How to Check the Brakes on Your Car

by | Jan 20, 2022 | Uncategorized | 0 comments

Knowing how to check the brakes on your car is such a great skill to have, but if you can’t, or simply don’t trust your own opinion, come down to The Bangor Tyre Company for your free check to keep you safe on the roads.

Listen Out For Signs That Your Brakes Need Changed

We have all heard that dreaded screech of light metal on metal contact and all know that it is the sound of needing to phone the garage and book in for replacement brake pads. 

If you don’t book in for a brake change, there are serious concerns for your safety and to be honest with you, it just is not worth the risk. So the bottom line here is to listen to your car, it’s not like your oil light that comes on when your car is thirsty.

 

Stopping Distance / Required Pressure

Every car’s braking system is different. While the overall output of pressing the brakes is the same, there are different things that you can look out for that will be a strong indicator as to the health of your braking system.

The two main areas:

  • Stopping distance
  • Required pressure 

When you press on the brake pedal, the distance that it takes you to stop will show you precisely how safe your brakes are if you are faced with an emergency situation, you will want this to be as quickly as possible to avoid risk to yourself or another person – the roads are a dangerous place. 

The next thing that you should look out for is the pressure that you need to apply to the brakes in order for them to engage. In an ideal world, you should only have to apply light pressure to your brakes to engage and come to a stop. If you are pressing the brakes in and even when fully extended to brake they are soft and squishy, that is a sign that you need to get your brakes checked. The further down that the brake pedal goes is often a sign of how worn your brake pads are and how reduced your ability to stop is from the manufacturers originally braking tests conducted which means a reduction in your safety.

See Vehicle Services

How To Check The Brakes On Your Car: Visible Condition

Instead of testing the car through the methods above, you can also check visually. Without knowing exactly what you are looking for, it can be difficult. At The Bangor Tyre Company, we offer free brake health checks because we are committed to keeping our customers safe on the road. Having these checks can help to ensure that you find out about any issues before there is a risk to safety.

 

Summary

Brakes are your lifeline, they are used consistently throughout journeys and are used in emergency situations to ensure the safety of passengers, that being said, they should be extremely well looked after.

If they need to be replaced – replace them, it is essential that they are always in excellent health. Remember to regularly check your brakes and if you have any reason for concern, come in and see one of the team for a free brake health check and let’s keep you safe on the road together.