Ford Focus (1998 - 2004) - 2000 1.6 Squeaky rear brakes & whine from clutch

Honest John Back Room » Technical matters
What is life like with your car? Let us know and win £500 in John Lewis vouchers | No thanks
View Threaded
Mon 24 Nov 2008 22:01
2000 1.6 Squeaky rear brakes & whine from clutch - addy_a
I have a 2000 1.6 zetec focus which has had a very annoying (and somewhat embarrasing) squeaking noise from the rear drums every time i brake.. Whether hot/cold, rain/shine, it always happens! Its getting louder and becoming quite annoying when in traffic or driving through town. It happens when i press the brake pedal and happens again when i depress the pedal. Can anyone please tell me if there is a solution to this?

Also, (whilst i'm here), there is also a very unusual whine from the engine every time i depress the clutch pedal?!?! It goes away when I let go of the clutch. And even when i am driving and go to change gear, clutch pedal down, a strange whine comes from the engine and then goes away once the clutch is released.. It seems very odd, never heard of this on any of my previous cars. Again, can anyone please shed any light on this?

Any help on the above would be very much appreciated!!!

Edited by Dynamic Dave on 25/11/2008 at 00:06

Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Mon 24 Nov 2008 22:14
2000 1.6 Squeaky rear brake drums and whine from c - Andrew Moorey (Tune-Up)
Your brake squeak is the metal part of the shoe rubbing on the backplate. There should be a tiny smear of high melting point grase on the contact points but it dries up or washes off and the shoes start to squeak. Remove the rear drums, wash out the dust with brake cleaner then re-apply the grease. Use a new nut and dust cover and you might want to think about washing the old grease out of the bearings and re-packing them.
The whine will be the clutch release bearing failing. Renew the clutch while its apart.
Reply | Report as offensive | Link
Thu 27 Nov 2008 00:48
2000 1.6 Squeaky rear brake drums and whine from c - mikej
My 1.8i Focus with rear drums suffers from the same loud squeaking problem. In my case the problem is solved by cleaning out the brake dust and putting a dab of copperslip grease on the contact points, so try and clean out your drums as described above. I have to do this every 1-2 years to keep the brakes quiet.

The recommended way of removing the rear drums on a Focus in order to get at the brake mechanism is to remove the 4 bolts which hold the stub axle to the backing plate and remove the drum and stub axle in one piece. This avoids the need to undo/redo the hub nut (which is extremely tight) and also avoids the risk of damaging the bearings. Only do this if you're competent and have the correct tools though, for obvious reasons !
Reply | Report as offensive | Link

Looking for a garage you can trust? Honest John's Good Garage Guide has thousands of reader recommended garages, plus how-to guides and tips on servicing.

The Good Garage Guide

Cold-snap snow-how: Advice on coping with the freezing weather, including videos, facts and winter driving advice.

Honest John's Guide To Winter Tyres