car making noise when braking Page 18

If your car sings when you hit the brakes, that’s not applause—it’s a plea. Noise under braking usually means the friction bits are unhappy; some fixes are cheap, others are safety sirens. Here are the usual suspects:

• Worn pads hitting their wear indicators (high-pitched squeal).
• Glazed or bargain-bin pads that chatter like seagulls at the beach.
• Warped or uneven rotors causing scraping or a pulsing pedal/steering wheel.
• Surface rust or a rotor lip—often squeals for the first few stops after rain.
• Grit/stone caught between pad and rotor—sharp, nasty screech.
• Sticking caliper slide pins or missing anti-rattle shims—clunks and groans.

If you hear grinding or metal-on-metal, park it and book a mechanic—now. Brief squeal that disappears can be normal, but persistent noise or vibration means inspection and likely pads/rotors and a proper service.