Diagnosing Sticking Brake Caliper

[alvocado]

Over the past few weeks, I've been getting more pad to rotor contact noise along with a slight sticking. The noise is a grating sound that I can easily reproduce by lightly applying and backing off the brake pedal (light pumping of the pedal), allowing the truck to creep forward. It only occurs at near stop speeds or when just starting and my brakes have always been dead silent up until now. It sounds like it's coming from up front and is definately the pads making contact with the rotors. I also occasionally get a slight sticking sensation when letting off the brake from a stop however there is no pulling to one side and no excessive burning smell after entering the garage. The brakes were replaced about 38k miles ago and have good pad life remaining and the rotors are in great shape. One note: when I changed the brakes, the drivers side caliper dust boot was very stubborn and wanted to pop out instead of staying flush with the piston face. I haven't pulled the caliper on that wheel yet to inspect and see if the boot is damaged.

 

What's the best way to confirm if a caliper is sticking and would there be anything else worth checking? I'm way overdue for a brake bleed but I'd rather wait if I need to pull a caliper off and do it then.

[pm26]

The best way to confirm if the caliper is sticking is to jack up both front wheels, then spin the suspect wheel by hand. Apply the brake, release it, and then spin the wheel again. Spin the other wheel for comparison in both cases. If you feel excessive drag, then the caliper is sticking.