Hey guys. I've been trying to diagnose a clicking from the rear that has been driving me crazy for the better part of a year.
Last fall I did a brake service on my car. I changed out the rotors for Zimmerman blanks, akebono pads, and I replaced the 128i calipers with 328i calipers and installed SS brake lines.
During removal of the old rotors, despite lowering the handbrake, the parking brake discs were holding on to the rotor which I had not noticed after close to 15-20m of banging on the rotor. So I manually loosened the adjustment of the parking discs and rotor came loose. Maybe it's important information for helping diagnose the issue so I thought I'd mention it.
Ever since that day, the rear right, the same side with the hard-to-remove rotor has been making a rotational clicking noise. Here's what I have noted so far:
- One click per rotation
- applying the brake does not make it go away
- pulling on the handbrake in motion does not make it go away
- dropping the car in neutral does not make it go away
- The noise sometimes is not present, but is present most of the time
- It is quieter sometimes
- When the rear of the car is lifted, spinning the wheel by hand makes a very faint scraping noise once per rotation, but no click
- When rear is lifted, having the car engaged in first gear and letting the wheel spin produces the same faint scraping noise, but no click
-Only when the wheel is on the ground and loaded and rolling is there a click
Things I tried:
- Brake bed in procedure multiple times
- Disassembled and reassembled the rear brakes, rechecked every contact point
- I have since replaced the entire parking brake assembly except the cable.
- I have tightened the parking brake shoes, almost to full lock and slightly off
- I have loosened the parking brake shoes, to the furthest possible setting
- and every other adjustment in between, probably adjusted it a dozen times now
- Bent away dust shield, adjust dust shield, doesn't look to be the culprit
- I have checked the cv joint for play, no play
- I have checked the wheel lugs for contact with the parking assembly, no contact
- I checked for play in the rim for signs of a bad wheel bearing, no play
- I threw in the towel and took it to a shop to get it diagnosed, they heard the click but couldn't find the source
I am losing my sanity chasing this noise. If anyone has any idea what it could be, or anything I should check, please, PLEASE chime in and let me know and I will check it myself or get it checked somewhere.
Some photos of the parking assembly, though I'm not even sure anymore if its the culprit. The wear you see on the contact points of the shoes are from me pulling the handbrake in motion to diagnose the clicking.
