Okay, I have 21000 miles on my truck and I washed last friday. Two days later (sunday) I needed to wash my front wheels because they were covered in brake dust which is nothing new. While doing this, which was after a short drive with no really hard braking, I noticed that when I sprayed the drivers side front wheel with water, steam was coming off the brakes. It didn't do it on the passenger side. Anyone else had this? Is it normal or should I worry?

 

I wouldnt worry about it. The brake pads are always in contact with the rotor no matter if its a short or long drive. So the brakes will get hot enough to make steam if sprayed with water. This is true for all brakes especially disc brakes. When you have to replace the pads if one side wears out before the other then you have a problem.

 

Thanks for the reply gray... I'l keep an eye on it anyway and maybe next time I'm in for service I'll ask them.

 

I wouldn't worry about it. You're hauling down a lot of weight, so naturally the brakes will be hot. The brakes and calipers are huge on the '04s, so they'll retain heat for a while after shut down.

And, theorically speaking, the driver's side could be working slightly harder (ergo running a bit hotter) than the passenger's side, it's closer to the master cylinder.

 

the pads always stay in light contact with the rotor so it's normal for them to be hot even after a short time of use

 

My brakes run hot on my SCrew. I suspect they will be even hotter now, as I installed 4 Kleen Wheels yesterday. Actually, my dealer put them on for me yesterday during a tire rotation. I noticed that I was not charged anything for it. The bill stated "installed owner supplied options" $0.00. The mechanic, siad why should we charge you? Those things are pretty much standard on Lincolns and Mercurys.

The Kleen Wheels have little air scoops, but I am not sure how effective they are at helping cool the brakes.

 

I don’t think the Kleen Wheels will make your brakes run hotter. What about cars with steel wheel and an outside hubcap? Same difference.

 

JP,

Makes sense to me. Thanks....................

 

Same thing happens to my wifes 01 Accord...then again, you should see the way she drives