Do I need brakes?????
Thread Starter
Rookie
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 65
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From: NY
Do I need brakes?????
Since we do have a luxury car...will a warning light appear on the dash if there is something wrong with the car?
My car has a little over 21K and I think I may need brake pads. It is making a squealing sound...the sound goes off and on. This has never happened before up until today.
We had a few inches of snow this morning, would that be a factor. Brakes got too wet.
I have made an appointment with the dealer for this Thursday.
Thoughts???
My car has a little over 21K and I think I may need brake pads. It is making a squealing sound...the sound goes off and on. This has never happened before up until today.
We had a few inches of snow this morning, would that be a factor. Brakes got too wet.
I have made an appointment with the dealer for this Thursday.
Thoughts???
Pole Position
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 321
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From: Ontario, Canada
The brake pads have wear indicators built-in. When your pads are worn enough to expose the wear indicator, your brake rotors will be making contact with the wear indicator (basically just metal) which will produce a screeching sound so that you know it's time to replace the pads.
20,000 miles sounds about the right time for a brake pad change. See what the dealer says.
20,000 miles sounds about the right time for a brake pad change. See what the dealer says.
Thread Starter
Rookie
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 65
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From: NY
The brake pads have wear indicators built-in. When your pads are worn enough to expose the wear indicator, your brake rotors will be making contact with the wear indicator (basically just metal) which will produce a screeching sound so that you know it's time to replace the pads.
20,000 miles sounds about the right time for a brake pad change. See what the dealer says.
20,000 miles sounds about the right time for a brake pad change. See what the dealer says.
Pole Position
Joined: May 2006
Posts: 330
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From: CA
Please do not take to the dealer unless you think something is wrong. They will charge you to just "look" at the breaks.
You can do this yourself in a few seconds literally. Just luck insside the break caliber through the rims and you will see the pad in there. You should be able to see a decent amount of pad, if it looks really skinny (less than 1/8") you should probably replace the pads.
New pads are usually about a 1/4" think. Stick your camera inside your rim and take a pcitures of the insdie (best you can) of your caliber......we will tell you
You can do this yourself in a few seconds literally. Just luck insside the break caliber through the rims and you will see the pad in there. You should be able to see a decent amount of pad, if it looks really skinny (less than 1/8") you should probably replace the pads.
New pads are usually about a 1/4" think. Stick your camera inside your rim and take a pcitures of the insdie (best you can) of your caliber......we will tell you
Thread Starter
Rookie
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 65
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From: NY
Please do not take to the dealer unless you think something is wrong. They will charge you to just "look" at the breaks.
You can do this yourself in a few seconds literally. Just luck insside the break caliber through the rims and you will see the pad in there. You should be able to see a decent amount of pad, if it looks really skinny (less than 1/8") you should probably replace the pads.
New pads are usually about a 1/4" think. Stick your camera inside your rim and take a pcitures of the insdie (best you can) of your caliber......we will tell you
You can do this yourself in a few seconds literally. Just luck insside the break caliber through the rims and you will see the pad in there. You should be able to see a decent amount of pad, if it looks really skinny (less than 1/8") you should probably replace the pads.
New pads are usually about a 1/4" think. Stick your camera inside your rim and take a pcitures of the insdie (best you can) of your caliber......we will tell you
Thread Starter
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Joined: Jul 2006
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From: NY
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Position the light like this:
Look down from the top to see this:
You are looking to see if there is still a slot in the pad like this or if the backing plate is almost touching the disc surface:
The rear looks like this:
Again, you are looking to see if there is any slot left, or if the backing plate is (nearly) touching the disc surface:
Brake pads retail for $59.95 per axle. If they charge you more, they are pricing them above list price or they are charging you for the pads and the anti-squeal shims. The book says to replace them. I rarely do.
In all likelihood, they'll tell you you need rotors too, but the thing to do is ask them to measure them and tell you how thick they are. On the IS350 front, anything less than 27mm is too thin. New is 30mm. On the rear, the disc should be no less than 16.5mm. 18mm is new.
