AUTONET TV

Reaching the Braking Point (Brake hose replacement)

If you notice your brakes aren’t working like they used to, that’s the kind of thing that’s important to have checked out soon.  That’s because your brakes are extraordinarily important to the safe operation of your vehicle. 

Sometimes you feel like your brake pedal is feeling a little soft or it’s lower than usual. Or you might feel like the brakes are on all the time, holding you back. Maybe when you release the brake pedal, it comes back up more slowly than usual. There are a few different problems that can cause your brakes to feel like any of those things, so bring your vehicle in to us and we can inspect them.

One possible cause of those brake issues is a damaged or worn-out brake hose.  Your hydraulic brakes work by carrying brake fluid to each of your wheels.  There are steel lines that carry the fluid most of the way, but because your wheels are moving all the time, a flexible hose is used to connect the steel lines and the brakes themselves.  

Sometimes those brake hoses leak, since there’s a lot of pressure inside when you use your brakes dozens or hundreds of times a day.  Road debris, aging, and corrosion at the hose fittings can loosen up that connection.  Sometimes the hoses can get blocked up if the interior lining separates from the outside. And sometimes, it’s simply a matter of the hose getting too old, and age eventually causes the rubber to fail.

When you experience brake problems, bring your vehicle in so we can have a technician take a look. Visual and manual inspections can usually pinpoint the problem areas.  The technician will look for corrosion and physical damage, plus run a pressure check.

For your vehicle to be safe on the road, your brakes need to be working the way they were designed to.  Stop. And think about it!

Gilmore's Auto Service
2151 N Broadway
Walnut Creek, CA 94596
(925) 939-9430
http://www.gilmoresauto.net