Important Tips to Remember for Giving Your Car Brakes Proper Care

Your car brakes are among the few components that keep each of your road trips safe. They require proper care in order to work properly whenever you hit the road. Also with proper care, your car can last longer before needing professional maintenance. On the other hand, if you neglect your brakes, you are putting yourself and your family at risk of accident. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, about 22 percent of road traffic collisions are caused by faulty brakes. Below are some tips on taking care of car brakes that you should know.

Pay Attention to the Noise

Things can get a bit noisy in the car, especially when you’re speeding down the road. Among the common sources of noise are cargo rolling inside the trunk and lose parts rattling within the engine. However, there are certain cases wherein the noise is caused by damage on the brakes. This is a kind of noise that you should never disregard.

Piercing noises, rubbing, squealing, grinding, screeching, and other similar noises that occur as you step on the brake pad could indicate the need to fully inspect the brakes and perform the necessary repair before you hit the road again. At most, this could mean that the pads are worn out and need immediate replacing before the damage spreads and cause the whole suspension system to snap.

“Lowered” Brake Pedal

You shouldn’t have any problems reaching the brake pedal with your foot, so if you do, then there’s something wrong with it. This is something that you shouldn’t ignore for later because it  can affect the brakes’ performance. If you’re not able to stop your car in time, the likelihood of hitting something or someone on the road is going to be high.

Burning Smell

Burning smell often indicates irregular spike in temperature within the engine, but this could also mean damage to the braking system. Friction may be taking place in areas where it’s not supposed to. Not dealing with it at the soonest possible time can lead to even bigger problems down the road.

Steering Wheel Signals

It may seem like they are unconnected but actually your steering wheel can tell you a thing or two about the state of your car brakes. Any irregular vibrations or pulsations on your steering wheel could be caused by a problem with the rotors, which could ultimately affect your braking system. The damage can then spread quickly from there, costing you a lot more in repairs or even replacement.

Check Brake Warning Light

The easiest way to determine if there is a problem with your brakes is to check your brake warning light. As long as your gauges and warning lights are working fine, you can pretty much rely on its signal when it tells you that your brakes are having a problem. In this situation, don’t wait any longer to visit a trusted car service brake center, like McLoughlin Chevrolet, so that you can address the issue right away.

About McLoughlin Chevrolet:

McLoughlin Chevrolet is your trusted neighborhood car dealership and service provider. We make it our mission to not only provide you with good quality cars, whether brand new or second-hand, but also to assist you in finding good financing deals so you can get a good car loan even if you have bad credit.

Sources:

Brake Safety Awareness Month: Stop and Check Your Vehicle’s Most Important System. CarCare.org.

Know the Signs & Stay Ahead of Brake Problems. FirestoneCompleteAutoCare.com.

Taking Care of Your Brakes So That They Can Take Care of You on the Road

It’s every driver’s nightmare: you’re speeding down the road but when you step on the brake, you still don’t slow down. Needless to say, the events that could potentially follow from this failure of brakes can be severe and devastating.

As a responsible car owner and driver, it is ultimately up to you to ensure that your vehicle is functioning as optimally as it should—especially the brakes. Don’t get caught in this unpleasant situation; know about the basic care tips for car brakes so you can always stay in control.

Low Brake Pedal

Having low brake pedals can make it difficult for you to activate its functionality. Among the common causes for this situation include worn out brake linings, fluid leaks, or sometimes when adjusters stick to the normal lining wear.

If you’ve been noticing that your brake pedal is unusually low, try adjusting it back to its normal height. Even if you do get it back up, though, it still would be advisable for you to bring it to a professional car shop so that the problem does not become recurrent.

Sinking Pedal

Like the low brake pedal, this kind of problem has to do with preventing you from having direct access to the brakes. If the pedal keeps sinking to the floor, then you will have to keep reaching in order to get the brake to bite. Regardless if you have long or short legs, this is going to be problematic because you’re not getting the mechanical response that you need, when you need it.

This issue is most likely due to a hydraulics leak or a failing master cylinder. These are major parts by themselves so it’s not advisable for you to take these matters in your own hands. Let a professional mechanic fix it right up for you.

Brake Fluid Level

This one is pretty easy to spot and remedy. If you observe leaks from your vehicle, and it does turn out to be brake fluid, bring your vehicle to the shop immediately to get the leak patched up. Then the brake fluid will be refilled, and you can go back to using it.

Brake Pedal Misalignment

Do your feet sometimes slip when stepping on the brakes? Give it a good look—maybe the brakes have become loose and now are pulling to one side. This could pose serious safety risks, especially when you’re stepping on the brakes fast. The misalignment could be caused by calliper or cylinder wheel issues, contaminated linings, loose wheel bearings, among others. Sometimes, you’ll also notice a sort of pulsation on the pedal, an indication that there is warping on the brake rotor.

Proper adjustments can easily fix this problem for you. In certain instances, it is found that the brake pedals need replacing. This is why it’s important to go to a shop that caters specifically to the kind of vehicle you have. GM car and truck owners in Portland, for example, can go to GM-centric service shops, such as McLoughlin Chevy.

Sources:

Know the Signs & Stay Ahead of Brake Problems. FirestoneCompleteAutoCare.com.

Common Brake Problems and How to Fix Them. Autos.com.

