Van Revival - Brake Pads

Having had the suspension bushings and ball joints replaced, wheels aligned, and tires replaced and balanced, I thought it would be the end of the suspension and noise problems of the van. It turned out I was half right. The squeaking noise was indeed gone. But there remains a faint scraping sound coming from the front wheels that disappears when ever I step on the brakes. Logic says it has something to do with the brakes. I jokingly though "duh" to myself. 


I remembered having encountered this same scraping sound when we still had our Sentra. Our driver had it taken care of and I didn't know the specifics of what the problem was or how it was resolved. I learned that just a few days ago. The scraping sound was coming from a small piece of sheet metal attached to the brake pads specifically for that purpose... to scrape. It does so when the brake pad lining is worn to the point that the indicator starts making contact with the rotor disc each time the calipers engage when brakes are applied. I also learned this was an easy routine swapping of old pads for new ones. I was given the part number and bought them right away. It was not until I saw the old and new pads side by side that I realized how worn the old pads were. 

They looked anorexic compared to the new ones. They would still grip tight, tighter than the new ones actually, until the grooves of the rotor match... but the scraping would have only become louder. The new pads are in and it's been a week since. The brakes are fine and the van no longer has squeaks from the suspension nor scrapes from the brakes. All you can hear now is the engine, which should be the case.