Golf 7 brakes overheating

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Trixie53
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Golf 7 brakes overheating

Post by Trixie53 »

Golf 7 1.4tsi, 2016, 28000km's, factory warranty still in place.

Drone and scratching noises from brakes front and rear when applying brakes after 5min normal driving. Dealer says the brake discs are blue from overuse, and that's the reason for the brake noises. The dealer recommended course of action is to replace all 4 disks and pads, this will be all on my cost since the brakes are not covered by the warranty, or service plan.

Dealer says they have checked the braking system through, and they find no other fault besides the blue disks. Dealer cannot prove misuse or bad driving habits on my part, (tyres would show signs of hard braking, I think) brake pads have 90% use left, and are the originals when I purchased the vehicle new. I need to mention at this stage that I'm not racing the 1.4l car on the roads or track, just 'normal' school run, business related driving.

Since I have not been racing the car, putting blow torches on the discs or fiddling with anything, what could be the cause?
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missioner
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Re: Golf 7 brakes overheating

Post by missioner »

Trixie53 wrote:Golf 7 1.4tsi, 2016, 28000km's, factory warranty still in place.

Drone and scratching noises from brakes front and rear when applying brakes after 5min normal driving. Dealer says the brake discs are blue from overuse, and that's the reason for the brake noises. The dealer recommended course of action is to replace all 4 disks and pads, this will be all on my cost since the brakes are not covered by the warranty, or service plan.

Dealer says they have checked the braking system through, and they find no other fault besides the blue disks. Dealer cannot prove misuse or bad driving habits on my part, (tyres would show signs of hard braking, I think) brake pads have 90% use left, and are the originals when I purchased the vehicle new. I need to mention at this stage that I'm not racing the 1.4l car on the roads or track, just 'normal' school run, business related driving.

Since I have not been racing the car, putting blow torches on the discs or fiddling with anything, what could be the cause?
Hi Trixie

Is your car a DSG or a manual?

If it's the DSG (basically Auto) the problem you are experiencing may be related to driving technique.

Some folks drive automatic transmissions with both feet, which results in very overheated brakes. The excess heat causes brake pad glaze, blue discs, poor brake efficiency, excessive disc run out (warped discs) and in extreme cases vapour lock.

What is happening is that the driver rests their left foot on the brake pedal when driving, and this happens to cause the brakes to be gently applied most of the time. The friction is enough to heat the braking system up to ridiculous temperatures and this has a number of negative effects.

Disc brakes on the front axle of most cars these days are ventilated, so simply the way the disc is constructed is the reason for the vibration when the brakes get hot. There is an inner and outer disc connected together by ribs that run perpendicular to the center, when heated metal expands, therefore the thinner parts between the ribs expand slower than the ribs because the thinner metal is able to dissipate the heat quicker than the ribs. The disc then becomes thicker over the ribs than in between.

Over the long term these extreme heat cycles cause the disc to no longer run true. The run out of the disc then causes the steering to shake under braking and the car to slow down unevenly.

It actually makes little difference what transmission the car has when it comes to poor driving technique, it simply changes the type of problems one might see.

Please remember this is meant simply as advice and is in NO way a criticism of you. I am simply relaying what I have experienced over the years.

In your case, I would try another dealer. When I used to work at a dealer in Pretoria, we changed discs and pads many time under warranty due to run out. It's not always possible to blame driver technique just by looking at the car, the service manager or technician should drive with the owner and observe them before that conclusion can be made. This was only done once the vehicle has come in for the same problem in under 12 months, also as a last resort to determine the possible cause of the problem.

To illustrate I will relate a story or two. 1st one was when I worked at a BMW dealer, the vehicle was a 3 series 318i auto. The owner was upset when his brake warning light came on before his second service (25000km interval) as he had renewed the brake pads already at the first service. MotorPlan only pay for one set every 60000km, so now he had to pay for the repairs. To summarize this is how I came know about the left foot brake pedal problem.

Second story is about an old lady in her 70's with an Opel Corsa hatch. She didn't drive much and had only done 30000km in 10 years. The clutch failed due to wear and tear and started slipping. I replaced it with a well known reputable aftermarket part which lasted a year (1500km). I observed her driving and she rested her left foot on the clutch pedal while driving as well as had very bad clutch control, slipping the clutch excessively when taking off from a stop and revving the poor engine to bits during gear changes. The resulting heat build up in the pressure plate caused it to break in two.

Any way thanks for reading this far, I hope this helps.

Just my 2c.
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Re: Golf 7 brakes overheating

Post by 175SBU »

I also read this far and it was worth reading.


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Trixie53
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Re: Golf 7 brakes overheating

Post by Trixie53 »

Thankyou for the insightfull response, missioner.
The car is a manual, there is no brake shudder experienced, just the scraping/scratching noises. This is the 6th new German vehicle I've owned, blue disc issue is unique to this current vehicle (just for context)
I'll try another dealer, and report back to this forum.
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Re: Golf 7 brakes overheating

Post by missioner »

Trixie53 wrote:Thankyou for the insightfull response, missioner.
The car is a manual, there is no brake shudder experienced, just the scraping/scratching noises. This is the 6th new German vehicle I've owned, blue disc issue is unique to this current vehicle (just for context)
I'll try another dealer, and report back to this forum.
It may be possible that the pad compound is too hard and has caused the pads to become glazed.

I've experienced this before, but only on old cars that dont drive much. The pads provide much less friction in their polished state and dont work as intended, instead of slowing the car down, instead they just heat up the disc. That's possibly the cause of the noise.

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Re: Golf 7 brakes overheating

Post by VAG Fan »

I would be interested to know whether the brakes are releasing completely - especially if the engine compartment is hot. If they don't, then this may explain the overheating discs. Reasons may be numerous, but the one that I'm thinking of, may be a faulty master cylinder.

I write this because in a previous life, I was in an Audi forum. The type 44 Audi (which was the first 500 series here in SA) had a problem with the master cylinder. As soon as it became warm in the engine bay, it would not release the brakes fully. Once cooled down, everything would be back to normal.
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Re: Golf 7 brakes overheating

Post by Howie-WP »

When last (if at all) were the pads replaced? Sounds like binding brakes (especially if on all 4) How has the dealer checked the braking system? I'd take the car for a normal drive and check disk temps and compare to another similar car over the same route.
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Re: Golf 7 brakes overheating

Post by kingr »

Brakes can wear at different rates depending on the driving style of driver and conditions. Having front brakes replaced at that mileage is not too uncommon, but you would have to do some really hard braking to wear new beaks at 28 000km. I've replaced brakes + pads at this mileage already with my Fiesta ST.

I find it hard to believe that rear disks and pads can be done, as recommended try another dealership if possible to get a second opinion. This will fall within wear and tear if no problems are found with the braking system as suggested by VagFan. New car warranties only pay for defective systems/parts. More details explained about new car warranties in this video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YUfraWGKfJ0
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Re: Golf 7 brakes overheating

Post by V6 Capri »

kingr wrote: Wed Apr 24, 2019 1:01 pm I've replaced brakes + pads at this mileage already with my Fiesta ST.
The Fiesta, as far as I understand, uses the brakes as part of the traction control system. And this is the main reason for the excessive wear.

I had a problem on one of my Escort's rear caliper where it didn't release properly and caused some very scary brake fade once the system is hot and you apply 2 or 3 consecutive hard stops. I would jack the car up when cold and see if the wheels rotate without resistance. Then drive it for 5 or 10 mins and redo the test. If a caliper is "sticking" or not releasing properly, you should be able to feel it. :twisted:
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