Driving in snow, braking in this car routinely handles poorly and breaks make a loud grinding sound. It sounds like the front brakes. I just had a brake job from a trusted dealer.
I read the thread here on the Honda Accord that reported the same sort of brake problem. The issue is the brakes, NOT tires as that thread suggests. Braking strength is greatly impaired under these conditions. I am very apprehensive about driving in snow, and ready to trade in what is otherwise a fine car.Help!
Tires have very little traction on snow, and none on ice. Brakes transmit their stopping power through the tires to the ground. If the tires are on snowy or icy roads, the brakes stand a better chance of locking up the tires than stopping the car. That’s where ABS kicks in, pumps the brakes hundreds of times a minute to prevent the tires from locking up. This ABS action causes a vibration in the pedal and a grinding/rapid-thumping sound.
If the ABS light is not on, chances are the ABS is doing it’s job to keep you in control of the car in the worst conditions. This is a STRONG signal your going too fast for the conditions, and need to slow down and provide much more time to slowing down and stopping for intersections and turns.
You say that the tires are not the issue.
Why do you say that?
Can you tell us the Brand and model of the tires on your car?
Try looking them up on Tire Rack’s website, and see what their snow performance survey results from customers are, you might be surprised by the results.
BC.
Is this loud grinding sound different from the normal sound when ABS kicks in? (Do you know what ABS sounds and feels like, for starters?)
What tires are you using? How much tread do they have left?
Bridgestone Insignia SE’s on all 4 wheels, 1yr old.
At least part, if not all, of your problem is that these tires have terrible snow/ice traction. See the survey below, which include your tires, ranked near the bottom.
http://www.tirerack.com/tires/surveyresults/surveydisplay.jsp?type=AS
Your tires happen to be poor in the winter conditions.
There are really few cars that are poor in winter but more like TIRES that are poor in snow. I highly recommend Nokian WR or WR G2 if you want excellent tire all around that is on par with winter performance tires.
Just remember this…brakes stop the wheels but the tires stop the vehicle.