I recently had my front brake pads, rotors, and sensor replaced by Pep Boys on my 2005 BMW 325ci. It seems that now when I slow down, my steering wheel shakes and my break warning light has yet to go off. I took it back and they said they didn;t notice the shaking and also said the light will go off after driving it for a while. It has now been 2 weeks. Any suggestions about what the cause may be and what to do next?
The brake warning light is indicating a problem in the brake system. Could be an ABS issue or some other issue. I doubt if it will ever go off by itself; it is telling you there is something wrong. If it wasn’t on before Pep Boys worked on the brakes, I would suspect they didn’t bleed the brakes correctly, or did something to trigger the problem. Pedal pressure OK?
A likely cause of the steering wheel shake is warped rotors, but you should have noticed an issue before the brake work.
At this point, I would go to a quality indpendent mechanic or BMW specialist and let them assess what Pep Boys work may have done to you. If they find incompetent work, get it documented and then go back to Pep Boys for a refund. It is difficult to assess what actually happened, long distance, without seeing or driving the car. Were any of these problems pre-existing?
thank you for responding. the light was on for about 4 days beforehand and the manual says the breaks need service. also, about a month prior, i had an oil change and they told me the brake fluid was low…but the light had not yet come one. once the light came on, i took it to Pep Boys and they said the front pads and rotors needed changing so they did it along with the sensor. the light hasn;t gone off after 2 weeks. also the shaking steering wheel was not happening before the brake job.
I would take it back and complain about the brake light still being on. A cause of steering wheel shake could be losing a wheel weight, maybe even loose lug nuts, or otherwise doing something incorrectly when they took the tire and wheel off each side. Go back soonest; complain about the ABS light still being on and the steering wheel shake; ask them to retorque the lug nuts. If they replaced rotors (you didn’t say they did), then rechecking the installation of the rotors is in order.
Don’t drive this car very far without having Pep Boys or a good mechanic look at it first. You could cause serious damage or an accident until someone inspects and identifies the problems.
In general, when the brake fluid is low, that is time to top up the master cylinder. That used to be part of a normal oil change/lube procedure. Do not wait until the brake light comes on, since that indicates a more dangerous condition. Did Pep Boys find any leaks in the brake system, when they changed out pads? While some topping up of the master cylinder is normal, with disc brakes and how they work, it would seem that you may have more than just a “normal” amount of loss here.
Is the light your speaking of the one that tells you your brake pads are low? This light has nothing to do with your ABS ,the hydraulic side of the brake system. Were your pads low enough to turn on the light? It just completes a circut,did they replace the sensor? if not there is a uninsulated part of the sensor all it has to do is ground and the “low pad” light comes on. But really at times when people let their pads go low enough to turn on this warnibg light it must be turned off via the BMW diagnostic system. Sometimes they will go out by themselves when they dont,its hook up the DIS machine and command it out. If you want your light out now a trip to the dealer is on your "to do"list. Really Pep Boys for a BMW.