Toyota Brake Repair

Brake Repair at Atlantic Toyota of Long Island

Toyota Brake Repair and Services

Your vehicle's brakes are crucial components of your car, for obvious reasons. This is one of those times that you shouldn't ignore any potential warning signs. At Atlantic Toyota we offer professional brake repair by our certified technicians. Whether we find needed repair during a regular maintenance check-up, or you notice a strange noise coming from your brakes, it's important to the safety of you and your passengers to make sure your brakes are repaired and in top shape. You can quickly schedule your brake repair right on our website. Once the service is completed, you will drive away with the peace of mind knowing that your vehicle's braking system will perform at a maximum ability, and give you the braking power you need, regardless of the driving situation. 

Are Your Brakes Sending You a Signal?

When you are driving, do you hear funny noises emanating from the front of your car? Does it get especially loud when you put on your brakes? If so, you may have a set of brakes sending you a message, and that message is: “Hey, How about a little attention down here!” In this article, we will look at some of the things that may indicate your brakes need a little TLC and should be checked out before any serious problems develop.

How Brakes Work

First, let’s look at how today’s brakes function. Most cars today have disc brakes. These function in much the same way as the brakes on your ten-speed does. When you squeeze the brakes on your bike, a set of rubber pads grip both sides of the turning wheel rim and the resultant friction slows down the bike. Automobile brakes do about the same thing except that instead of rubber pads, a hydraulic system squeezes circular rotors attached to each of your wheels with special brake pads.

Brake Pads Wear Out

Because a disc brake system uses friction to work, the brake pads will eventually wear down and need to be replaced.  This is the whole noise thing. When brake pads wear down, they make all sorts of noises and if you attend to it soon, you may avoid an expensive brake job. Bottom line: When you hear noise coming from your brakes, have a mechanic look them over in the next day or two. Don’t wait too long.

Another “Signal”

Does your car seem to have a “mushy brake pedal.” A mushy pedal is one that goes practically to the floor before engaging the brakes. Sometimes you even have to “pump it up” before the brakes seem to work. This also is a brake-related problem but usually a problem with the hydraulic system itself, such as air in the brake line. This usually requires a common procedure called “bleeding the brakes” or some other brake-related repair. Unless you are a skilled do-it-yourselfer, this is a procedure best left to professional mechanics.  

Feeling the Pulse

Then there is the “pulsing brake pedal”. If your brake pedal pulses rapidly when you step on the brakes, then you may have one or more things going on.  If your brake rotor is out-of-round, or you have a stuck piston in your brake caliper assembly, your brake pedal may pulse. Obviously, this is a serious situation that you should have looked at by a professional mechanic.

Summary 

In general, you can stay out of trouble with your car’s brakes just by keeping your eyes and ears open for anything out of the ordinary.  Brake systems today are designed such that they rarely fail – your car will stop when you apply the brakes - but its best to see a mechanic within a day or so when you a being “sent a signal.”