Common brake failure symptoms are a pedal that sinks to the floor, running a stop sign or traffic light, pulling to one side or the other, loud grinding noises, grinding vibrations and tire  fire. These conditions at the wrong time could be fatal.

It's important to check your vehicle inspection report and follow the technicians recommendations when conducting general maintenance. If you do find yourself in a situation needing brake repair, you may experience these symptoms of brake failure.

Spongy or Sinking Brake Pedal

When the brake pedal is spongy, sinking or just falling to the floor. Air has likely entered your brake system. Air in the brake lines usually enters the brake system from a brake fluid leak somewhere in the system.

To correct this problem, 1st you would have to identify where your brake system is sucking in air. A close inspection of all of your brake master cylinder, brake lines and brake calipers needs to be done to find a brake fluid leak. After the leak is found, the broken brake component must be replaced then a brake bleeding is conducted to remove any remaining air in the system.

If there are no visible leaks in the brake system, the likely culprit is the brake fluid itself. A brake fluid flush should be conducted every 60k miles or per your vehicle manufacturer's specifications and maintenance tables. Old brake fluid attracts condensation. Water in the brake fluid over time collects and causes brake pedal compression issues. Regular brake fluid service or a brake fluid flush will prevent this condition form occurring.

Grinding Noise or Grinding Feeling in the Brake Pedal

Grinding occurs when your brake pad material has worn out completely and the metal backing of the pad material is grinding against your brake rotor. This condition occurs when you wait too long to do your brakes. The grinding not only causes your car not to stop, but it also heats up the rim and tire of your vehicle causing a fire.

As you might have guessed, most vehicle fires are caused by metal on metal brake failure conditions. When this happens to your vehicle you will need to replace your brake pads and brake rotors. Doing a "pad slap" or only replacing your brake pads is never a safe alternative and will never be conducted by a reputable repair facility. The reason you have to replace both is because the grinding of your brake rotors causes deep grooves in the rotor that would not allow a new brake pad to seat properly and can fail prematurely.

Brake pads and rotors are replaced during most brake jobs. A scheduled brake job should take about 3-4 hours for both the front and rear of your vehicle. Brakes should on average last about 30k miles or roughly two years.

Squeaking Brakes

Squeaking is caused by either a brake pad minimum indicator, poor quality brake pad material or dirty brakes. Minimum brake pad indicators are installed on most brake pads and are designed to start squeaking when your brake pad is at about 2 mm of thickness, 20% brake life, or about 2 months before your pads and rotors start grinding metal to metal.

When you get your regular maintenance, your vehicle inspection should inform you that your brake pads are within the service zone of 4 mm or 40%. If your brake pads are new, then pay close attention to the brand of brake pad that was used. High quality brake pads such as Okebono, Power Stop and Napa Premium brake pads are guaranteed not to squeak. The cheaper alternative brake pads, some imported from Asia, do not guarantee no noise or anything at all.

Some aftermarket brands don't even guarantee to stop your car. Make sure you choose the right brake pads, brake rotor and the right repair facility to conduct your brake service.

Brake Lights and Other Brake Abnormalities

A glowing red brake light indicates low brake fluid or an electrical failure of your brake sysem. If the light is RED, that means you need to service your brakes right away to prevent an accident and usually means your vehicle is not safe to drive. The first thing you should do is check your brake fluid level.

If the level is low, top off your brake fluid with the specified brake fluid weight such as DOT 3 or DOT 4. Newer vehicles use DOT 5. When topping off your brake fluid cleared your light, it's a good idea to check in with your auto repair mechanic and determine where your fluid went. Brake fluid is not suppose to get low, unless you have a leak. Backyard mechanics will claim the fluid "evaporates".

Brake fluid serviced regularly does not evaporate. Brake lights are also caused by electrical faults in the brake system. You would need to scan the brake system faults and determine why the light is on. This is usually not a DIY or Do It Yourself type of problem to solve and a parts store like Autozone and O'relly would likely not be able to detect. Your solution would normally be found by scheduling a brake diagnostic with a reputable repair facility.

Where to get brake service and repairs

You can get service done on your brakes at most auto repair centers, as well as tire and brake centers.

If you’re in the Des Moines Washington area, you can bring your vehicle to ABC Repair! We use only the best brake pads for your vehicle, Okebono (OEM), Power Stop and NAPA Premium brake pads.

You can schedule an appointment with ABC by phone at (206) 0395-5300, or by filling out a contact form, which you’ll find here.

Also! Thanks for reading. Please leave a comment if you have any questions or would like us to go deeper into another topic!