Tips on Taking Care of Your Brakes from Your Buick Service Center in Portland

Because your Buick’s brakes are crucial to your safety, it’s important to ensure they are in the best condition. Brakes are prone to wear and tear, especially if you’re always on the road. However, their service life still depends, to a large extent, on your driving style and maintenance routine. Bringing your vehicle to a Buick service center in Portland is one way to ensure the quality and condition of your brakes, but there are other steps you can take to prolong their life.

Avoid Stopping from High Speed

Sudden stops from high speed will ruin your car’s braking system. You hurt your brakes just a little bit more if you stop from high speeds like 65 mph instead of 55. This is due to the vehicle’s motion called kinetic energy. You can gauge this energy by multiplying half of the vehicle’s weight by the square of the speed. This energy is then turned into heat whenever you brake. The lesser the speed, the lesser kinetic energy and brake material are used and less heat is generated. The car’s brakes don’t have to work too hard that they wear themselves out if you don’t make sudden stops often. Read more from this article: http://bit.ly/2xUudJ1

Easy to Follow Tips on How to Maintain Good Brakes on Your Hummer

Aside from the engine, if there’s one system in your Hummer that you need to ensure is always in good working condition, it has to be the brakes. A heavy vehicle with a powerful engine like the Hummer can build a huge amount of momentum that brake failure can easily lead to devastating accidents.

Thus it's a good idea to take pro-active measures to care for your braking system so they don't fail on you without warning. It doesn't really take much to do this. In fact, to prove it, here are a number of practical tips that you can follow to make your brakes last longer.

Don't Brake with Your Left Foot

Think about it, vehicles are particularly designed in such a way that your right foot will be responsible for controlling both gas and brake pedals. So just why would you attempt to engage the brakes using your left foot? Read more from this blog: http://bit.ly/2uRFnu3

Don't Drive with Brake Failure, Watch Out for These Signs of Trouble with the Brakes

Every driver enjoys the freedom and excitement of cruising down a road. However, when you fail to bring your prime ride—whether a Cadillac or a Chevy—to the shop for regular checkups and maintenance, you risk turning a liberating experience into a nightmare that endangers the lives of not only yourself but your companions and other drivers as well.

Motor Vehicle Accidents Are Becoming Deadlier in Recent Years

Motor vehicle accidents, an unfortunate reality of today's very mobile society, puts people at risk wherever they go. In fact, 2016 was said to be the deadliest year for American drivers, with as many as 40,000 people dying from motor vehicle accidents. This represents a 6 percent increase from fatality numbers in 2015. Read more from this article: http://bit.ly/2uTL5w2

Car Brakes Maintenance and Timely Service Can Prevent Costly Repairs and Accidents

Car brakes are crucial to your safety as they prevent accidents and provide better control for the driver. In general, brake systems consist of three different types of brakes: service brakes, parking brakes and emergency brakes; each with a specific function within the car. Learning what these are and how they work should help determine when you should perform maintenance.

Three Types of Braking Systems Explained

Service brakes are the part of the brake system that control speed, and let your car stop and remain still when you encounter an intersection. The service brakes are operated by using the left pedal of your car. These can be powered by air or hydraulics and may even be controlled by a computer.

Parking brakes, on the other hand, are the ones that let the car or any other vehicle remain immobile on a hill or flat surface and prevents the car from going into motion when it is not being operated. It usually works by way of a lever between the two front seats or a small pedal near the driver’s door. In recent models, these systems have been replaced by a button. Read more from this article: http://bit.ly/2roTi9D

For a Fast, Gainful Way to Rid an Old Car and Buy a New One, Try Cash for Cars Trade

No matter how much you love your car, there comes a time that you have to replace it with a newer model. Before you send your beloved vehicle to become scrap metal, you should consider asking your local dealership if it offers a cash for cars program.

What is a Cash for Cars Program?

A cash for cars program is basically a car trade-in where you settle for a dollar value on your old car with a dealer, who then credits that value once you purchase a new car. The trade-in value is deducted from the original price of the car, consequently lowering the amount you have to pay on your monthly installments.

The trade-in value of your car wholly depends on several factors, such as the car’s general condition. Dealers will look at the car’s accident history to ascertain its condition and will often look at the car's accident history. Several agencies offer a free estimate of the trade-in value for your vehicle simply by providing them its year, make, model, series, and its odometer reading. Read more from this blog. http://bit.ly/2mP0GHZ

Auto Service Providers Enumerate Telltale Signs of Bad Brakes and How to Avoid Them

You’ve seen it in a movie before: a guy driving his car only to find too late that his brakes are failing. Unfortunately, such accidents do not happen only in movies. Too often, motorists neglect to bring their vehicles to auto service providers for routine maintenance until it is either too late to do anything about it or their neglect has resulted in a vehicular accident.

Last December, the City of Portland reported it was averaging five car crashes an hour due to brakes failing drivers on just two inches of snow. If this is what happens on a slippery road with slightly good brakes, imagine what can happen if bad brakes come into play. Even if you don’t possess technical knowledge of cars, it’s still quite easy to spot the warning signs of failing brakes. All a driver needs in detecting faulty brakes is a steady awareness of noises from the brakes and their performance on the road. Read more on this article. http://bit.ly/2mOUxvr