Audi A4 cabriolet brakes binding front nearside, rear offside to a lesser extent

Hi,

The brakes bind on my A4 to the extent I change pads every 3 to 4 months. :1zhelp: I have got into the habit of swapping pad as the off side has little or no wear and the nearside is to the metal after three months. I am fairly sure the problem is in the servo area. I have replaced the calliper, hose and ABS unit to no avail. The pad wear warning light (yellow light) came on tonight as I was driving home - hence my frustration :zx11::zx11: although I must have got nearly four months out of the pads this time.

While I do a lot of the work on my car myself - I have had two garages work on the brakes to no avail. :zx11: Fluid was replaced about a month ago. The old fluid is dark when bled at the nearside to indicate overheating. The diagonal rear brake also drags but not as bad as the front nearside.


I am in Northern Ireland and would leave the car into a garage if that helps. My only reluctance is the price for the car I was quoted when I considered trading it in. A 2003 A4 cabrio is not worth a lot and this repair is probably close to its value!

Is there an article anywhere showing the steps? I think it must be some part around the servo - basically as everything else has been changed! The fault has been in the car about a year and a half now and must be in my fourth or fifth set of pads in that time. PS it is not ungreased pins etc.

Anyone with advice?

My suggestion would be to try to find out if the binding is caused by the pads being tight on their seats, i.e. unable to free off properly when pedal is released.or if it may be the caliper itself
that is sticking. On second thoughts looking at your previous work,most of these ideas should be well covered.
Is it very evident that brakes are sticking so severe when jacked up,or does it only occur after driving for a period,like hydraulic pressure building up
Any brake efficiency test carried out recently

When car is jacked up the binding does not appear to be severe. I have also started the car when raised and the binding is the same. It is really odd, however after a few miles the front nearside is too hot to touch and the burning smell is strong.

Have a look at the" similar threads "section at bottom of this page
1.9tdi B6 front brakes binding

Wonder if you have collapsed vacuum pipe , its inside the pipe, so you will never see it

my mates A4 had this prblem

Front nearside brake binding and getting hot is usually an indicator of a failing servo.

Yes, servo rusted due to water being drawn in from the plenum chamber.

Thanks for all responses. Solution was new servo - hopefully helps someone in the future!

Thanks - I have hyperlinked the thread you referred to (below) in case someone is searching with the same problem and finds my thread

1.9tdi B6 front brakes binding