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How do I fix pulsating breaks?
When I step on the brakes, my car gets this pulsating feeling. I’d like to avoid an expensive mechanic bill. How do you fix pulsating brakes?
Matt Terzi · Updated on
Reviewed by Shannon Martin, Licensed Insurance Agent.
We’re sorry to hear about your braking issues. Pulsating brakes—a sort of in-and-out vibration feeling—are almost always an indicator that it’s time to replace your brake rotors. And it’s pretty easy to spot if this might be the issue.
Head out to your car, and don’t forget your smartphone or a flashlight. Get down by one of the wheels. Do you see that big metal disc behind the spokes? That’s your brake rotor. You might have them on all four wheels or maybe just the front two. Either way, take a long, hard look at each brake rotor.
Do they look rusted? Warped? Do they have little pits all over them? These are all tell-tale signs that it might be time to get new brake rotors.
Taking your car to a shop, you’ll end up paying anywhere from 50 to $600 per axle (meaning the two front wheels or the two rear wheels). They’ll be replacing both the rotors (also known as discs) and the brake pads, which create the friction needed to slow down and stop.
You could replace the brake rotors and pads yourself, but this is not a job for absolute beginners. You’ll need to follow these general steps to do this yourself:
- Remove both wheels on the axle
- Remove the brake calipers from the rotors
- Remove the brake rotor and brake pads
- Lubricate both of the rotors
- Install the rotors
- Install the new brake pads
- reattach the brake calipers
- Check the brake fluid level
- Repeat all of these steps on the other wheel
If you’re not comfortable doing any of that, please take your car to a mechanic and have this done by a professional. There are lots of fun projects that can get you started on car maintenance. You don’t want to start with anything that could potentially be dangerous if done incorrectly.
If you’re considering a DIY project to save some money, why not save hundreds of dollars per year or more on
car insurance
using the Jerry
app? You could join over one million Jerry users who save an average of $887 per year. Download Jerry and give it a try!View full answer
- Gregory R.
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Jerry partners with more than 50 insurance companies, but our content is independently researched, written, and fact-checked by our team of editors and agents. We aren’t paid for reviews or other content.
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