Brake pad issue...very odd, here's the evidence

[astrochimp]

So I've been hearing this groaning sound when rolling down the road WHEN i turn the car to the left. The wheel bearings are fairly new in front and I shook both front tires to check the bearings with car jacked up.
I have pretty new pads and REALLY new front drivers rotor..like 2 weeks old.
I see some evidence that I took photos of-
The outer pad and rotor surface look Great..not so much for the inner pad.
That inner strip area is the problem. The rotor spins without anything touching it like clips.
and that strip is kind of bumpy on the brake pad while the rest of the pad is smooth.
Defective brake pad?? hell if i know
Never have come across this kind of issue before..what in TARNATION is going on ?

 

[J_C]

The edge of your caliper cups, where they contact the pads, should be cleaned of rust. That doesn't necessarily explain the wear pattern, just an observation while I noticed it.

Take a straight edge (ruler/etc) and determine whether it's the pad or rotor that's not flat. With only 2 weeks on them I'd think whichever should be eligible for warranty replacement.

However I find it odd that it's only during a left turn. Bearings can wear out fast if the axle nut isn't tightened down enough, and often noisy ones have little to no play (yet) while by the time they have play they are really badly shot and the vehicle shimmies when changing lanes. Regardless you see the brake issue so I would get that resolved first.

 

[drdoom]

What brand of parts (hubs, pads, & rotors) did you use?

 

[astrochimp]

will sand the caliper and check for straightness with a straight edge. I did sand the pads just a bit to get rid of the rough strip area and the pads have a lifetime warranty through autozone (i haven't paid for brake pads in 14 years now!)

 

[astrochimp]

the bearing assembly and rotors are just the basic at advance auto. The brake pads are upper level ones from autozone.

 

[drdoom]

I would be inclined to replace the right hub and warranty the pads. YMMV

 

[koda2000]

I've never seen that happen before. Just out of curiosity, when you replaced the rotor did you clean the protective gunk off of it?

 

[astrochimp]

I've never seen that happen before. Just out of curiosity, when you replaced the rotor did you clean the protective gunk off of it?

me neither.
nothing was on the rotor..
the pistons move freely on the caliper
the car does pull a little to the right so i thought it was tread noise, but the noise is quite loud.
feel like it's the wheel bearing failing after only 20k miles but it spins perfectly with zero shake to it when it's on a jack.
if something would just BREAK, that would be easier.

 

[Highflow50]

Try giving the slide pins a little tlc with the proper brake grease.

 

[J_C]

Whether or not the pad-rotor issue is the cause of the noise, it's still something you can fix, then you can see if you still have noise.
Wait. I just noticed you wrote "I have pretty new pads and REALLY new front drivers rotor..like 2 weeks old."

If your old rotors broke in the new pads, then you found you needed to replace the rotors, they may have caused uneven wear on the pads. Usually (arguably, always) you should use brand new pads with new rotors, not broken in with different rotors at all.

 

[koda2000]

Whether or not the pad-rotor issue is the cause of the noise, it's still something you can fix, then you can see if you still have noise.
Wait. I just noticed you wrote "I have pretty new pads and REALLY new front drivers rotor..like 2 weeks old."

If your old rotors broke in the new pads, then you found you needed to replace the rotors, they may have caused uneven wear on the pads. Usually (arguably, always) you should use brand new pads with new rotors, not broken in with different rotors at all.

OP, as you got your pads from AutoZone, just exchange them for new ones. They don't have to be worn out to exchange them for free. You can even exchange them for better quality pads and just pay the difference.

 

[astrochimp]

Whether or not the pad-rotor issue is the cause of the noise, it's still something you can fix, then you can see if you still have noise.
Wait. I just noticed you wrote "I have pretty new pads and REALLY new front drivers rotor..like 2 weeks old."
.

oooo, this is a good point. That strip might be left over from the old rotor...which was pretty bad on the inside.
Now i'm thinking the loud noise, which i can only describe as the sound of nobby offroad tires on pavement, when i turn left is either-
1. alignment is way off and it's tire noise (since car does pull to right)
2. that front bearing is going bad.