9 Causes of Squeaking and Vibrating When Braking
Nothing is more important than making sure your car actually stops when you apply the brakes. Various noises and feedback from the vehicle while driving are often the first thing you notice when you suspect a problem, and braking issues are no exception. So what does it mean if you hear a grinding, squealing, or scraping sound or feel a vibration when you apply the brakes?
Common Causes of Noises and Vibrations When Braking
If you hear unpleasant sounds like “grunging,” “rubbing,” “squeaking,” or “metal rubbing” while driving or braking, you may have some trouble. In some cases, nothing happens and the noise goes away on its own. However, if the noise is persistent and doesn’t go away, or gets worse, you may have a brake problem. Here are 9 reasons why this brake squeal can occur.
1) Worn brake pads
If you hear a grinding or hissing noise when you press the brake pedal, your brake pads may be worn out. When the backing plate loses material, the metal comes into contact with the metal of the rotor. Or the caliper itself may come into contact with the rotor. Either way, not replacing your pads can seriously damage your brakes.
The rotor can be destroyed by the backing plate, causing damage and gouging. The rotor, in turn, does the same to the caliper. If your brake pads are damaged, they should be replaced as soon as possible. If you hear a grinding noise when you apply the brakes, but your pads are fine, keep reading.
2) Poor quality brake pads
Don’t try to save money by buying the cheapest brake pads possible. Skimping on low-quality brake pads can literally mean the difference between nearly crashing or suffering serious injuries and losing your car completely.
Not only do cheap brake pads perform poorly, they are also poorly manufactured and may have defects in the pad material, such as metal chunks, that can rub against the brake disc and cause serious damage.
Choosing a reputable brand for your brake pads will save you money in the long run. Some of the best brake pad brands include Akebono, Stoptech, Wagner, EBC, Powerstop, and AC Delco.
3) Worn Washers
If you have had a brake repair done or replaced your brake pads yourself, you should replace your washers. Bad mechanics might avoid this if they want to get the job done quickly. So make sure you replace them.
If you don’t replace your brake washers, they will wear out over time. This often causes part of the brake washer to come into contact with the rotor or another metal part of the brake system.
When metal comes into contact with other metal like this, you will hear strange noises coming from your brake system while driving. Therefore, make sure to replace the washers.
4) Dirt on the brakes
Dirt from outside can get stuck in the brake system. This debris can be stones or gravel that gets stuck in the caliper. The dirt gets stuck between the rotor and the brake caliper, causing scratching, grinding noises and sometimes vibrations.
This noise continues even when you don’t press the brake pedal. If you don’t remove the stuck piece, it can damage the rotor over time and require at least replacement, and possibly even replacement.
If something is pinched in your brakes, it can also cause the brake pads to lose alignment and wear unevenly. In this case, you’ll need to replace your pads sooner than normal due to reduced performance.
5) Driving Infrequently
A set of brake pads typically lasts between 30,000 and 70,000 miles of normal driving, depending on the type of vehicle and your driving style. However, if you’ve had braking problems before, it could simply be that you’re not driving your car enough. If your rotors haven’t been used for a while (e.g. if you store your car over the winter), they may develop rust or slight corrosion over time.
Other parts of your braking system may rust as well, causing problems like: A. Stuck brake calipers. With surface rust, the rotors will no longer be smooth and may even have slightly raised areas where the rust is developing. You may hear strange noises from your brakes while driving or braking.
To avoid this problem, don’t let your car sit for long periods of time without being driven. What little rust does develop will often fall off naturally over time due to the heat and friction of the brakes during normal driving. If the rust is severe, the rotors may need to be recoated.
6) Brake Rotor Wear
When brake rotors become worn or damaged (distorted, scratched, cracked), they will produce a variety of abnormal noises. If the rotors are warped and not flat, they will produce squealing and grinding noises. If the rotors are too worn, they may produce scratching noises instead.
In addition, worn rotors will cause strong vibrations in the braking system. The vibrations occur erratically and can be felt by your feet as a shudder in the brake pedal or steering wheel.
You may be able to replace (or rotate) the rotor if it’s only slightly warped, but if it’s simply beyond its useful life, the rotor needs replacing.
7) No Lubrication on Brake Parts
When installing brake pads, the brake pads’ backside need to be lubricated lightly using a brake caliper lube. If this simple step is ignored, then the metal of the pads and metal of the caliper piston will come together when you apply the brakes and make squealing or rubbing sound.
8) Caliper Bolts
Brake caliper bolts should also be lubricated or else their slides will create sounds if they’re dry. This scenario is less likely to occur, but it could especially if it’s a DIY job. A reputable auto repair shop will at the least lubricate the bolts and often provide brand new bolts.
9) Faulty Wheel Bearings
This is probably the least likely reason for having brake noises. If grinding sounds can be heard from your wheels or if you experience vibrations which alternate from loud to quiet, then you could simply have a bad wheel bearing. In addition to the noise, you’ll likely feel vibrations in your steering wheel while driving.