Hi..new to the forum. My vette is a 94 LT1 coupe. It is my first corvette and I absolutely love this car. It has approx 61K miles. Purchased it in Feb 09.

Today I had smoke coming out of the rear right wheel well with the smell of burnt rubber. Rotor was warm, but no different than the other 3. My guess is i have a caliper sticking. I have noticed it takes quite a bit of pressure to get the car stopped since owning it and have been toying with the idea of upgrading the rotors and calipers to a larger size. BTW the car came with C5 17" rims. Are the current brakes OK, just not used to 15 year old technology??? My 04 hemi truck has 20" wheels and stops just fine.

Am very interested to see what members have done with thiers, would appreciate input to the problem and staying with OEM pats or specific info on upgrade (vendors, part numbers and if it requires bigger booster etc..) Thanks for any help.

 

Welcome and congrats on your 'new to you' Vette.

Sounds like you have a different problem.

If the caliper was sticking, the rotor would be hotter the others.

Also, brake pads don't usually smell like 'burnt rubber'.

However, brake fluid leaking onto something hot might...

Suggest checking the rubber brake hose in case it's either leaking or rubbing on the tire.

ALso, check the 'parking' brake to assure it is releasing at each wheel (when we got our 94 in 2003, drive side brake cable was rusted stuck and passenger side was very slugish -- it caused the driver side pad to rub all the time, overheating the pad and its anti-squeal backing which dislodged and further jammed the pad).

BTW, the 'parking brake' does NOT have its own shoes/pads, it engages the regular brake pads.

regarding brake performance -- the C4's without the J55 (heavy duty) brakes are nominal at best.

Sometimes the problems seem to be related to the ABS/ASR unit. One trick which has helped it to purposely engage the ABS by locking-up the tires on some dirt (or gravel).

Another idea is to determine what type of brake fluid is in the system. Oddly enough, some DOT-4 fluids can both damage the ABS and cause slugish brake response. If not sure and proficient, consider doing a brake bleeding using a good quality DOT-3 fluid.

BTW, if you don't already have, get an FSM, worth it weight in gold.

FYI, I did complete brake job (new OEM rotors, pads, parking brake cables and caliper rebuild in 2003)... brakes are 'ok', but wish they were better -- but they did get better lately after doing a few 'lockups' to engage ABS...

Lastly, if you do want to upgrade the brakes, HAWK brand pads are well liked -- do a search...

 

I might as well pull the rear pads out just to inspect both sides.

If you really had a rubber smell and it is not appear to be the brakes, inspect any wiring under the car on right side to see if any insulation looks burned. Does anything appear not to work?

 

A brake upgrade won't help solve the problem.

Sounds like your brake system needs some regular maintenance and inspection for worn or damaged parts. The standard 12" C4 brake system performs great for a daily driver.

Things too check:

Brake booster
ABS module (Mechanic can check and clear codes)
Calipers
Rotors
Brake hoses
Brake Fluid
Master Cylinder
Pads

Best replacement parts:

Stock Rotors from NAPA auto parts work just fine.
Hawk HPS brake Pads are highly recommended.
Earl's Solo-Bleed caliper bleed screws work great.

 

If you are located in the DFW Area, we don't mind helping!

Sounds like you need a full brake job.

I am glad you love your C4.

-Adam

Corvettes of Dallas

 

Thank you all for your contributions, I will be under the car probably most of this weekend...Well maybe 1 round of golf in there. Good thing I purchased the service manuals. I intend to do a complete rebuild of the brake system and might as well do wheel bearings at the same time. Whatever smoked will be found and repaired. If I run into trouble I will start a new thread...nice to get assistance from fellow vette enthusiasts. So far this has been a great experience.

Mike

 

I'd add braided stainless steel brake lines, too. My 94 LT-1 had pretty mushy original lines, and the new SS lines (got 'em from Earls) made an immediate improvement. If you're rubbing that rear brake line now, you'll need new ones anyway - might as well improve to SS.

 

could be a stuck caliper

maybe in the parking brake lines

could be a bearing, more not than likely.

 

I will agree with the replies, the 94 non j55 are nominal, but can be downright scary if not set up for best possible braking.

After you fix the smoking issue...

Check to see if you are able to engage the ABS by jumping on the brakes. (at first I was not, my pads were blazed over). I would do this just to see if the ABS works and the light comes on.

You can try all of the reseting ABS steps listed in other posts.

MY back discs were old and pitted so I bought some NAPA repalcements.

Bleed the system thouroughly, speed bleeders and bleeding pump did wonders. I read all the reviews and went with Hawk Pads for all 4. Follow the instructions for the install and check the spin of the rotors with the pads while the car is in off of ground.

I have done a number of brake jobs and never had I really considered the break in/bedding part an issue until this time, follow the procedures listed.

The c4 will never match the braking of my BMW but with a good brake push I can activate the ABS and stop the car quickly. It wont be toe touch quick stopping, but the car is now safe.

Another recomendation, once you get the brakes bedded, go take the car for a very strong drive and really test out the system. I did another bleed after a few weeks just to be sure.

I still dont let the wife drive the vette, but I have no problems driving it hard and braking as needed. It brought the car from scary to what I consider functioning as best it could.