Brake Symptom Diagnosis

WARNING: This page is about a different car, the 2010 Suzuki Kizashi. However, it is still accessible from the selected car via links, so may be relevant.

DIAGNOSTIC PROCEDURES

Condition	Possible Cause	Action
Not enough braking force	Brake fluid leakage from brake lines	Repair .
	Brake disc or pads stained with fluid, grease or other oil	Clean or replace .
	Brake fading or vapor-lock occurs	Determine cause and repair .
	Badly worn brake pad	Replace pad. Check brake discs and replace if necessary .
	Faulty brake caliper assembly	Repair or replace .
	Malfunctioning brake booster	Check brake booster and replace if necessary .
	Malfunctioning brake master cylinder	Check brake master cylinder and replace if necessary .
	Air in brake system	Bleed air from brake system .
	Negative pressure for brake booster is insufficient	Check engine condition and vacuum hose .
	Malfunctioning ESP®	Check ESP® and replace if necessary .
Uneven braking (Brakes not working in unison)	Pads and discs in some brakes are wet with water or stained with brake fluid	Clean or replace .
	Disc is deformed	Replace .
	Tires are inflated unequally	Inflate equally .
	Incorrect wheel alignment	Adjust .
	Unmatched tires on the same axle	Mount the same tires on one axle .
	Poor installation of brake pipes or hoses	Check for deformation and replace parts if necessary .
	Faulty caliper assembly	Repair or replace if necessary .
	Loose suspension parts	Retighten all suspension mountings .
	Loose calipers	Check and tighten bolts to specifications .
Noise (High pitched squeak with brake released)	Worn brake disc or pads	Replace brake disc or pads .
Excessive pedal stroke	Partial brake system failure	Check brake systems and repair wiring .
	Leaking brake fluid	Repair the leaking point, and bleed air from brake system .
	Air in brake system (soft/spongy pedal)	Bleed air from brake system .
Brake locked	Malfunctioning ESP®	Check ESP® system and replace if necessary .
Dragging brakes (Drag is present in all brakes after pedal is released.)	Brake master cylinder's pistons are not returned correctly	Replace brake master cylinder .
	Poor installation of brake pipes or hoses	Check for deformation and replace parts if necessary .
	Incorrect parking brake cable	Repair or replace .
	Weakened or broken return springs in the rear brakes	Replace return springs .
	Seized brake caliper piston	Replace .
	Badly worn piston seal in caliper	Replace piston seal .
	Improper brake pedal free height	Adjust brake pedal free height .
Pedal vibration (Brake pedal vibrates while the pedal is depressed)	Damaged or loosened wheel bearings	Replace wheel bearings .
	Distorted steering knuckle or spindle	Replace knuckle or spindle .
	Excessive disc lateral runout	Check brake disc. If not within specifications, replace brake disc .
	Parallelism between pad and disc not within specifications	Check brake disc and brake pad. If not within specifications, replace disc .
Braking noise	Glazed brake pad	Replace brake pads .
	Faulty front wheel bearings	Replace wheel bearings .
	Wear indicator contacts with brake disc	Replace pads .
ABS warning light keeps ON (for more than 2 sec) after pressing engine switch to change the ignition mode of keyless push start system to "ON" .	Faulty ESP® function	Perform ESP® check .
	ESP® control module power supply and ground circuit faulty	Check ESP® control module power supply and ground circuit .
	Faulty combination meter	Replace combination meter .
ABS warning light does not turn ON after pressing engine switch to change the ignition mode of keyless push start system to "ON"	Faulty combination meter power supply and ground circuit	Check combination meter and its circuit .
	Faulty combination meter	Replace combination meter .
	Malfunctioning CAN communication system	Check CAN communication system .
	Blown fuse	Check "MTR" fuse and circuit led to "MTR" fuse and replace if necessary
ESP® warning light keeps ON (for more than 2 sec) after pressing engine switch to change the ignition mode of keyless push start system to "ON"	Faulty ESP® function	Perform ESP® check .
	Faulty ESP® control module power supply and ground circuit	Check ESP® control module power supply and ground circuit .
	Faulty combination meter	Replace combination meter .
	Faulty ESP® control module	Replace ESP® control module .
ESP warning light dose not turn ON after pressing engine switch to change the ignition mode of keyless push start system to "ON"	Faulty combination meter power supply and ground circuit	Check combination meter and its circuit .
	Faulty combination meter	Replace combination meter .
	Malfunctioning CAN communication system	Check CAN communication system .
	Blown fuse	Check "MTR" fuse and circuit led to "MTR" fuse and replace if necessary
	Faulty ESP® control module	Replace ESP® control module .
Brake warning light keeps ON (for more than 2 sec) after starting engine	ESP® control module connector is not connected properly	Connect ESP® control module connector again .
	Parking brake is applied	Release parking brake .
	Insufficient amount of brake fluid	Check brake fluid level .
	ABS warning light is flashing	Detect malfunction and repair .
	Faulty parking brake switch and/or brake fluid level switch	Check brake switch and/or brake fluid level switch . Parking brake switch : Brake fluid level switch:
	Malfunctioning CAN communication system	Check CAN communication system .
	Faulty combination meter	Replace combination meter .
	Faulty ESP® control module	Replace ESP® control module .
Brake warning light does not turn ON after pressing engine switch to change the ignition mode of keyless push start system to "ON"	Faulty combination meter power supply and ground circuit	Check combination meter and its circuit .
	Faulty combination meter	Replace combination meter .
	ABS warning light is flashing	Detect malfunction and repair .
	Faulty ESP® control module	Replace ESP® control module .