I have an 04’ Volvo s60R with about 120,000 miles. I brought it to the mechanic a few months ago after bottoming out on a rock on a dirt road that bent the heat shield and resulted in a terrible scraping noise. I thought it would be a quick fix but after getting it up on the lift he found a slew of other problems. A couple thousand later I had new front and rear brake pads, water pump, timing belt, control arms, and front sway bar links.

Which brings us to today:

He had said that my brakes might be squeaky for a while, but now 3 months and 4K miles later they are still very squeaky – is this normal or could there be a sign of a bigger problem?

Beyond the squeaking, the past month or so I’ve been hearing a lot of noise coming out of the front end, especially when I turn. It’s hard to describe the sound exactly, kind of like a groaning/whirring. Sort of reminds me of a toy remote control car. When I come to a stop, the sound doesn’t stop immediately, instead it gradually (but quickly) winds down. Any thought what this could be?

In case it may be related – I live and drive in New England where we are currently battling arctic temps and about 7-ft of snow.

I love my volvo, but am starting to wonder if I should be looking to trade it in before it goes bottoms up or if the problem could be minor/easy to fix. I don't know a whole lot about cars, so any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

R brakes squeak, especially if cheap aftermarket pads were used. But even the Volvo ones squeak.

The other noise might just be low power steering fluid.

 

Thank you so much for the reply. I'm not sure what is considered cheap for pads, but I was invoiced for $57 and $92 for front and back, respectively. I will pick up some power steering fluid tonight - it would really make my day if that is all it takes! After the sticker shock from the last round of repairs every little noise makes me sweat.

 

You could check the fluid level before buying the fluid.

Those are cheap aftermarket pads. Rears run about $135 and fronts about $160.