How to Diagnose a Brake Problem
Brakes are one of the most important parts of a vehicle. Car safety depends on excellent working condition of your brakes. Even little malfunctions or failures in the system can result in very serious accidents. If you notice your brakes giving out, squeakiness or something off, you need to diagnose the issue for repair.
- Deduce that something is wrong with the braking system of your car. If you hear a squeaking noise when you step on the brakes or a strange grinding sound, this is one of the first signs that there is a problem.
- Take your vehicle to a local empty parking lot to test your brakes. If you need to apply full pressure when braking, this could mean that there is an issue with the wheel-brake assembly, or maybe grease on the brake linings.
- Push on the brake and determine if it hits the floor much quicker than the car comes to a stop. There may be air in the system that somehow leaked in, the pressure check valve could be failing or the brake shoes might be adjusted incorrectly.
- Brake as you usually would and see if the car seems to swerve to one side. The most common causes for this issue are frozen brake calipers and contaminated brake shoes.
- Apply pressure as usual to the brake and bring the car to a complete stop. Immediately hit the gas to determine the wheel's movement right away. This could be a failure with the parking brake or a stuck brake cylinder piston.