Squeaky front wheel on 2007 Honda Fit

Question

My 2007 Honda Fit's front driver's side wheel has started squeaking as it rotates. I've grabbed a video of the sound:

http://youtu.be/E8HnarRSwRg

I hear it squeaking up to about 60 km/h / ~35 mph until I can't hear it over the sound of road noise. (At those speeds it sounds more like a ticking sound because of the wheel speed.)

It squeaks even when I'm braking, and even when I'm turning full left or full right. The sound seems to be totally dependent on the speed of the wheel's rotation, and doesn't change when I'm in neutral or any gear.

I don't drive very often; mostly only on weekends, and usually only around town, occasionally 100+ km or more. I live in Nova Scotia, near the ocean.

Although I'm planning to get it looked at, I'm also going on a road trip next week of about 2500 km / 1500 miles. How serious is the squeaking? Would it be safe to wait until I got back from my trip or should I prioritize getting it looked at?

Answer 1

It sounds to me like the brake squealer, as in the brake pads are getting to the end of their life expectancy. You should be able to do a visual inspection of the brake pad should tell you very readily if this is the issue.

EDIT: I realized I didn't answer the second part of your question.

When the brakes start squealing, it probably isn't imperative you get it fixed. It is just an indication that you need to get it looked at. There should be several millimeters of pad left to keep you stopping. It is really subjective, though, depending iron the brake material and quality of the brake pad itself as to whether it will continue to perform without issue. It is the "how long" which would worry me. I would highly suggest if you app have the time to get them changed prior to your road trip, but more than likely it would perform without issue. Road miles are not going to be as detrimental to your brakes as city driving would be. It's your choice, but I would err on the side of caution.