By Joeelle Beale
Echo staff reporter
When it comes to maintaining vehicles, there are a lot of things that need to be checked on, such as windshield fluid, tire rotations, brake fluid, and more. However, when problems occur, it’s not always easy to know what to do, such as when there’s brake failure.
One reason brake failure might occur is because of a leak in the car’s brake fluid, according to “Firestone: Complete Auto Care.” The brake fluid is what maintains your brakes.
The brake system is made up of many parts, such as pads, calipers, and rotors. As you press on your brakes, it triggers the calipers to press on the rotors, and stop the car. Without brake fluid, the system doesn’t work and essentially, you may not be able to stop your car, according to Firestone.
When there is a low amount of brake fluid, the brakes won’t respond or will have to be pushed harder to stop, according to Kris King from Toyota of Orlando. Another sign are warning lights that will show on the car’s dashboard.
Two of those lights are the brake fluid and the brake pad warning. The brake fluid warning light alerts you when your brake fluid level is low, and the brake pad warning light means that the pads are worn, according to “Go Far.” Even though the brake pad light has nothing to do with low levels of brake fluid, it is still important because the pads still are part of braking and affect how well a person can stop.
However if the brakes have stopped working while a person is driving, there are a couple of steps they could take. If the speed of the car is increasing, a person could press the horn to alert other vehicles. King suggests taking the foot off of the gas pedal to slow down the car, then gently press the emergency brake and move over so the car doesn’t cause an accident.
Overall, having ongoing auto service and paying attention to the car is one way to prevent things from going wrong with the car.