When you experience a brake pulsation, you need to first identify where it is happening. You can either feel the vibration on the steering wheel, or you can feel it in the car seat. The best time to diagnose the car’s pulsating problem is when the brakes are warmed up. Once the brakes are heated, you have to press on the brakes and feel where the vibration is coming from.
If the vibration is occurring on the steering wheel, then it is clear that the pulsation point is the front tires. On the other hand, if the pulsation is coming from the rear, then it is clear that the pulsation is stemming from the rear rotor.
Pulsating Pedal May not be a Warped Motor
The first thing that comes to find when you witness pulsation is a warped or bad condition rotor. When you hit the brake pedal and something shakes, you may not always have to turn to a warped rotor issue. This is especially if your car has been sitting for a long period of time.
What happens is that the rotor rusts and in one spot under the pad, you get a clean spot. On both sides of the pad, you start to notice the edge as the pad goes over. That edge makes the pulsation that you feel in the car. In most cases, driving it will not make it go away.
How do you Correct Sharp Edge Problem?
Correcting the rust problem starts by a thorough cleaning of the brake rotor. To clean the rust of the rotor, you will have to use a grinder to clean the entire surface of the rotor. This method also saves you the time and money for the rotor replacements.
Brake Hose Problem
If you are replacing the brake hose or calipers, you can get the brake hose twisted. This can also be an underlying cause of a pulsating brake. You do not want twisted brake hose on your car. Brake hoses have ridges in them, and those ridges need to be absolutely parallel along the full length of the hose.
If they are twisted, then they will stress the fabric inside the hose and it will eventually brake. This will lead to a brake failure. To fix this problem, all you have to do is turn the caliper over and this might mean removing the brake hose and straightening it out.
Once you are done, you have to make sure that the lines should be absolutely parallel. This is a big safety that you need to follow.
As you can see, the brakes will often pulsate due to a warped motor. However, if warped rotor is not the problem, then it is usually due to the above mentioned causes. Either way, taking your car for a thorough inspection can be ideal once you face this issue. This is because the causes and reasons can be vast.