So we had our first snow/freeze over yesterday and last night along with some rain earlier in the day. Now today when I drove the car to class this morning I heard grinding when braking, at first it was extremely loud, i pulled over checked to see if it was something caught in the wheel-well, nothing there, drove a few feet sure enough still there. By the time I got home it had quieted down quite a bit and it doesnt even make the noise unless you brake hard anymore. What should I contribute this to? Wouldn't the noise be consistent if it was worn brake pads or frozen calipers/rotors or something of that sort?

 

Ok I turned the car off and let it sit for about 15 to 20 minutes, started it and drove it again and everything was fine?? wtf?? i tried brake on both right and left turns, hard and soft, braking hard while driving straight, reverse, etc and no signs of that noise. What happened??

EDIT: there was part of a leaf stuck between the caliper and brake pad, but it was not on the side touching the rotor, could that have caused it anyways?

 

It may be worn out pads still, I had the same problem, It was quiet for awhile then It got really bad and loud, and then it got quiet again, Also sometimes it would make the noise when i wasn't braking, and sometimes it would only when I was braking. Changing pads takes like 15 minutes, just do it to be safe

 

Rotor get flash rust with any kind of moisture. When you first use the brakes, they can sound awful. It takes a few stops for the rust to wear off and then you are back to normal.