What Causes the Breakdown of your Brake Pads?
Simple. Whenever you press your brake, you create friction on your brake pads. So as you can guess, this causes them to deteriorate over time. As a result, they gradually become less effective. Continue reading to find out how to know when to change your brakes.
Brakes are the most important safety feature in any car. If your brakes aren’t functioning properly then you are a danger to yourself and others on the road. There are a lot of ways to know when to change your brakes, for simple maintenance have a read through our tips below.
Listen to Your Vehicle
When it comes to your brake pads, sounds are everything. The best way to know when to change your brakes is to listen to them.
In fact, even if you never actually look at your brakes, you’ll hear when it’s time. And trust us, you’ll definitely know. The first thing to listen for is a really annoying high-pitched squeal. But it’s also quite common to hear a deep growling sound as well.
Simply put, it’s the sound of metal grinding on metal from your brake pads wearing down too much. When you hear this, you’ll know when to change your brakes. Get your pads fixed ASAP as soon as you hear these sounds. Otherwise, you’ll face some much larger problems later down the road!
Take A Look at Your Brakes
Every now and then, it’s a good idea to look through your tire spokes at your brakes—even if you aren’t hearing noises. You will know when to change your brakes if you notice any wear and tear or damage. You’ll want to check your brake pads while you’re at it. Ideally, you’ll want to see about a quarter-inch thickness to the pad. If you find anything less, it’s time to hit the auto parts store or find a mechanic.
Knowing When to Change Your Windshield Wiper
Next up are the windshield wipers. As you’d guess, these are essential for keeping your visibility at its peak. Plus, don’t forget that autumn and winter bring plenty of snow. So now’s as good as ever to ensure you wiper blades are doing their job!
Check Your Lights
This one’s easy enough. Newer cars do all the hard work for you in letting you know when to check your brakes. So when the indicator light pops on, give them a look, and replace if necessary.
What Causes your Wiper Blades to Wear?
In simple terms, your wiper blades become damaged for a number of reasons. You get the basic wear and tear from all the water, ice, and even dirt that they scrape off your windshield. Plus, you’ve got car wax, exhaust fumes, and even the blazing sun to create cracks within the rubber. So put all that together, and it’s no wonder you need to change out your wiper blades!
What Are the Signs It’s Time to Replace Your Wiper Blades?
Much like your brakes, you’ll almost immediately know when you’ll need to swap to a new pair of windshield wipers. Start by looking at how the wipers remove water from your windshield. Is it nice and clear when the wipers brush over? Or do you notice patterns of streaks and splits? As you’d probably guess, the latter is a sign that your old blades are at the end of their road.
The Sounds Say it All
Also, simply listen to your wipers. If you hear a cacophonic screeching noise, it’s a solid sign the wipers have stopped working as well as they should.
Routine Replacements
If you really want to keep your wipers fresh and good to go, then you’ll want to replace them twice a year. Once at the start of autumn is always good since they’ve spent all that time baking in the sun! The other time is the start of spring. For more on seasonal driving advice, check out our articles on fall and winter driving.
Your wipers just spent the last season removing chunks of snow and frozen dew from your windshield. So they’re likely about to give out at any moment. And when you decide it’s time to pick up some wiper blades, give our online parts store a visit! We’ll help you find quality blades for your car at low prices!