Your brakes are a vital part of your car, but they can suffer a lot of wear and tear. Your brakes must always be in safe working condition to keep you and your car safe. As your Cadillac dealer, we’d like you to know the signs that you’re going to need a brake repair very soon.
Burning Smells
If you smell smoke or burning chemical odors when you’re driving, these could be signs of brake problems. Smoke coming from your wheels is a sign of a stuck brake caliper. The calipers are responsible for stopping the wheel rotors when you apply the brakes. The calipers, however, should disengage when you take your foot off the brake. A jammed caliper will cause friction against the rotor and damage itself and the rotor.
Burning chemical smells can come from the brake fluid. Each time you apply the brakes, fluid is forced into the brake hoses under pressure. If you have been driving for a lengthy period with your foot on the brake, this fluid won’t have had time to cool down. If this continues, the fluid can get hot enough to boil. Boiling brake fluid loses its hydraulic properties, which means your brakes won’t work correctly.
Screeching Brakes
As mentioned, the calipers are responsible for stopping the wheel rotors. When you hit the brakes, brake fluid is forced into the brake hoses. This fluid generates hydraulic pressure, which causes the calipers to clamp on either side of the rotors. These calipers contain brake pads which produce additional friction to stop the rotors faster.
The friction material on the pads gradually wears off. When the material has worn down to a level that needs to be replaced, a small metal piece becomes visible in the pad. This metal was installed by the manufacturers as a warning to change your pads. The next time you apply your brakes, this metal piece will scratch the metal rotor and produce a horrible screeching sound. It’s time to change your brake pads.
Brake Light Comes On
Your car has two brake lights, one represents the handbrake, and the other represents your ABS. Both lights will come on and then off when you start your engine. The most common reason for your handbrake light remaining on is that the handbrake is still active. If you release the handbrake and the light stays on, we need to find the cause of the problem.
Your ABS is a safety system to prevent your wheels from locking if your car starts to skid. You can drive with a defective ABS, but it’s essential to have the system examined ASAP to prevent a possible accident. Our technicians will check your brakes and find and repair the problem.
If your Cadillac’s brakes aren’t performing as well as they should, call us ASAP at Airport Cadillac. Our Cadillac-trained technicians will find and repair any braking problem, and you’ll be on the road again in no time.
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