Hi, I have a 2004 Xlr with 21000 miles. I have notice that my brakes are beginning to squeak. It seems that they only squeak at about 20 miles per hour and stop if I depress the brakes pedal a little harder. I had the brakes checked at a Cadillac dealership and the service adviser informed me that the brakes appeared fine and quote "some brakes just squeak". I have read through the forum on this topic and don't see a real consenses on the solution. I see many people did not solve the problem by just replacing the brakes. Is this just a tempermental problem with Xlr brakes. I don't want to just throw money at the problem. Any advise would be welcomed. Thanks

Welcome to the XLR Forum.

There has been a lot of discussion on this issue. The consensus is to either replace the pads and possibly the rotors if they are worn too muchwith GM or aftermarket products.

Varying driving habits will give you shorter or longer pad life.

I had to replace my 2004 XLR pads at abut 24k. I decided at the time to replace the rotors as well. It cost about $1k for the dealer to do the job and I never had any problems with it for the rest of the time I owned the car. (I now have a XLR-V).

I am assuming that the pads were within wear tolerances and we aren't talking about the pad wear indicators rubbing when you stop. If so then I would suggest you consider replacing the pads and having the rotor tolerances checked.

Please let us know how this turns out.

Regards

Having a Service Advisor tell you "Some brakes just squeak." makes about as much sense as hearing a doctor tell you, "Some girls just get pregnant." There's a reason for everything. If your brakes don't squeak one day and start the next, than something obviously changed. The logic same applies to the girl, no matter what she says.

Good Service Advisors are really hard to find, which is why when I work with one who really knows what they're talking about, (rather than parroting what a mechanic tried to explain to them, since they are after all, the buffer between the customer and the techs) I stick with the same one. Service Advisors generally aren't well paid, and are usually the first person a dissatisfied customer unloads on, so job satisfaction isn't particularly high and they tend to move on fairly frequently.

As stated before, you probably need new pads and a rotor inspection. Best case scenario: There's debris lodged in the brakes.

CC :cheers

Agreed with both previous comments. For my V, it was crystalized pads (which can occur due to excessive heat), and nothing at all needed to be done with the rotors. After perhaps 8,000 miles since pad replacement, everything is still sounding and feeling great, with no vibration that might indicate developing rotor issues.