i dont know if anyone recalls, but a while back i created a thread concerning my braking problem. sometimes while turning (while driving in reverse) my brakes would brick and not work at all (the pedal wouldnt press) and i hear a grinding noise.

today while it was snowing (streets filled with snow), i was driving at around 20MPH. the light ahead turns red and i try to slow down, but the brakes would not respond (doing the same thing they did when i reversed). i took a red light before i could put it in SS shift and shift down to 1st gear to slow it down, then finally, the brakes respond.

any ideas on what this could be? what can be the possible cause of the problem? i thought it would be the ABS or something, but the pedal doesnt even depress when i step on it, its like theres a force pushing the pedal upwards when i push it downwards.

 

brake cylinder? that is not safe, i mean you know that already haha
but i might be wrong, or it could be other things
i can only think brake master cylinder

 

^^^im not really a car expert lol, so whats a brake cylinder?

it definitely is NOT safe. i took a red light cause i couldnt stop. (no wonder stillhere is gettin rid of his car lol)

 

Sounds like the ABS regulating brake pressure, preventing the brakes from locking up on a slippery surface. If this is the case, then its a normal operating condition. If there is no brake assist, then I would say it could be the brake booster, check valve or vacuum issue.

 

This has nothing to do with your brakes, or car. THier is ice, and snow under your tires, and when you stop, they stop fast, making them slide, most cars do this. The answer get some snow tires, and drive slow, and hit the brakes really slow, don't slam the down, don't push them more then 1/4.

 

Man i know the difference between brakes not working and the car slipping. And i was driving 20mph and saw the red light from a distance so why the hell would i slam the brakes. And what im saying is that when i pressed the brakes, the pedal wouldn't depress and started making grinding noises. This isn't from the snow because it happened before when i was reversing into my driveway in the summer

 

Is the grinding noise like a rapid clicking noise .. and the 20 MPH you were traveling was it on a snow/ice covered road?

When it happened when you were reversing what were the conditions of the road surface ... dry roads or snow/ice covered?

Does it do it on absolutly dry clean pavement?


More info needed

 

no its a grinding noise. it feels like rocks are hitting up against my foot and the brake pedal wont depress. it stays in the same place regardless if the pressure i apply with my foot. and the 20MPH incident happened on a busy street with some sleet. the street was slushy.

and when it happened in reverse, it was summer time and the roads were dry and the pavement is new (clean).

 

Sure sounds like ABS working to me ... when it happened in reverse were you going slow or a fast backup and an aggressive braking?

 

i would say i was reversing at around 10MPH. but ive been doing that for over a year, and it only happened maybe twice. it only happens when im turning the steering wheel while reversing.

but when it happened in drive yesterday, i didnt really see a reason for it to happen because i was hardly moving fast and i wasnt steering. i would have expected VSA to kick in (since it was slushy), not the ABS.

i didnt even slam the brakes or anything. it was normal braking, but this time the pedal didnt depress. it stayed in the same position regardless of the pressure i applied.

 

VSA kicks in when looking for traction accelerating ... ABS when braking. If I'm not mistaken.

 

im not really good with cars so your probably right. but do you think my problem is normal? have you ever experienced this problem? do you know anyone that experienced this problem before?

 

Ok .. I was just out and we have a lot of icy intersections around here right now .. I found one that was open and no traffic and I hit the brakes hard enough to break traction ... the ABS kicked in and it sounds like a grinding noise and the brake pedal does go hard like its resisting foot pressure.


Go try it for yourself .. find a dry road .. no water, snow or ice and aggresively use the brakes .. you should have a smooth even stop.

Next find a stretch of road or empry parking lot that has snow/ice and do the same at 20 MPH etc... the ABS should chatter/grind as it assists you in stopping. And the pedal will resist pressure.

 

thanks a lot for your help. thats exactly what happened to me. i just wanted to make sure it wasnt a braking problem. thanks again.

 

When this happened to you in the summer, its possible at that point that you are having some kind of malfunction with the ABS where there is a lack of communication between the ABS control module and wheel speed sensors but for now I would say the ABS is still trying to do its job and is working normally.

 

You felt the brake petal pulsate as you were pushing down correct? If that's the case, its ABS, normal. I just had it happen to me today as well.

 

correct. To the post above.

Thanks everyone for helping. I just wanted to make sure it wasnt a problem with my car