Tom

Tom,

Q I own a 2006 Hyundai Sonata with 73,500 miles. I had the front brakes

replaced last November. The other day while I was driving down the
highway, the car started to ride rough as if it had a flat tire. I smelled smoke
so I pulled over to the side of the road. Smoke was coming from the left rear
wheel. I had the car towed to the nearest Hyundai dealer, and he said I
needed rear brakes. What happened?

Abe—Kenosha,    Wisconsin

Abe,

A Have the emergency brake cable checked on the left side to see if it’s

sticking in the applied position. Quite often the cables freeze up due to rust;
this leaves the rear brakes in the applied position and wears them out
prematurely. The other possible cause is that the left rear brake caliper is
stuck, causing the brake pads to wear prematurely.