One of my brake pads, on my 89 4r, is loose in the caliper and makes a really irritating tick tick tick noise until you press on the brake, when it goes away.

(The calipers are the type that press from both sides and have two pins)

So, is the caliper bad? Or is there some other mystery problem I'm not thinking of..

 

sounds like your pads are shoot ...the pads have a little metal tab the starts to make the sound your hearing when they get worn down.... i might be wrong

 

Mine be worn! You might be wrong! Sounds like the anti-rattle springs that go on top of the pads to keep them still when the brakes aren't applied have broken and fallen out! You can get replacements for your local parts store! Mine did the same thing for along time!

 

If your Master cylinder has problems, It can pull the callipers back open as you pull your foot off, This normaly affects the closet calliper to the cylinder, have only heard of this happening on rare occasion.

 

I should add that I just replaced the pads. I didn't see any of the springs you speak of, only the clip that holds the pins in place.


This particular caliper has made this noise since I bought the truck, and it only happens on one side of this caliper. The noise got louder when I replaced the pads.

My brakes do feel like crap (ever since I bled out the extremely dirty old fluid), so it could be a problem with air...

 

I bought some anti-rattle springs for $3 and the noise has stopped. However, I'm still confused.

The caliper on the other side does not have these springs, and it makes no noise. And of the other Toyota trucks I've looked at, only one caliper had anti-rattle springs still in place.

So what's the deal? Is the caliper bad? Or is it just one of those completely random things?

 

The other side probably makes the noise you just don't hear it from the driver's seat! Mine rattled on both sides just couldn't hear it from driver's side, didn't notice it until my wife drove me home one day!