Hello,

I have an issue that just recently started to pop up and it's got me wondering. Let me give you the background. What's been happening is sometimes I'll get a rubbing/grinding kind of noise, sounds to me like brake pads squeaking but deeper than that, almost metal-on-metal.

It first started happening about a month or so ago, and only when it would rain. For example, I'd drive to work while it was rainy, park my car, go in. At the end of my shift I'd come out, start the car, and then maybe the first one or two times I would brake, it would make that noise. Then it went away.

Then, it happened on occasion during dry days, out of nowhere. Only once or twice, then go away.

Lately it's been happening every day, but only after the brakes have warmed up, after I've been braking a couple times prior. One thing I tested this morning which seemed to hold true was, if I brake very lightly, as in not even putting the pedal halfway down but just enough to slow the car down, it doesn't make that noise. Or if it does, it's VERY slight. When I brake hard, it doesn't do it either, it seems to only be doing it when I brake what I consider "normally."
It doesn't affect braking ability at all (yet anyway), it's just very embarassing to sound like a bus or a Mack truck during rush hour traffic when people have their windows rolled down.

Some friends of mine have said it's probably a brake issue, in that it sounds like the rotors are wearing against the backing plate. Well, if that's true shouldn't it be happening *every* time I brake? Someone else mentioned wheel bearings, but I just had them replaced back in November along with the timing belt and something else. 6 months seems a little soon for them to be worn again.

I also just had new front rotors (not pads) put on around the same time as well, because they've had a problem with warping on occasion and I also had to get new front calipers as well because one of them had seized, causing a horrible shudder when I first would drive the car.

Now if it *were* brakes, where should I get them done? I've gone to the same guy (Dave Reimel in Plymouth, MA) for almost 17 years. Well, my family has anyhow, they've gone to him for everything and he's always been great to us. The problem now is that I live in RI, and Dave is about an hour away from me and doesn't offer any rental car services, so getting to/from work after I drop my car off there leaves me to do some schedule juggling.

What I had wanted to do was to buy new brake pads/rotors from tirerack and have someone install them, but I'm getting the feeling that most places don't do that sort of thing? Are there any folks on here in northern RI who could recommend a good place to take my beast? I checked the shops section on here but couldn't bring any up.

Sorry for the long-windedness of this, but I appreciate any feedback you folks can give me. You sure know a lot more than I do about this stuff, that's for sure. :)