I know I’ve said before that it is important for full-time RVers to look into rig issues immediately. But one can only look into certain things so many times, before you just have to give up and live with it.

We’ve written plenty about our brakes so I won’t delve any further into the ugly details. But that “nuisance noise” we were told we had by one shop – not the one that ripped us off – came back pretty quick a while ago and never went away.

When we were visiting the Davenports before the holidays, Randy convinced me that if you want something done right you really do have to do it yourself. He has a garage fully equipped with tools, and knows how to use them. So we tore apart our brand new brake system and applied brake silencer spray to the back of all the pads. Something the last Dodge shop we went to – the one that did rip us off – did not do when they installed them.

Upon completion, I was confident we had conquered the brake squeal once and for all. And I was happy it didn’t cost a dime.

This time it took almost a couple weeks before the persistent chirp returned every time we applied the brakes.

After researching Chrysler brake issues, and noticing the same squeak coming from various other Dodge trucks at many an intersection, we’ve decided we can live with this.

Or as this AA1Car report on Silencing Disc Brake Squeal says …

“If an inspection of the brake system reveals no serious faults such as worn, loose or damaged parts, you have a choice to make. You can live with the noise, or you can pay to eliminate the noise.”

Well, with brand new brakes and a squeak that can’t be eliminated, our choice is simple – we are going to live with it. Or I’ll try to fix it myself the again next time we get fed up. Now if only I could learn how to do my own front end work, or learn to live with how our truck drifts when hands are released from the wheel …

We took our Dodge Ram 2500 to a Big-O shop for an alignment after noticing this new issue. After waiting for a couple hours and seeing them test drive the truck a couple times, they told us it didn’t need an alignment. According to the computer, it was fine.

But I don’t a computer to know when my truck won’t cruise in a straight line. Which it still wouldn’t do, after they charged us for the alignment it didn’t need. So they rotated the tires. And it still drifted, though not nearly as bad. Here we go again.