My 2023 Honda Civic started making this high-pitched squealing noise when I brake after I washed it last week. The brakes still work fine and stop normally, but that noise is annoying. Is this just moisture or could something actually be wrong with my pads?
Had this happen to my car after a wash too, and it cleared up in a few days once everything dried out. Moisture on the rotor surface is almost always the culprit with brake squeal after washing, especially if braking feels totally normal - just drive it normally and the noise should fade as things dry.
Did the squealing start immediately after the wash, or did it take a day or two? Either way, you're almost certainly looking at moisture trapped in the brake system - water gets into the caliper area and creates that high-pitched noise until it evaporates. Since your brakes are stopping normally with no pulling or grinding sounds, the pads themselves are fine. The squealing should disappear on its own within a few days as things dry out, especially if you drive regularly. If it persists beyond a week or gets worse, then you'd want to have it checked, but right now this is just an annoying side effect of the wash, not a safety issue.
It's probably not just moisture - brake squeal after a wash usually points to water getting between your pads and rotors, which creates that annoying high-pitched noise when you brake. The good news is this typically clears up on its own after a few days of normal driving as everything dries out, so you don't need to panic. If the noise sticks around for more than a week or two, or if your braking performance actually changes, that's when you'd want to get it checked out. For now, just drive normally and it should go away.
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