I am trying to see if my screeching brakes is an isolated issue or a possible problem with my NEW 2007 Toyota Camry LE Brake System. The dealership is telling me that the brakes will heat up and glaze over then screech.
I think that a little more information is necessary here.
When, and under what conditions do the brakes make a screeching noise? What has the dealer’s service department done in order to try to alleviate the problem?
More details, please.
The brakes screech all of the time. I can drive a 1/4 mile down the road and the brakes are screeching. The dealer has changed the brake pads but they continue to screech. I have paid them 3 visits in which I have been told they cleaned the brakes, they have changed the pads. The conditions are 77-90 degrees, dry and rainy surfaces, highway and local street driving.
Again, I am not sure if I am interpreting your post correctly. When you say that they make noise all the time, I have to assume that you mean that the brakes make noise even when they are not applied. If that is the case with your brand-new car, then there is indeed a problem that the dealership does not seem capable of resolving.
I suggest that you consult your Owner’s Manual (the indispensible, first resort of wise car owners) for information on contacting the Toyota Zone Reprentative, who has the authority to approve repairs that the dealership would be hesitant to do. Truthfully, I question whether the dealership has actually done the repairs that they claim to have done.
Also, educate yourself regarding the Lemon Law in your state. The text of this statute should be sitting in your glove compartment, along with the Owner’s Manual. As you will find, the dealership has only X number of attempts to resolve a problem with the car before you can avail yourself of the terms of that law.
If you educate yourself through the materials that should be in your glove compartment, you will quickly learn the route to a satisfactory resolution of the problem.
MY 2005 Camry has very low & spongy brake. Freeway driving at 60-70 MPH, any sudden slow-down or brake, the pedal goes almost to the floor. I have to do double brake just like driving big trucks. I complained but Toyota Motors & dealer claimed it’s normal. I lost arbitration (does anyone win an arbitration? The arbitrator almost always decide in favor of the car manufacturer BECAUSE they assume we only drive & not the car maker & know nothing about internal combustion engine, nor are engineers). My wife had an accident. She braked but it’s like no brake at all. Anyway, Toyota has been making inferior cars because they are trying to beat GM to be the #1 car maker in the world. In the process, they produced & make as many cars and as fast as they can, less the quality. So no more Toyota for my family. I just bought a new car from another maker, & will continue to do the same but no more Toyota.
hah what did you have one problem with 1 car?? I will only stick with toyota! I have a 93 4runner with 209k miles and the only major problem I had was to replace my trans and transfer case, original motor. Wow the things that happen when you can do your regular maintenace. Everything still works as if its still brand new. So whats your problem?
For your information, I have 3 other Toyotas in my family, all more than 150,000 miles. Up until this 2005 Camry brake problem started (I am not alone having the brake problem, by the way), I prefer Toyota than other makes. I still have warranty on this 2005 Camry but they won’t fix it. Their reason is-it’s nornal, it’s build that way, etc…That’s why I went to arbitration but lost. I want Toyota Motors to honor their commitments to their CUSTOMERS. I want TM to honor their car warranties. Do you even know about the 1998-2002 models with the oil sludge problem? TM won’t fix them or even admit there’s a problem. Only after a class action lawsuit did they finally agree to fix them & reimbursed those who have already paid for fixing the problem. So as soon as there’s a class action lawsuit, I will be the first one to sign up. TM wants to sell their products but won’t take care of any problems. How’s that? You are on your own?
Thank you for your input. The breaks screech when you do brake. I consulted Toyota Co. and they have advised me to see another dealership. I don’t think I am going to get anywhere with this. I am not so sure that this will be the first of a future problem(s)with the brake system. I can deal with the noise but it is anoying. Yes I was told that if I felt the problem could not be resolved I would also need to go arbitration by the Toyota case manager. I just want to find out how many New Toyota 2007 Camry LE owners are experiencing this problem. I wish there was a way to find out.
[b]Here’s what you might try.
Take the vehicle back, and ask that they remove the glaze from the rotors and pads. A special 3M disc is used to remove the glaze from the rotors. The glaze can be removed from the pads by rubbing them over a piece of 800 grit sandpaper placed on a sheet of glass.
Once you get the vehicle back, bring the speed of the vehicle to about 40 MPH, and then firmly apply the brakes to whoa the vehicle down. You don’t want to lock up the brakes or cause the ABS to kick in. Repeat this a half dozen times allowing a minute or two between braking events to allow the brake to cool down. Doing this should seat the brake pads into the rotors properly so the brake screeching is eliminated.
Because it sounds like the brakes were never properly seated from the get-go.
Tester[/b]
Thank you for your advice. I will try it out. It is really an annoying issue that should not be coming out of a new vehicle.