...like most of you, I am anal about the care of my 8...
I probably spend more time pampering her then my girlfriend...
(I don't think she reads this forum :cool: )

That said...

My dealership replaced my front brake pads last October due to the annoying squeal...
After about a month, the squeal returned and the dealership wasn't about to do anything about it...
They pretty much told me to "live with it..." ...this was unacceptable & I was prepared to replace the pads with an after market pair..

I read somewhere on this forum of a technique in which you drive 60 mph and make an aggressive stop (6 times) down to 20 mph....
I was skeptical but I figure it was worth a try....

Well, I'm here to tell you that" much to my surprise," it worked!
I've driven over a thousand miles and not a peep, an eek or a squeak has been heard!

Mind you, I didn't lock the brakes (they probably don't lock up anyway) and the ABS never kicked in.

It's up to you... try it, you'll like it :)

Been there, done that. It will fix it in some instances, but if you use your brakes aggresively again, the noise wll return at some point.

Thanks Jeff... burst my bubble :mad: :)

Sorry! Hopefully it will work out better for you with the redesigned brake pads.
I don't have them because I can't bring myself to leave my RX-8 at the dealer long enough to have them installed.
I'm holding out for a set of cad-plated, slotted rotors and Hawk pads in the fall.

i don't see why they won't leave out the little groove down the middle of the pad. blow the dust out of there and the squeal is no more, after a couple hundred miles, it's back.

Squeal is a vibration.. Either the back of the pad is vibrating against the piston or the brake dust between the pad and the rotor is setting up a vibration... This is why hard braking will remove the squeal - the dust is "wiped" from the surface of the pad...

This used to happen with land rover drum brakes.. Remove the drum, blow away the dust with a high pressure hose (can't do this any more - not safe).. Squeal is gone for a few thousand kilometres... A Land Rover without squeaky brake probably had a leaking hub oil seal and the brakes were full of oil.. Wet brakes don't squeak - they don't stop too well either ! :D

So if my brakes squeal I should try blowing the pads with my air compressor?

hmmmmm i woudl try this until jeff said it wou dlbe back with hard braking...haha i always break hard...soi guess it's no jy for me :(

I have the utmost respect for Jeff, "MazdaManiac" and I'll admit, he's a bigger "Rotary Geek" then I am.
I understand that people will tend to believe the opinion of some one with more experience (ie: Jeff).
Saying "the squeal will return" hence, discounting the possibility that this technique may just work is somewhat like saying,
"Why should I keep putting fuel in my car, I'll just have to fill it up again..."

All I can tell you is that it has worked for me....
Will the squeal return?
Perhaps...
When / if it does, I'll give it the same treatment again...
It's better then listening to the irritating sound and cheaper then replacing my pads.

I'm just "sharing" what worked for me..
You guys do what you want with this information. ;)

No, you should definitely try it. Just because it didn't work for me doesn't mean it wont for someone else.
It is the proper way to bed new pads, anyway.

yeah it'll either bed your new pads or it'll warp the rotors for you.. you'll trade the squeel for a nice shimmy or a pull.

They will not warp if you cycle them and your lug nuts are properly torqued.
Warping only occurs if the rotors aren't allowed to heat and cool uniformly.