Rusty Dust Shields

[Giles T]

Hey folks.

Have been driving for a while now with a rattling sound when I brake which gets worse as I slow down and when I come to a standstill the brake pedal feels crunchy. Now there is even a whirring noise coming from the rear as I slow down without even braking...

My two rear dust shield look pretty worse for wear and so dropped it off at the garage who have identified this as the issue to be replaced.

The quote for these getting renewed is sky high (almost £500!!)

I do have an RAC Platinum cover but I am anxious that this wont cover these since it frustratingly excludes "any failure of parts which have reached the end of their normal working lives because of age or mileage; "

Going to get the garage to try and call the RAC again tomorrow (they tried today but couldnt get through - it took me 40 minutes of waiting on hold) to see if they will authorise the repair so fingers crossed.

If this is not an option then I don't think I can afford to replace these and I have seen on other threads Re just removing them which the garage has told me is not an option because of a pin??

I'm at a bit of a crossroads since I bought the car at quite a bit above the market value from a dealership not long ago who promised me it was mechanically sound with a warranty (which upon inspection is not as comprehensive as one would hope...) to cover these sort of scenarios.

It's also slowly becoming better driving weather in Scotland and so I really just want it fixed but not pay so much more unless completely essential.

Thanks so much for any words of advice

 

[BoxClever]

Can you clarify what is making the noise? The brake shields are separate to the actual brake and are just covers that sit behind the disks. These are a known problem as they rust and brake regularly on all BMWs.. but this is not a braking part, or even rotational, so the only noise would be them clanking against hub or the wheel - a horrible sound. If the sound is coming from the rear brakes then it could be a failed handbrake mechanism with what you've described.

Do I figure that to replace the shields you will need to pull off the hub and most of the £500 the garage has quoted is for reassembling with new hub and bearings and brake parts as well as the shields?

As the shields themselves are cheap - see here

Am I making any sense or should i go and stand in the corner?!

Oh - you can absolutely just remove them and run without. I cut my offending ones off the front of an E36 years ago which stopped the problem ever coming back!!

 

[Peter1450]

If you remove the dust shields you’ll have no way of retaining the handbrake shoes. The retaining pin that locates the shoes on my wife pulled/ corroded so were replaced with button head stainless Allen bolts washers and nyloc nuts so they can be snugged up but still allow the shoes some movement.
My lads Z4 had the rattling you’re experiencing,sorted with some large penny washers until it can be sorted properly with a rear end refresh. Much cheaper than paying the garage for all that labour!

 

[jaguartvr]

You can put a cut in the dust shield so that it can be bent slightly and fitted much more easily and quickly, The slit can be welded or fixed with JB weld after fitting.

 

[Giles T]

Can you clarify what is making the noise? The brake shields are separate to the actual brake and are just covers that sit behind the disks. These are a known problem as they rust and brake regularly on all BMWs.. but this is not a braking part, or even rotational, so the only noise would be them clanking against hub or the wheel - a horrible sound. If the sound is coming from the rear brakes then it could be a failed handbrake mechanism with what you've described.

Do I figure that to replace the shields you will need to pull off the hub and most of the £500 the garage has quoted is for reassembling with new hub and bearings and brake parts as well as the shields?

As the shields themselves are cheap - see here

Am I making any sense or should i go and stand in the corner?!

Oh - you can absolutely just remove them and run without. I cut my offending ones off the front of an E36 years ago which stopped the problem ever coming back!!

Thanks!

I think it is distinctively different from the rubbing sound when turning and since it's amplified when the car slows I imagine it's either this issue with the handbrake or some debris inside the dust shield and hub.

Going to see if the repair falls within the warranty today so fingers crossed (yes most of this is for the labour)

 

[Giles T]

If you remove the dust shields you’ll have no way of retaining the handbrake shoes. The retaining pin that locates the shoes on my wife pulled/ corroded so were replaced with button head stainless Allen bolts washers and nyloc nuts so they can be snugged up but still allow the shoes some movement.
My lads Z4 had the rattling you’re experiencing,sorted with some large penny washers until it can be sorted properly with a rear end refresh. Much cheaper than paying the garage for all that labour!

Ok thanks, will look into this as an option to try and do this myself

 

[Giles T]

You can put a cut in the dust shield so that it can be bent slightly and fitted much more easily and quickly, The slit can be welded or fixed with JB weld after fitting.

Have seen this in another thread and looks like a great option !! Thanks