Could be brakes: stuck caliper, but if you had a stuck front caliper,
you'd have felt it in the steering, particularly on the highway. The van
would have pulled HARD to the right. You didn't report this, so I'm
assuming you didn't feel it.

Sounds more like a fried wheel bearing to me. Since the right front
wheel takes the greater number of curb bangs, pot holes leaps, and
sewer-grate plunges, that wheel bearing is often first to go, usually
with a squeal on catastrophic failure, sometimes with a low rumble when
it is simply worn out, and has a hundred miles or so before it
decomposes.

No, thankfully I have not had this experience, but I've seen it happen
on customer cars when I used to be greasier for a living. Since you
continued to drive it after something (probably the bearing)
catastrophically failed, you may be in the market for a new steering
knuckle, which is slightly more expensive than the wheel bearings, which
will provide a very memorable learning experience.

It is almost ALWAYS cheaper to have your vehicle towed when something
has obviously failed. Continued driving only worsens the matter, and
this might be a classic example. Keep us posted.

From historic, walkable Mount Olive, NC,

G. Matthew Bulley
Bulley-Hewlett
Corporate Communications
Business: www.bulley-hewlett.com
Alliance: www.ntara.com
Home: www.MountOliveNC.info

-----Original Message-----
From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM] On Behalf
Of Les Shiaman
Sent: Sunday, January 20, 2002 1:28 AM
To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
Subject: Brake woes

Listees -

Well here's another story to add to my struggles with vanagon ownership.
As I was getting on the freeway onramp this evening I heard a brief
high-pitched squeal from the front right wheel area.  I didn't hear it
at
freeway speed, but about 8 miles up the road I smelled burnt brakes so I
pulled into a gas station and saw smoke coming from the front right
wheel
well.  I parked for a while, then turned around to head home.  I tried
using brakes as little as possible and I noticed as I took my offramp
home that I could hear a new sound from the front right wheel -- sounded
kinda like metal on metal!  I will look at the area tomorrow, but this
doesn't sound good.  Has anyone had this experience?  Why would one
brake
stick?

Thanks again,

Les
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