drove 15 miles with parking brakes on !! What to do?

[shreyashp]

I feel stupid..Drove 15 miles with parking brakes on. I recognized only when I got out of the car and smelt something burning..
Now the parking brakes are not very effictive at all..But the parking brakes were not as effective earlier also (drive at 20 mph and apply parking brakes car used to stop in 30-40 feet)...but now, parking brakes hardly brake the car....But the fluid brakes work just fine..as usual..I cant see much difference...

What possible damage do you think might have happend?? Am I still in the clear? How do I know if I have to replace the discs or pads?? or cables??

- Shreyas

[frankendart]

You've probably not done too much damage. Maybe worn off the rear pads or shoes prematurly. The important thing to have checked is the rear Drums or rotors (which ever you have). It's quite possible that thay've been glazed, cracked, or warped due to heat.

In most cases nothing happens, but it's always best to have things checked out, especially when it comes to your braking system. Better safe than sorry.

[shreyashp]

Thanks. Yeah, I think I warped the rotor a little..When I am driving at slow speed and brake, i can feel a very slight lurch..not too bad....

How do I know when the brake pads/rotors need replacing? I was told that the brakes make a squealing sound when they are almost worn out and need replacing...?? Am I safe enough to wait for that sound??

In the mean time, I will get the parking brake fixed.

btw, I have a Dodge Spirit 1991 v6 3.0L.

Thanks

Shreyas

[theFREAKnasty82]

best way to tell if the rotors are going is if you get a pulsation in your brake pedal when you go to stop. If you want to know how much material you have left on your pads, take your tires off and look at the pad material left w/o taking off the caliper. You should 1/4" of thickness left in the pad, if not, replace it; front wheel drive cars go through front pads quicker than rear drive cars.

[shreyashp]

Thats exactly what happens when I apply the brakes. I can feel the pulsations. Looks like I may have to replace the rotors....

Its quite expensive...looks like its will cost me over 60$ each for rear rotors and 23$ for front rotors...at autozone..

Any cheaper alternative?

Also, I was told that rotors can be ground at autozone....what is the minimum thickness of the rotors??

Thanks

Shreyas

[BleedDodge]

If a rotor is warped you might as well just forget it, bite the bullet and put a new one on.

You can drive it the way it is. It sounds like everything is already ruined. I would just drive it until it begins to grind or squeal. It's all gotta be replaced anyway.

[theFREAKnasty82]

Look on the rotor itself, it'll tell you the minimum thickness for the rotor. It's usually on the hat, or the area where the hub sits on. It'll say something like 9.23mm or .00018" or something like that.

[theFREAKnasty82]

by the way, what model is your spirit? Most spirits that I knew had disc/drum. Only the ES model came with disc/disc? You have a rare spirit if it has disc/disc

[shreyashp]

I have a 91 dodge spirit v6 3.0L

[dampachi]

"...looks like its will cost me over 60$ each for rear rotors and 23$ for front rotors...at autozone..

Any cheaper alternative?"

Wow..that's cheap.

[frankendart]

Take the rotors off, and take them with you to autozone (if that's where you plan to buy replacements). They can use a micrometer to check the thickness of each rotor, and also check the runout (how much warp there is). With those two measurements they can tell you if your old rotors can be turned.
If they can, fine, but if they can't, be sure to check the old rotors against the new one to be absolutly sure you're getting the correct pieces. Autozone has given people the wrong part more than once...

Good luck.

[BleedDodge]

If he takes his rotors off, he won't be able to stop at Autozone...

LOL I'm just kidding.