adamjosiah

I appreciate the answers, and I'm glad to hear its normal. I guess I'm just curious why it happens, after all you don't hear vehicles squealing all over the place as they back out of parking spots :-P

So I have a Ford Edge AWD SEL '07, which I bought in the summer so I had no indication of this when I first got it. However as the weather got increasingly colder, I started to notice it. Basically, whenever it's been sitting in the cold or the rain for a couple hours or more, when I back-up (and occasionally when I'm braking forward) the breaks squeal, sometimes quite loudly. Almost instantly after I start driving the brakes stop squealing completely, forward or backward, and won't start again until the vehicle has been sitting for a while. But it is quite annoying when I back out of the drive way in the morning, or out of a parking spot and I hear the horrible squealing again. As for the functioning of the breaks, there's no problems at all. There nice and firm and reasonably sensitive. Any ideas what might cause this? Is there a brake pad coating of some kind that can solve this?

I bought my Ford Edge 07 a few months ago from a dealer, it seems in pretty good shape and drives like it's new. I wanted to comment on winter driving though because it's something I've been trying to work out since the snow started to fall. My previous vehicle, a Ford Explorer '99 which I drove for quite a while was 2WD only but of course it was RWD. It did have problems getting stuck in deep/wet snow which is expected, but as long as it kept moving I loved it. There's something predictable about the way it throws its weight around and after a while I could handle turns with complete confidence in the outcome. I also know however that FWD vehicles have a distinct advantage in snow, so I wondered if my first experience with AWD would give me the best of both worlds. I'm still not completely sure what my verdict is on that. The first thing I noticed (like I'm sure many Edge users have) that acceleration is where this AWD vehicle really shines. Doesn't seem to matter what surface I'm on, if I hit the gas I will move forward as fast as I need to. However, when I compare handling to my old RWD Explorer, predictability is not the word I would choose. Coasting turns seem to be alright as long as I'm not traveling too fast, but when accelerating and turning at the same time, the Edge seems to change its mind half way through the turn. I start out with that familiar "controlled slide" feeling that I'm used to, and then all of a sudden the vehicle seems to gain a different kind of control and push me the way I'm pointed. I'm sure that's a good thing, except for I need that kind of control from the start of my turn, not part way through which forces me to make a quick adjustment to avoid oncoming traffic.