Hi Guys,

I have had this occur twice now, both times have been only about a mile after leaving home. Both instances i was driving in a straight line, and from nowhere came this rather loud, metallic squealing scratching sound, (gave two pedestrians a fright as I screeched past too). In both cases I lightly applied the brakes thinking it was just dirt, this didn't work, and it didn't sound like this, it was sort of like a metal coat hanger tapping and squealing off the brakes; anyway nothing stopped it so I stopped and pulled over. I was pretty sure it came from the front passenger brake disc. I'm almost certain it wasn't from the rear drums. Anyway not being a mechanic I gave the caliper a bit of a poke and a prod. Got back in the car, and it was fine, no noise at all, at any time even when braking. The brakes have always been silent except these two occasions.

Any ideas as to what happened?

Not sure as to the setup on Skoda's as I have only had mine a wee while but on many cars, there is a thin metal back-plate behind the brake discs... These sometimes get a bit distorted (struck by something, stones lodged behind) and the disc grinds against them. Usually, this notices more as you corner, for some strange reason, perhaps minor movement or flex in the componants.

I have read of sticking calipers, too. they close in when braking but fail to return fully to the open position. On motorcycles, this is often due to ingress of dirt so a partial strip down and clean up, perhaps with new seals, usually does he trick. Not sure if this is a warranty job... Perhaps not as wear and tear! BTW, I have noticed that Skoda's seem to have quite a lot of brake dust contaminating the wheels so perhaps this IS the problem. If so, a change of pads, to a better brand, may help!!

Edited 29 March, 201016 yr by mrgf

Mostly likely a stone trapped in between the brake disc and brake disc shield. Quite common in the summer when driving on newly 'tarred and stoned' roads, but can happen at virtually anytime. Usually it clears itself after a bit, but you can help it out by having a careful prod. I doubt if you will have anymore problems, but if you do it might be worth checking that your shields are in place correctly and not distorted allowing stone ingress to happen too easily. And, mrgf...that's a positive on the motorcycle brakes...I'm just about to strip my twin front caliphers on my Strom to cure that binding. Loads of dirt and salt over the winter is the problem!

Edited 30 March, 201016 yr by Estate Man