On the IS250, the front discs should measure 25mm, new is 28mm. The rear discs should measure 8.5mm, new is 10mm.
Look down from the top to see this:
You are looking to see if there is still a slot in the pad like this or if the backing plate is almost touching the disc surface:
The rear looks like this:
Again, you are looking to see if there is any slot left, or if the backing plate is (nearly) touching the disc surface:
Brake pads retail for $59.95 per axle. If they charge you more, they are pricing them above list price or they are charging you for the pads and the anti-squeal shims. The book says to replace them. I rarely do.
In all likelihood, they'll tell you you need rotors too, but the thing to do is ask them to measure them and tell you how thick they are. On the IS350 front, anything less than 27mm is too thin. New is 30mm. On the rear, the disc should be no less than 16.5mm. 18mm is new.
On the IS250, the front discs should measure 25mm, new is 28mm. The rear discs should measure 8.5mm, new is 10mm.
I have 20,000 miles on my car. I just don't wear out my brakes. I have a fundamental belief that brakes are for the timid. 
(I also do mostly interstate driving, so I get a lot of miles without a lot of wear.)
(I also do mostly interstate driving, so I get a lot of miles without a lot of wear.)
Thread Starter
Rookie
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 65
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From: NY
Position the light like this:
Look down from the top to see this:
You are looking to see if there is still a slot in the pad like this or if the backing plate is almost touching the disc surface:
The rear looks like this:
Again, you are looking to see if there is any slot left, or if the backing plate is (nearly) touching the disc surface:
Brake pads retail for $59.95 per axle. If they charge you more, they are pricing them above list price or they are charging you for the pads and the anti-squeal shims. The book says to replace them. I rarely do.
In all likelihood, they'll tell you you need rotors too, but the thing to do is ask them to measure them and tell you how thick they are. On the IS350 front, anything less than 27mm is too thin. New is 30mm. On the rear, the disc should be no less than 16.5mm. 18mm is new.
On the IS250, the front discs should measure 25mm, new is 28mm. The rear discs should measure 8.5mm, new is 10mm.
Look down from the top to see this:
You are looking to see if there is still a slot in the pad like this or if the backing plate is almost touching the disc surface:
The rear looks like this:
Again, you are looking to see if there is any slot left, or if the backing plate is (nearly) touching the disc surface:
Brake pads retail for $59.95 per axle. If they charge you more, they are pricing them above list price or they are charging you for the pads and the anti-squeal shims. The book says to replace them. I rarely do.
In all likelihood, they'll tell you you need rotors too, but the thing to do is ask them to measure them and tell you how thick they are. On the IS350 front, anything less than 27mm is too thin. New is 30mm. On the rear, the disc should be no less than 16.5mm. 18mm is new.
On the IS250, the front discs should measure 25mm, new is 28mm. The rear discs should measure 8.5mm, new is 10mm.
Last edited by optsgirl; Feb 27, 2007 at 10:38 AM. Reason: need to submit picture
Thread Starter
Rookie
Joined: Jul 2006
Posts: 65
Likes: 0
From: NY
Please do not take to the dealer unless you think something is wrong. They will charge you to just "look" at the breaks.
You can do this yourself in a few seconds literally. Just luck insside the break caliber through the rims and you will see the pad in there. You should be able to see a decent amount of pad, if it looks really skinny (less than 1/8") you should probably replace the pads.
New pads are usually about a 1/4" think. Stick your camera inside your rim and take a pcitures of the insdie (best you can) of your caliber......we will tell you
You can do this yourself in a few seconds literally. Just luck insside the break caliber through the rims and you will see the pad in there. You should be able to see a decent amount of pad, if it looks really skinny (less than 1/8") you should probably replace the pads.
New pads are usually about a 1/4" think. Stick your camera inside your rim and take a pcitures of the insdie (best you can) of your caliber......we will tell you
Free front brakes!