Signs That Your Brakes Need Repair
Problems with the brakes on your car or truck may not keep you from stopping at first, but over time, if not addressed, the brakes could fail and cause your vehicle to become hard to stop. There are some signs you can watch for that may indicate brake problems and a need to take your car in for brake repair.
Squealing or Grinding Noise
When you apply the brakes and hear a squealing or grinding noise coming from under the vehicle, you need to pay attention to that noise. Squealing can indicate the brake pads and shoes slipping when you apply the brakes.
Often pads or shoes that have been hot enough to cause the friction material on the pads to glaze over will produce a squealing, but it can also happen if the pads and shoes are not seated in the calipers and brake drums properly.
Grinding noises are more common when the pads or shoes wear to the metal backing plates that the friction material is on, and the metal starts to run on the brake rotor or drum. The steel-on-steel contact produces the grinding and can cause extreme damage to the parts in the brake system.
Brake Fade
If the brakes seem to fade as you depress the brake pedal, or you need to apply an excessive amount of pressure to get the brakes to grab, you may be dealing with glazed brake pads or shoes. Over time the friction material heats up and hardened on the surface. When this happens, the pad skates over the surface of the rotor instead of grabbing it.
The friction material needs to be soft enough to wear as you use the brakes for the system to work correctly. Brake fade is more common in vehicles hauling a load or pulling a trailer, but if you notice it, you need to have the brakes serviced to correct the problem.
Brake Fluid Under the Vehicle
If you see any fluid on the back of your tires or the ground near the tires, you may have a leak coming from the brake system. Look at the brake caliper or the brake drum backing plate from under the car, noting any fluid that appears to be running off the brakes. You can tell brake fluid by its piney smell and clear color. If the fluid is very old, it will most likely be light brown from the heat it absorbs during braking.
Check the brake fluid level in the master cylinder under the hood of the car, and if it is low, get the car into the shop and have them check the system to ensure it is not leaking.
