Q: My 2012 MKZ intermittently makes a high pitched sound that seems to come from the passenger side of the car. It's loud enough that
Within the last couple of weeks my 2012 MKZ began to intermittently give off a high pitched sound that seems to come from under the passenger side of the car. It's loud enough that people on the street turn to look and see where the noise is coming from. When I apply the breaks or make a turn the sound stops, then starts up again when driving straight. This can happen at high speed and also at low speeds. We took it to a mechanic who said he thought the noise was caused by rust build up on the rotors, but our breaks and rotors look good so the mechanic said to just leave them alone. The mechanic also checked to be sure that everything associated with the wheels and turning mechanism were tight. The mechanic did not charge us for his diagnostic service. My husband says either we live with the noise, or replace the breaks and rotors even though they are technically fine. It makes me nervous to drive around with this sound.
My car has 70000 miles.
My car has an automatic transmission.
The brake rotors can get a lot of rust on them from water and road salts that can make the brakes noisey when not pressing the brakes. You can replace the pads and rotors to get rid of the noise and use a good quality rotor and pads to minimize the return of the rust problem. It still may return but will take a while to build up large scales of rust again.
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