The Toyota dealer told my wife that the front brakes needed to be replaced. We took it elsewhere where the work would be done for less. The front brakes and rotors were replaced. It seems now that when a left hand turn is made the queeling occurs. It sometimes occurs occurs when the car is going straight ahead. But I could get the sound when going straight ahead turning the wheel slightly to the left. I have had the repair shop add power steering fluid seeing that it was slightly low. But the squeeling is still there. I can tell that the sound is coming from the left front.
…and you took it back to the place that did the brake work and they said…
If you didn’t imply that the brakes were just done I’d be guessing a warning tab on a brake pad (meaning time for replacements). Now my first guess would be the rotors dust shield a little bent out of shape & occasionally dragging on the rotor.
Either way your first stop should be back to the brake place.
The brakes should not be making any noise whatsoever. Take it back to whoever did the brake job and let them fix it.
If your Camry is old enough (you didn’t tell us), it may need a new accessory drive belt, but it’s hard to believe the belt would squeal only on left hand turns.
I still think it’s the brakes.
Where did you take the car? You said you took it someplace other than the Toyota dealer. Where is “elsewhere?”
Car has about 45,000 miles. Brakes and Rotors were replaced. I took it back, they checked both front and rear brakes. Could find nothing, used cleaning fluid on braks. Check air pressure on tires as well.
I have taken it back to the the repair shop. They looked at the break pads on the front and back and cleaned them again. They examined the rear brakes and they look good. The car was driven about 20 miles to a factory outlet where we shop, and then another 5 miles. In all of that time, there was no squeeling. But at the end of that 5 mile, (now a total of 25 miles without and squeeling), It gave out this large squeel after putting on the brakes. We had dinner and drove home, about 20 miles. No sound from the brakes, until we took a right hand turn into the driveway.
I will ask about the rotor dust shield. This is an 2002 LE Camry, and this does not call fro replacing the drive belt until considering more miles than 45,000.
The shop suggests that we leave it with them and allow them to drive it around for a while so that they can hear the squeel. I will do so next week.
Any other thoughts.
If the squeal only happens while driving, it is not a belt. If it only happens while braking, it could just be dust from the brake pad causing the squeal, but I doubt it.
What I think is that your brakes were in pretty bad shape before you had them done the last time, and the front rotors were replaced because they were scored.
I think you have a bad caliper. Your caliper is essentially a cylinder and a piston. With new pads, the piston travels a very short way through the piston to stop your car. As the pads wear and thin, the range that the piston has to travel increases.
This range of piston motion becomes a problem when the pads are changed regulary for most of the car’s life, but suddenly the brake pads are worn down to the metal. All the previous changes allowed the cylinder and piston to a margin of very smooth, well worn interaction. When you wear the pads too thin, you force the piston into a part of the cylinder that is has not worn comfortably with the piston, and now the piston is going to stick. This is what is happening here.
Replace the front right caliper.
One other thought, if the squealing is very loud, then I’m wrong and it might be the belt. If it is loud, and the squealing occurs mostly when you are turning or braking hard, the serpentine belt is slipping on the the power-steering pulley and needs to be replaced. But if the sound is mid-range, annoying but persistant through most driving conditions, replace the caliper.
I will ask them to check the serpentine belt on the power steering, and the right front caliper as well.
Thankc for the suggestion.