Hot wheels

Well tonight after going for a drive, I had the best driving experience ever in the car. Went over the Moors and finally got rid of the noisy brakes and performance was excellent. It finally feels like the car it should have been when I bought it.

When I got home I smelt a strong smell from the front brakes so I touched the wheels. Good God!!!! I nearly burnt my fingers on both front sides. Is this normal? Surely they shouldn't get this hot?

I have recently changed the pads with some halfords front brake pads and have noticed since that the braking is nowhere near as good and the smell from the brakes is strong.

Should the brakes be getting this hot or is it a good idea to buy some new pads? If so what do you recommend?

sounds like they are binding, did you copper grease the backs of them?

Noise was them bedding in, some performance pads are noisey and eat discs.

Yes I think they are binding. I had wheels off to check them. Looks as though they are tight.

I am going to have a go taking apart again and put the copper grease on and bleed them. Thanks for the advice.

it is an issue of binding usually, although I have had problems with cheaper items as they take time to bed in and wear the protective coating, a good clean and re-grease with hi-temp coppa-slip will do trik

Are the pads free to slide in the caliper carrier? They may get jammed by corrosion and muck causing them to bind. You don't want them rattling around but you want them moving freely enough for the pads to slide and release the disc when your let off the bakes. Clean carriers and put copper grease on the pads back plate at the ends where they sit in the carrier and a smear on the backs where there in contact with the caliper and piston, don't plaster it on as dirt will just stick to the excess grease. Gentle on new brakes for the first 150 miles or so as there bedding in and warm them gently before giving them a hammering. This is the basics and one of the most common problems I come across.