Testing Brakes

[Reephdweller]

The brakes on my car today are giving me a little bit of resistance, they're not necessarily squealing, but I can feel as I use the brakes the something isn't right. I'm guessing it's possibly the brake pads. Is there any sure fire way to know without taking the car to a mechanic? I have no problem getting them done, but if there's a way to determine before taking it somewhere I'd like to know. For all I know it could just be brake dust. Any ideas?

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[GrimSanity]

is the pedal pulsating,hard,spongy, do you hear grinding, does your car go to one side when you brake. i need more info to try and help

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[FUNKMAN]

you can take the tire off and look at the thickness of the pad. if it's very near the level of the metal, then take it in for new ones. that's just one of many items to check.

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[Reephdweller]

is the pedal pulsating,hard,spongy, do you hear grinding, does your car go to one side when you brake. i need more info to try and help


There's no grinding noises, just some resistance, it feels like the front of the car is braking unevenly. It doesn't seem to be to one side or the other though, so I'm guessing that this is affecting both front brakes. I don't believe the brakes are the problem, it feels more from the front. It feels a little bit spongy, and I feel what I think is brake dust. I'm thinking it's the brake pads personally, but I'm just not sure. .

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[TooCute]

Well, how old are your brakes? You might as well pop off your tired & take a look, and if they still feel funny, take them in & have them checked. It can't possibly cost THAT much, particularly if notihng's wrong... and if something in, well you need to know...I don't know what you value your life at!

I'm superduper paranoid about my brakes, because one time they felt funny, I got them checked (they had even just passed inspection) because I was driving to washington state via California... well... my brake calipers were somehow stuck and weren't closing all the way - just enough to slow my car down but not enough for stopping at high speeds. I was headed over the Sierra and coming down a particularly steep grade... it was the scariest tihng ever since I had no way to stop my car. I put it into second, kept my foot on the brake despite the burning rubber smell, and just prayed that I wouldn't lose control. AWFUL!

So anyway since then, I take my car in to have the brakes checked at the slightest oddity. Usually it's just brake dust - but I have really hard brake pads so sometimes the grind and stuff - usually my mechanic will pop the wheels off, clean out the pads and tell me there's nothing wrong, and doens't charge me.

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[hyperspace]

it sounds to me like a fluid problem(i worked in auto for many years) when you push the pedal it "feels weird" like it goes to the floor to fast/easy than it used to but does not slow the car down? check your brake fluid and have the system checked out if you can.

[carguy]

Check the brake fluid. If there isn't much in the reservoir there's a good chance you need new brakes or you have a leak.

If you have drum brakes in the rear they just might need an adjustment. That would explain the uneven front to rear braking. If they aren't too far out you can do it yourself pretty easily. Depending on what you're driving either drive backwards pretty quick and make a few hard stops or work your E-brake about 20 times or so and that will adjust them.

If the fluid level is good and adjusting the brakes does nothing, bring it in. There are a lot of other things that could be a problem.

[GrimSanity]

if it is spongy then that means there is air in the brake system. the dragging mit be a frozen cliper

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[Reephdweller]

I talked to my mechanic and described what was happening (I didn't have to make ANY noises to replicate the problem) but he said to bring it in and he'd have a look at it. I needed my oil changed and a tire rotation anyway, so he'll let me know. Hopefully it's nothing major.

If this helps, it's a '92 Jeep Cherokee
I had the brakes done about 1« - 2 years ago

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[Death Metal Moe]

http://www.lexuspros.com/images/pads.jpg

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[Death Metal Moe]

I also saw a study from Princeton that shows inner city brake pads test more poorly than brake pads that went to suburban or rural schools. It's due mostly to the poor wearing conditions.

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[FUNKMAN]

I talked to my mechanic and described what was happening (I didn't have to make ANY noises to replicate the problem) but he said to bring it in and he'd have a look at it. I needed my oil changed and a tire rotation anyway, so he'll let me know. Hopefully it's nothing major


reef,

how did it go?

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[Reephdweller]

My front brakes were completely shot, I needed new front brakes and rotors, plus a minor adjustment to the back brakes. I just got back from a trip to see my girl and go to the the YMB CDIH softball game in Rahway so I had a good chance to get a feel of how well the brakes were done. The car feels dramatically better.

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[Death Metal Moe]

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[Reephdweller]

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Thanks...I needed that!

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[high fly]

Have you remembered to rotate your brake pads?
That's what it sounds like to me.
Left front goes to right rear.
Right rear goes to left rear.
Left rear goes to right front.
Right front goes to left front.

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[Death Metal Moe]

That high fly. What a card!

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