Hello, I am having a few problems that I have been having a problem figuring out.
First, It will start overheating, get all the way to the red and then go back down to normal. When it does this you hear a loud fan like noise and the heat does not work. Since its been doing this the heat will only work at 50 mph. Also the thermostat was replaced about 5 mo ago.

Second, My breaks arent working like they should. Sometimes they sound like they are grinding. If i push hard on the breaks it takes a while to stop and sometimes its like they lock up where i press down and they are hard and dont move ( mostly when its raining) They also squeak really loud. I replaced the pads about 2 mo ago. I dont know if this is related but im pretty sure i need new struts and it pulls to the left and the tire makes a whomp whomp sound when im going slow.

Third- When I am stopped and have my foot on the brake the car shakes. If i put it in park it stops. You feel the shaking in the steering wheel etc.

I am obviously far from a mechanic so I would appreciate any help. Also if it helps I deliver mail using my vehicle which would probably explain so many problems.

 

First welcome to the site! Second if you can please give a bit more info about your car, year, engine etc, helps us out alot.

1. Check your coolant level in the bottle, it should be at the FULL COLD line if that is there. Low coolant can do this, especially if there is air in the system. Why was the thermostat replaced? What color is the coolant and is there a smell to it (look at answer 4 for why I ask this)?

2. If the pads weren't broken in right or installed on a rotor that needed to be resurfaced it can cause braking problems. Same with the squeeking, if they weren't installed right or not enough anti-squeak put on the back of the pads they can squeal bad.

3. Check your tire on the left front before you go replacing the strut, it sounds like there might be an issue with the tire instead of the strut which is causing the noise and vibration.

4. The shaking could be due to an idle thats too low, a misfire in one or more cylinders or anything else that interferes with the engine firing all its cylinders. If your having issues overheating it could be a bad headgasket causing this issue also, is there any smoke out the exhaust?

 

Hi Sam:
I am adding to MazdaTirol (Servus!):
Brakes squealing, pulling to the side and operating inconsistently:
The calipers are designed to float. That means they are sitting on sliders so the caliper can move a little bit sideways. The sliders can get dirty and build up rust/ corrosion so much that they get stuck. They build up heat and react inconsistently.
The hydraulic pistons can get stuck as well.
Both conditions can lead to excessive brake wear and the noises you describe. If you replaced the pads without resurfacing the disks you are likely to have that kind of trouble.
Have a shop take a close look at the brakes. Also have the brake fluid replaced.
Some pads have anti squeal backs. If you put silicone on those the backing gets damaged. Use a mechanic who pays attention to details like that.

Pulling to the side may be caused by one brake working and the other not. If it pulls to the right then the brake on the left is the prime suspect. If it pulls to the side no matter if you brake or not your alignment is out of whack or the tire is so much out of balance.
The whomp -whomp- whomp sound of a tire could be cause by belt separation. The steel belt inside the tire brakes up and the tire bulges out a little. When the bulge hits the tarmac it makes the whomp sound. Of course the bulge puts the tire out of balance and can cause the pulling to the side.

The car shaking while on the brake could be cause also by a high idle or loping idle.

I bet it is guzzling too much gas too. Is the check engine light on?

In short: your car is due for a quality brake job, an engine tune up and probably new tires.

 

Servus! Didn't expect that

Ditto to the caliper issues, how that slipped my mind I have no idea LOL.

 

thank you so much for responding!

1- I have been checking the coolant and it is full and hasnt been leaking to my knowledge. it has a green tint id say closer to dark green than neon green and i didnt recognize a smell. the thermostat was replaced because (this is a long story lol) it was summer and my ac stoped blowing cold. I took it to advance who said i needed frion (spelling?) which i didnt. then they said i needed a new fuse. as soon as i left there got down the road about 15 minutes and my temp gauge stopped working. As i went to pull over bc of this i heard a hard loud rattling from my engine area and my car started shaking really bad. I immediately turned it off and it was smoking, out of water and would not start. later after replacing coolant it started right up but immediately started over heating and the mechanic changed the thermostat. now it has the current problem.

2- I will have someone check the installation of the pads. the rotors feel smooth to the touch but have some dark lines in them if that means anything. should I go ahead and have them looked at? I replaced the brake fluid and checked for air in the line already.

3- i took them to get balanced and the guy at walmart told me i need the struts (if i hit the slightest bump its like hitting a crater so that didnt surprise me) but he told me the belt was separated and there were bulges even though they dont appear very worn. he said the bad struts caused this?

4- none of those problems sound good it does have smoke from the exaust sometimes and i get regular oil changes. as far as idling the gauge reads around 1 at a stop and it doesnt fluctuate if that helps. the engine light hasnt came on so far. I think it is using more gas than it should.

I hope I explained that accurately. I dont know too much about these kinds of problems and unfortunately they just keep getting worse. I appreciate you guys helping. Everyone i asked seemed to not be able to give me any reasons these problems could be happening.

 

Sam: I add my comments in blue

I wish I could give you better news, but realistically the odds are this car turns into a money pit. I would consider getting another car if I were in your shoes. Have that car inspected BEFORE buying. That's an insurance premium you pay.