Spongy brakes are one of the issues that often arise in vehicles. It’s a vehicle malfunction where the brake pedal drops low to the floor. Once you’ve noticed this issue with your brake pedal, it is time to take it to the mechanic’s shop.
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But, before taking the car to see a mechanic, what could be the cause of something like this? In this article, we list out the five major reasons why your car might have a spongy brake.
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Why Your Car Suddenly Develops Spongy Brakes
Wondering what reasons your car could develop this type of issue? Here is all you should know.
- Brake Lines Full of Air
Once your vehicle’s brake lines are filled with air, the brake fluid won’t flow properly. As a result, the brake pedal of the vehicle suddenly starts feeling less firm than usual. Fixing this issue requires flushing the brake fluid. It also helps to prevent old brake fluid from reaching a boiling point. Flushing the brake fluids regularly also helps to prevent other issues that may arise with your brakes.
- Damaged or Leaking Brake Lines
When a brake line gets terribly rusty, it starts to develop small holes, which causes the brake fluid to leak. As it leaks, the hydraulic pressure drops. As a result of this, the brake pedal will feel less firm or drop lower to the floor.
If that’s the case with your brake pedal, you will need to change the brake lines immediately. Avoid patching them because it’ll only temporarily fix the issue. Instead, change them completely.
- Worn Out Master Cylinder
The master cylinder is regarded as the key to your car’s braking system. It’s what holds the brake fluid and generates hydraulic pressure from the pressure you apply to the pedal by pushing fluid into the circuit.
Due to being a metal-based mechanical component, it gets worn out after a while. When it does, it develops leaks, and this damages the brake lines. A leaky master cylinder leads to a soft brake pedal. Once you’ve realized this is the issue with your vehicle, you should take it to a mechanic almost immediately.
- Malfunctioning Antilock Braking System
The Antilock braking system could malfunction and affect the brake pedal of your vehicle. The component, the ABS modulator inside an antilock braking system, is filled with multiple valves and solenoids.
When one of them fails or gets rusty or accumulates dirt, the brake pedal might get weak. Once you’ve realized this, then you should quickly send your vehicle to your mechanic to avoid it putting your vehicle in serious danger.
- Leaky Wheel Cylinder
The leaky wheel cylinder is another common issue with vehicles. If your vehicle has drum brakes on the rear wheels, the shoes inside the drum brakes start getting pushed against the drum by the wheel cylinder’s pistons due to the hydraulic pressure generated every time you step on the brake pedal.
When the wheel cylinder gets rusty, it immediately develops holes and leaks. This wear and tear from the mechanical motion can also wear down the cylinder over time, which results in a brake pedal leak. However, a faulty wheel cylinder can be rebuilt or replaced.
Conclusion
When your vehicle develops a spongy brake or a brake that is dropping low, then any of these five reasons could be the cause of the issue. All you need to do is self-inspect before taking the vehicle to a mechanic.
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