The Rear Brake rattle that drives me Nuts - Help!
 

Hello peoples, new to your forum. I have a question and I wonder if anyone out there can help me (please). I just bought a 2nd hand 2002 PT Limited edition and love the car. Two things have been freaking me out.

The rear (disc) brake makes a vibrating/rattling/thrumming/'dok dok dok' noise when rolling slowly along. Pretty sure it's to do with the calipers as if you put your foot gently on the brake pedal the noise goes away. Could I be missing a retaining spring that holds the brake pad away from the rotor? It almost sounds like the exhaust pipe is tapping against the floor...I had Pep Boys check the car out and they could not find a thing wrong with the rear brakes (pads were replaced recently).

The Whine Noise. At idle there is a very wierd whine from the rear of the car - this is an auto. It's really high-pitched, almost like a 'test-signal' or pink noise (for those who know what that is). I cannot for the life of me figure out what's going on!

Any help or light that you could shed on this would really help. the car is great otherwise - just so damned versatile!

Thanks

Simon.

Sime,

First off: Welcome!

Now, to your questions...

1)Sounds like a caliper or pad issue.

2)The high-pitched whine is more than likely the fuel pump. You normally can't hear the sound unless it is very quiet. Make sure your PT had the fuel pump recall fix performed. They are going to install a few foam gaskets above the fuel pump to prevent spills and a fire in case of a rollover or a very bad side impact. The gaskets muffle the sound somewhat (I thought), but it will not eliminate them.

Scott

If the seats are out and it's much more noticeable, it's prolly the pump.

Welcome Sime!
Agree whine is most likely fuel pump - it's in the tank, about all that's back there.
As to brakes - to me, sounds as if rotors (discs) aren't flat, and high spots hit. If there's no vibration in the pedal, I wouldn't worry about it.

Sime, welcome to the forum!

Just wanted to say Welcome Sime!

Thanks to you all for your replies, most appreciated.

The fuel pump (smacks forehead) that's what the sound must be! however, it went in for the recall - previous owner told me that. I'll just live with it - this really puts me at ease as I suspected tranny problems - not used to autos (this is my wife's car).

As for the rear brakes, yeah, I suspect it's a caliper problem too. I'll jack the back up and try and check the rotors too - good idea. There's absolutely no vibration through the pedal - but I'll have a good look. Just wondered if anyone else had experienced this noise. It's random which makes it harder to diagnose.

Thanks again for your help. The promptness of your replies was great, cheers.

Simon (or Sime, take your pick).

Let us know what you find, Simon.

[quote]Originally posted by Sime
[
The fuel pump (smacks forehead) that's what the sound must be! however, it went in for the recall - previous owner told me that. I'll just live with it - this really puts me at ease as I suspected tranny problems - not used to autos (this is my wife's car).
/quote]

Welcome to the Forum Sime!![^]

Go to a dealer with your VIN, have them check if all recalls have been completed. That is what I did before I bought a used '02 :D

re: Rattle
If the rear brakes have been replaced I would suspect that the repair facility did not put the "anti-rattle" clips back in. I did this once on a mustang when I forget to put them back in...I was under there the next weekend doing the job again and putting them back in, the rattle drove me nuts.