[steven]

I have 10,500 miles on my Batmobile, and I have a slight brake squeak on the front left wheel when I slow below 5/mph. Does anyone know what front brake pads Fisker is using? Any help would be appreciated.

 

[SoCalGuy]

Have you had the pads checked? Some brake squeaking folks experienced with the Brembos had nothing to do with the pads being worn... just nature of the brakes/lubrication. Best to have dealer take a quick look.

 

[steven]

I called the dealer, and they just gave me the same advice. Thank you so much for your reply. But then, it just got me wondering... what if I did need brake pads, are they custom just for the Karma?

 

[Ira]

Here's one of many sources for Brembo parts:

http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/p...o+brake+pads&gclid=CLLXrKrU8rYCFWXZQgodC38A3Q

 

[Arch fisker]

I would highly doubt you need brake pads after only 10k miles, since the majority of the braking is done via the regen process. Plus, the wheels are so big you can look right in at the caliper and see how much pad is remaining. I have 6k on my karma and the pads are essentially brand new, and I dont baby the car during braking.

Modern brake pads squeak because of the compounds that are used. Squeaking brakes dont mean you need new brakes necessarily.

 

[steven]

I looked at the pads, you are correct, they have plenty of wear left. I can now sleep better at night knowing the pads are not custom. (the dealer thought the fisker pads were custom).

THANK YOU!!!

(in the old days, I used to slam on the brakes on the highway, and it would always fix the dust sqeal, I might just try this on the fisker).

 

[scurry1074]

Steven

I posted this some time ago in different tread:

Brake Squeak - Fisker Releases Service Fix
Fisker issued service fix for high pitch brake squeak.

This type of brake noise has always been considered an inherent defect in high performance brake pads. Fisker apparently discovered that if you sand down the edges of the brake pads it eliminates the annoying and sometimes embarrassing brake noise.

My dealer in Detroit first said that there was nothing could be done about this noise. He later called be back and told me about the service fix released by Fisker. They kept my car overnight and now my brakes are as quiet as a church mouse.

In the same tread Lomax stated:

The service fix for the brake squeak does indeed exist, though the procedure has changed slightly. Should quiet those brakes up for you immediately though!

 

[dennis]

The pads are by Ferodo. My dealer informed me they know how to order the correct pads from Ferodo.

 

[Lormax]

I still have yet to replace the pads on any Karma.

 

[ghost2]

The pads are not by Ferodo. They are Brembo's proprietary material. The Ferodo HP1000 pads are used on the Cadillac CTS-V and are the same shape & size. They are higher friction and your regen blend-out will not be smooth if you use them and they'll be noisier than stock, which means really noisy. The fix for the Karma was to add a stainless steel shim and grease layer between the backing plate and pistons, but MY12 cars don't have them and only 50 kits were produced. You might still be able to order a kit through a dealer. The prior fix was to use grease only, but that will only last about 6,000 miles. In normal city driving, the Karma is projected to go 140,000 miles between brake pad replacements, which is a lot but not unusual in hybrid vehicles with a lot of regen. I feel sorry for you if you live in a cold, wet climate and don't have the shims... 140,000 miles is a long time.

 

[SoCalGuy]

The pads are not by Ferodo. They are Brembo's proprietary material. The Ferodo HP1000 pads are used on the Cadillac CTS-V and are the same shape & size. They are higher friction and your regen blend-out will not be smooth if you use them and they'll be noisier than stock, which means really noisy. The fix for the Karma was to add a stainless steel shim and grease layer between the backing plate and pistons, but MY12 cars don't have them and only 50 kits were produced. You might still be able to order a kit through a dealer. The prior fix was to use grease only, but that will only last about 6,000 miles. In normal city driving, the Karma is projected to go 140,000 miles between brake pad replacements, which is a lot but not unusual in hybrid vehicles with a lot of regen. I feel sorry for you if you live in a cold, wet climate and don't have the shims... 140,000 miles is a long time.

Wow - thanks for the info 140K miles for me is equal to about 46 years of my current driving!

 

[Special K]

Stainless steel shims

The pads are not by Ferodo. They are Brembo's proprietary material. The Ferodo HP1000 pads are used on the Cadillac CTS-V and are the same shape & size. They are higher friction and your regen blend-out will not be smooth if you use them and they'll be noisier than stock, which means really noisy. The fix for the Karma was to add a stainless steel shim and grease layer between the backing plate and pistons, but MY12 cars don't have them and only 50 kits were produced. You might still be able to order a kit through a dealer. The prior fix was to use grease only, but that will only last about 6,000 miles. In normal city driving, the Karma is projected to go 140,000 miles between brake pad replacements, which is a lot but not unusual in hybrid vehicles with a lot of regen. I feel sorry for you if you live in a cold, wet climate and don't have the shims... 140,000 miles is a long time.

Argh!!!
My brakes have started to squeel at low speeds and it's getting worse!
I have 7,800 mostly worry free miles on her.
I'm happy to read that brake pads will more than likely NOT need to be replaced!
Any idea if KARMA has any of these magical stainless steel shims available?

 

[FiskerZee]

The Brembos on my Aston Martin also Squeak and it's sometimes embarrassing at lights, etc but high friction and high tech pads sometimes do. No solution sometimes unfortunately!. Turn up the radio lol.

 

[AlJOHN]

I have used the pad grease a couple of times. It solves the issue for a year. Then slowly creeps in again. One observation they tend to squeal more, if I haven't driven in a few days--more in reverse. I think the moister builds up more with the rengen braking since pads contact with the rotors is reduced over ICE vehicles.

I don't worry about them any more, and will continue to apply pad grease (to the back side of the pad, between the steel and caliper pistons -- never on the disk side) when needed. Easy for me, since I have the tools and ability to do so.

 

[WATTGAS]

I have used the pad grease a couple of times. It solves the issue for a year. Then slowly creeps in again. One observation they tend to squeal more, if I haven't driven in a few days--more in reverse. I think the moister builds up more with the rengen braking since pads contact with the rotors is reduced over ICE vehicles.

I don't worry about them any more, and will continue to apply pad grease (to the back side of the pad, between the steel and caliper pistons -- never on the disk side) when needed. Easy for me, since I have the tools and ability to do so.

Pretty funny as my rear brakes just started squeaking recently, and only when I first back out of the garage! My car has just over 8200 miles so similar to SpecialK.

 

[Harleyguy]

Unfortunately their isn't any permanent fix Mercedes makes a brake grease that you apply to the backside of the brake pad that's suppose to work pretty good .

 

[FiskerPhilly]

Yes. You need to use ONLY molykote paste, same PN used on Mercedes M class I believe and a few others. Brembo paste (molykote) is copper metallic in color. This should last more than a year as I've never had to do it over again and we get tons of that noise complaint up here in the cold. Particularly in the damp AM.

 

[AlJOHN]

Thanks FiskerP... will try to locate here the next time I do it. I have been using the Auto store brand.

Sorry Wattg.... didn't mean to jinx you. lol. Maybe I need to play Power Ball.

 

[Special K]

Thanks for the info, I can breathe a little easier knowing it's nothing major.
I will probably wait until I bring it up to FiskerPhilly to have the molykote applied.