Xpander

I recently purchased a brand new Audi Q5 3L here in Qatar. The rear brakes make a loud grunting sound as soon as the car comes to a complete halt. This sound is the loudest when the brakes are cold especially when i take the car out in the morning for work and goes away if i am driving the car for an hour or so with regular braking. The mileage is currently 2500 kms.

I took this to Audi Qatar Service Centre for a check-up but unfortunately the brakes were not making noise at that time. They said that this sound occurs due to grinding of metallic brake pads on the metallic discs especially when the pad locks on to disc upon a complete halt. They also said that it is a common issue as due to the EU regulations, asbestos is no longer used inside brake pads that was earlier helpful in absorbing some of this vibration. They also said that there is no solution as such and this sound should go away when the brakes become hot.

Honestly, I find this sound very irritating and more so because you spend so much money to buy these german cars and in the end you have to deal with these issues.

Anyone else facing a similar issue? I would appreciate your feedback on this. Thank you.

motoguy128

It seems like BMW and Audi use a different pad compound than more other makes. They create more dust, but seem to tolerate heat better don't fade as quickly and give a more linear, progressive feel. The downside is they seem to be a little grabby at very low speeds. Its' hard to stop my 325i smoothly below 2mph and our Q5 makes the occasional low frequency groan (grunt).

I just consider it a quirk. I wonder if it gets better at the rotars wear a little more. Our front rotors are new.

ELEVENS

Have you bedded in the brakes? ALL new brakes need this, and old ones benefit from bedding in too, especially when pulsing makes an appearance.

Instructions for bedding in your brakes

Xpander

Thanks for your responses. I haven't done this bedding yet. Sometimes when i do brake a bit harder for a few times repeatedly, this grunting sound also goes away. It feels like the brake pads need to get hot to stop making this sound.

I will surely give this brake bedding a shot over the weekend. Thanks for the tip!

jengram

Thanks for the information and article of brake bedding. I just picked up my 2016 SQ5 and I also am having the load noise when coming to a complete stop. I'll give this a try!

ELEVENS

Don't miss the other 2 links in the bedding article. They're loaded with great info.

arter

alternate pad materials could also help if the bedding doesn't get you there.

NorthValley

I had squeaks, squealing and groans during the initial 3-5k but now nothing except smooth and effective braking!

2022AudiS6

I am having the same issue with my 2022 S6.. grunting sound when comes to a stop and goes away after driving. I was told it's the brake breaking in period. Did yours goes away after the breaking in period?

2022AudiS6

what do you mean by "bedded in the brakes"? do you mean breaking in the brakes?