# How bad did I screw Up??? Don't Hold Back



## TeeRedGeeElEye (Jun 27, 2008)

I've done plenty of brake jobs in the past and have never screwed up this bad. Please tell me if these will need to be replaced or if I will be ok. I have a 2004 Jetta GLi. I got new hawk hps pads for the front and rears. I put them on with the original rotors, just had them resurfaced. I put them all on and took for a ride, there was this quiet grinding noise. I jacked it back up and spun the back wheels and it was coming from both sides. Rear only. I did some research and heard that the hawk pads might be a little oversized and will just wear down and then it will be ok. So I left it and rode it for about 50 miles. The noise did not go away and just got worse. I then took apart the rear brakes and found out I made a horrible mistake. The inside pad on both sides was on backward





















The outside of the pad is ground up pretty good and the inside of the rotor has some grooves in it, this is on both sides. I flipped the pads around and now they are on correctly and make no noise. Everything feels fine. Is this going to be ok or do I need to replace the rear pads and rotors? Let me know what you think and feel free to tell me how stupid I am. Thanks


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## TeeRedGeeElEye (Jun 27, 2008)

*Re: How bad did I screw Up??? Don't Hold Back (TeeRedGeeElEye)*

anybody?


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## tyn1on (Nov 8, 2004)

*Re: How bad did I screw Up??? Don't Hold Back (TeeRedGeeElEye)*

i would get the rotors machined asap becuase if the grooves are that bad they will chew through your pads prematurely


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## GTijoejoe (Oct 6, 2001)

*Re: How bad did I screw Up??? Don't Hold Back (tyn1on)*


_Quote, originally posted by *tyn1on* »_i would get the rotors machined asap becuase if the grooves are that bad they will chew through your pads prematurely

basically...
At this point it is a judgement perspective, with deep grooves you should get the disks turned, if your pads have deep grooves you can even get those machined too, decreased pad life.


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## magyarbetyar (Sep 30, 2003)

*Re: How bad did I screw Up??? Don't Hold Back (GTijoejoe)*

Depending on how deep the grooves are. . .new rotors should be used.


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## NorthernGTI (Oct 26, 2005)

Whats the mileage on the rotors? I know at my shop 99% of the time we dont turn rotors mainly because;
a) they dont have enough life left on them;
b) have life left but are very thin rotors to begin with. 

If its over 40xxx miles, get new rotors while your at it..


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## EuroMKII (Mar 2, 2008)

*Re: (NorthernGTI)*

I second the new rotor recommendation. VW never intended for those rotors to be used beyond the original pad life. Do yourself a favor and get some new rotors on there. If you don't, I think you will have warped rotors in your near future. The more material you take off, ie:resurface, the thinner the rotor gets. As the rotor gets thinner, it will not dissipate the heat as well and therefore warp creating vibration when braking.


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## f1forkvr6 (Jun 10, 2002)

*Re: How bad did I screw Up??? Don't Hold Back (TeeRedGeeElEye)*

Rear pads and rotors are dirt cheap. Since you do the work yourself, just get some oem rotors, and in-expensive pads. Unless you regularly track, Hawk pads on the rear are over-kill. Go with ATE or Pagid and save some cash.


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## 7thGear (Sep 20, 2002)

*Re: How bad did I screw Up??? Don't Hold Back (f1forkvr6)*

this just proves that FWD cars dont need rear brakes








* F1FORKVR6 PM OR EMAIL ME * 




_Modified by 7thGear at 11:40 AM 6-1-2009_


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## germancarnut51 (Mar 23, 2008)

*Re: How bad did I screw Up??? Don't Hold Back (TeeRedGeeElEye)*

It's impossible to be able to advise you accurately without seeing the parts in question. Post some photos to get decent advice.


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## 2000Jet1.8T (Mar 25, 2009)

Get new rotors to avoid any complications. Remember that the rear pitons need to be spun in. Also, I would put good pads in the rear. I don't know if this is common to MKIV Jettas but I went through two sets of rear pads before I needed fronts. I did buy my last set of front pads from VW for $100. That sounds like a lot but they have lasted about 80k so far and there's still meat on them. No joke!


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## teutoned (Jul 29, 2008)

*Re: (2000Jet1.8T)*

everything will work fine for awhile. when it is no longer fine replace pads and rotors. remember its just the rears they're only there to keep the car balanced under braking.


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## GTijoejoe (Oct 6, 2001)

*Re: How bad did I screw Up??? Don't Hold Back (7thGear)*


_Quote, originally posted by *7thGear* »_this just proves that FWD cars dont need rear brakes








* F1FORKVR6 PM OR EMAIL ME * 
_Modified by 7thGear at 11:40 AM 6-1-2009_

hahahahahaha 
unfortunately brakes are not depent on any type of drive, FWD, RWD or AWD. In fact your brakes would be designed the same way even if it was thurst propelled


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## DC Jetta Guy (Jul 31, 2004)

*Re: How bad did I screw Up??? Don't Hold Back (TeeRedGeeElEye)*

If it were me, I would replace the rotors and pads and be done with it. And if I'm not mistaken, VW does not recommend turning the vented GTI/GLI rotors. They replace them.


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