Brake anti rattle springs

[92EcoDiesel Jetta]

Is the spring installed correctly, especially the tang that is circled? This is the front brakes on my 92 Jetta. The Bentley does not have any details of how it is supposed to be installed and the drawing does not show the needed details. There is an upper and lower spring with supposedly different part numbers. What happens if I leave the springs out? How bad will the rattle be and will it affect brake performance?

[RabbitJockey]

i can't remember but i think you may have it upside down.  i usually don't even put them in.

[sgnimj96]

http://forums.vwvortex.com/showthread.php?3836802-Brake-Anti-Rattle-clip-how-to.
         When mine were missing (from PO) the rattle was very noticeable when I hit bumps and potholes but the brakes still seemed to work fine.       I found the easiest way to install them was to (re)move the caliper, that way there is no fiddle and bending of the clips.   

[ftm1776]

I lost my springs.

I just ran a loop of wire from the top of the brake pad, down across the caliper(not crisscross), to the bottom of the brake pad. I did this on all front brake pads. Not too tight...a little trial and error is required. This eliminates most of the rattle that was bothersome for me.
Cheaper than replacing those funky springs!!
That's and interesting idea to put some RTV silicone sealer on there. Does that help???

[derf_kcire.XXII]

i can't remember but i think you may have it upside down.  i usually don't even put them in.

 Yeah, sort of. Neither portion of the spring should be in contact with lining material.

[TylerDurden]

They are on exactly right.

The tab is against the caliper. The angle of the shot make it look like it's touching the other stuff.

[92EcoDiesel Jetta]

Thanks for the replies. The red stuff is not RTV. It's CRC Disc brake quiet. I thought it's a brake grease but unfortunately it is not...... I didn't read the f..ken label which says:

"Disc Brake Quiet forms a water resistant, high-temperature film that absorbs noise while quieting squeaks & squeals. Specially formulated to dampen the vibrations that cause brake noise. For use on the back of non-shimmed disc pads."

It's supposed to be applied on the back of the pads, not where I have it. It dried to be like glue. I have since wired brushed/ scraped it all off and applied high temp synthetic grease on the metal sliding surfaces to keep it from rusting/binding as long as possible

[92EcoDiesel Jetta]

I took the anti rattle springs off, wire brushed the area and lubed the sliding surfaces with grease and took it for a short drive. No rattles! I had these springs on the last set of pads which have less than 10 k miles, about a year old and they were almost down to the metal and not wearing evenly (thinner on one end than the other). They were definitely binding ,maybe due to those springs? I am sure there were more drag, noting the accelerated pad wear, which likely lowered MPG. I'll see how it performs with no anti rattle springs.

[92EcoDiesel Jetta]

It has been rattle free w/o the springs till a month ago. Now I hear a metal to metal clunk everytime I hit the slightest road irregularity. It has the least amount of brake drag without the springs, the car will roll on the slightest incline by releasing the handbrake. As I recall, with the springs it did not do that.

I am thinking off putting the OE springs back in, or making my own better performance low drag springs. My idea is to use coil springs to pull the pads away from the brake rotor. I'll see if that is possible or worth the trouble next time I pull it apart.

I took the anti rattle springs off, wire brushed the area and lubed the sliding surfaces with grease and took it for a short drive. No rattles! I had these springs on the last set of pads which have less than 10 k miles, about a year old and they were almost down to the metal and not wearing evenly (thinner on one end than the other). They were definitely binding ,maybe due to those springs? I am sure there were more drag, noting the accelerated pad wear, which likely lowered MPG. I'll see how it performs with no anti rattle springs.

[92EcoDiesel Jetta]

I pulled the front calipers and put the anti rattle springs back in, and the clunks over bumps has gone away. The brake pads were in good shape with no uneven wear like I noticed during the last pads replacement. The metal slots on the pads were visibly worn from bouncing around for 5 months without the anti rattle springs. They were a much tighter fit when they were newly installed, which explains the clunks as wear progresses.