Keeping Up With Your Car's Braking System

Your car’s brakes aren’t something to ignore. They are a vital aspect of your car’s safety system and when you can’t stop, you put yourself and everyone on the road around you at risk. Car accidents are basically caused by two controllable components including driver error and mechanical defect. Both of these components are controllable. When it comes to mechanical defects, the leading cause of accidents is faulty brakes that simply didn’t work when they were needed.

Your car will warn you when your brakes are going out and give you plenty of time to get them repaired. There are lots of warning signs that you need a brake repair job, including the most common red flag - the squealing brakes you can hear for miles. Your brake shoes have a special design built into them that will create this unholy metal to metal noise so there is no mistake you need your brakes serviced when the brake padding is worn down. Without the brake padding on the brake shoe, your brakes aren’t grabbing and they aren’t working right. 

Other red flags you should be aware of that indicate your brakes are going out include your brakes being spongy when you apply them. If you are pushing down on your brakes and your foot is almost to the floor or at the floor before they function, you need a brake repair job immediately and you should stop driving your car until you can get it serviced. The fix for spongy brakes can be something simple like a lack of brake fluid, or it can be more complex especially if you have been ignoring that squealing sound for a while now in the hopes that your brakes would somehow heal themselves if you just ignored things long enough.

Another indicator that you need a brake repair job includes brakes that seem to be grabby. If you tap your brakes and they feel like you have slammed them on, it’s a huge red flag that it could be a problem with your brake fluid levels being low, or it could be something else entirely more complex. If you’re not sure, check your brake reservoir fluid levels. If the levels are low, add more brake fluid and see if your problem goes away. If your fluids aren’t low or this didn’t solve the problem, the next step is the mechanic shop for a once over.

Your car’s braking system is composed of a lot of different components including brake pads, brake shoes, braking fluid, calibers and rotors. Any of these components can malfunction due to age or wear and that is why it’s important to have your brakes checked every year. You can eliminate a lot of surprise brake repair jobs if you plan for them and the best way to plan for them is to keep an active eye on your brake system.