When I bought my first car, I didn't care about maintenance at all. Instead of carefully checking the oil and watching the wear on my tires, I drove it mindlessly into the ground. However, after junking my first car after only five years, I learned how painful it was to start the entire process from square one. The fact of the matter is that car repair is important. In addition to keeping you safe, car repair can also save you money. As you look through the articles on my website, I hope that you can find tips to help you along the way, so that you can hang onto your investment.
When you have issues with your brakes, you need to tend to them right away. Your brakes are one of the most important things to keep a close eye on because failing brakes can be fatal in worst case scenarios. Here are a few of the more common brake issues that you want to watch for with regards to your car.
Your car pulls to the side when you step on the brakes
If your car starts pulling to one side or the other when you step on the brakes, then this can be caused by a few different things. One of the things that can cause this pulling is a caliper that is froze. This is a problem that can start out slowly, so you don't notice anything going on until it is finally frozen. They can also be damaged when the slide pins don't have enough lubrication.
Another thing that can lead to the car acting in this manner is that there was damage to one of the pistons which could have happened during an accident, even a minor one. Another way that this can happen to a piston is by it being accidentally damaged when the brakes were being replaced.
Your brake pedal is soft
If you go to press down on the brake pedal and it feels very soft and even squishy, then this can be attributed to different things. However, you should not drive that car until the issue has been determined and resolved.
One of the first things is a very simple-to-fix thing and it is to make sure there is enough brake fluid in the car. If the brake fluid is fine, then the issue can be air in the line and a mechanic can take care of this for you. Air usually gets trapped in the line if you have recently had the brakes replaced.
The problem can also be due to a leak in the master cylinder. If there is a leak in the master cylinder, it can be inside or outside of the master cylinder. A brake repair mechanic will be able to determine whether this is the issue and fix the problem.
You have a shaky steering wheel
Having your steering wheel shake on you when you step on the brakes can be a scary thing. However, the problem may be an easy one to diagnose. A shaking steering wheel usually means that there is some problem with a rotor.
Your rotor can be warped due to you driving brakes down too low, the rotors getting too hot, or the rotors becoming rusted. Depending on how bad your rotors are, they may be able to just be resurfaced. If the damage is severe, then the damaged rotor will nee to be replaced.
Share28 April 2019
