>>>> are free and coated with disc brake grease or anti-seize.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Where are you located?
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> I will add one additional possibility that I personally
experienced 
>>>>>>>> on an
>>>>>>>> Acura TL.  A bad upper ball joint caused ALL the symptoms
re****ted 
>>>>>>>> here on
>>>>>>>> that car - hot wheel, apparent warping of the rotor, chattering 
>>>>>>>> brakes,
>>>>>>>> all
>>>>>>>> of it.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> You know, IF a wheel threw a weight off it could do the same
thing.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>> Throwing a weight causes a constant vibration.  This was different
and 
>>>>>> was
>>>>>> confirmed to be the ball joint on the TL.
>>>>>
>>>>> Usually throwing a weight will cause vibration at certain speeds. 
>>>>> Depends on the size of the wheel weight. Big ones act more harshly
when 
>>>>> missing than small ones. Remember he said the wheel DOES have a
small 
>>>>> wobble to it. Maybe move a rear wheel up front. Try that for a
couple 
>>>>> days.
>>>
>>>>  Would a missing wheel weight also cause the brakes to apply and make
the 
>>>> vehicle slow down ???  That's what he stated is also happening.
>>>
>>>    Did he say the brakes APPLIED?
>
>>  YES. He mentioned it many times. Like here:
>> Now here is what I think, although i'm not a mechanic... I think it
>> has something to do with the front passenger-side caliper.  It may be
>> locking up somehow.  But i noticed on local roads before the vibration
>> starts, if the pedal is stiff, pump it a few times and it goes away...
>
>    No that's not excaltly whay he said. I can understand how you could
read 
> it that way. But it isn't exactly what he said.

  That's EXACTLY what he said, it's a cut and paste from HIS post. I see 
reading comprehension isn't your strong point!!!!!!!!!!!







> It MAY well be the caliper, but it can be either one of them or both.
There 
> are several other options as well.

  But it does point to the brakes as being the problem, no ????


>
>> And here: Well, the rotor was bluing, which is why i replaced them
about 
>> 1000
>> miles ago.  But, I think that is the symptom and not the disease.
>> What can be causing the dragging?
>
>    The word "draggin" doesn't mean it WAS the brakes being on. It CAN
but it 
> can also be something else.


  Ther's that reading comprehension problem again !! Do you think a bent
wheel 
is making the rotor turn blue ?????


>
>> And here: I did not have to use my brakes at all for the entire
>> highway ****tion of the trip, but it still started to drag and then
>> vibrate half way into the trip.  Please notice that i said it drags
>> THEN vibrates.  You can feel that you need more gas pedal effort to
>> move the car and then the vibration starts gradually shortly
>> thereafter and builds up in intensity
>
>    Try to re-read that without being so dogmatic. Don't get too invested
in 
> a single solution.


   You're right. He states the brakes are dragging causing the car rotor
to 
turn blue and the car to slow down, maybe he should do a tune-up.


>
>> And here:
>> I replaced the calipers because the brakes felt "soft" and i was not
>> getting good stopping power.  The replacement cured it.  But shortly
>> thereafter this problem occured.
>
>    Does that mean the brakes were dragging? It MAY. But not necessarily.
>
>> And here:
>> Thank you to everyone that has helped me thus far.  These symptoms
>> aren't new... but just better described than previously.  Please
>> review:
>
>> 1. Brake drags occasionally not all the time and the dragging can
>> start without the use of the brake pedal (once i was driving on an
>> empty highway at 3AM for 30 miles, and it just started dragging).
>
>    <sigh> How does he know that?  Hear it?


   Keep reading, he explains it pretty clearly.

>
>> 2. once the drag starts, it gets progressively worse.  I'm not sure if
>> the heat causes it to lock up more, or if it just locks up more and
>> causes more heat (Chicken or Egg?)  But you can feel that more and
>> more gas pedal effort is needed.
>>
>> 3. at its worse, there is so much drag that the car will not idle
>> forward from a stop.
>>
>>
>>  Those were all taken from seperate posts.
>>
>>
>>>That isn't what I read.
>
>>  Well whos fault is that ??
>
>    No fault here. I just prefer to eliminate all the easy stuff first,
the 
> stuff that's easy to check for free before tearing a car apart.

  That's the way to do it, diagnosis is the first part of any repair. But
he 
should be checking the BRAKE SYSTEM for a BRAKE PRBLEM. It will do
absloutely 
nothing to check tires, wheels, balance, alignment and all the crap that
WIL 
NOT CAUSE a brake problem.



 It MIGHT be
> a bad caliper. Like I said from my time in the parts business, rebuilt
parts 
> are problem children.


  If you buy from a reputable rebuilder you have less chance of getting a 
defective part. If you buy cheap chinese crap you end up with cheap
chinese 
crap. But I have even found BRAND NEW parts that were bad out of the box.


> I am assumiong that he did NOT go out and buy NEW parts from the Toyota 
> Dealer at 10X the price of a rebuilt on a 15 year old car with almost 
> 300,000 miles on it. I don't know WHY .. Silly me. Most people willing
to 
> shell out $300 per for NEW calipers most likely would be driving a newer

> car. JUST A SUSPICION.
>
>
>>> We all with have 20/20 hindsight when the problem is traced down.
Right 
>>> now all we all can do is guess.
>
>>  Wrong ! There should be no "guessing" involved. He needs to take it to

>> someone who is capable of "diagnosing" the problem, only then can it be

>> repaired. You can only go so far with the "shotgun" method of repairs 
>> without spening a small fortune.
>
>    Maybe you MISS that he HAS taken it to a mechanic SEVERAL 
> TIMES.................................................
>


    Wrong !!!  He has taken the car to someone who calls themself a
mechanic, 
but is not capable of finding the problem OR fixing the vehicle. He needs
to 
take the car to a REAL mechanic who is capable of DIAGNOSING the problem
and 
FIXING the car. He has checked everything on the car EXCEPT the brakes and

even had him replace what was probably a perfectly good set of tires
claiming 
they were "defective".  Sound like he is taking it to a tire store flunky 
instead of to a real shop.