Advancetrac light comes on, brakes do not work and a grinding noise is heard from engine compartment. Happened when decelerating from 35 mph. Pulled into a lorking lot and sat for a few minutes, continued on and it happened againg at low speed. Has only happened once, what could be the problem?

that is brakEs, failing
in order of cause.
bad brakes, (the real deal ,brakes bad.) pure mechanical.
ABS failing for above, or scan ABS now.
Advancetrac (means, Electronic Stability Control (ESC))
if any of the above FAILS ESC GOES OFF LINE.
SO ESC IS LAST,
WHAT TO DO IS GET THE BRAKES ON THE CAR FIXED. FIRST.
FULLY SERVICED,.
ABS CAN NOL HIDE BAD MECH, BRAKES, (A TAD WEAK SURE)
THE LOUD COW BELL SOUND (******* HERE), MUST BE BRAKES FAILING OR CALIPER PINS SEIZED.

when your brake pads get worn out they will make a slight grinding noise and when you depress your brakes they will go away .p[retty soon they will grind when you press on brakes.

Take it to a shop that can put it on a rack. Have the brakes and rear bearings inspected. Also have them look at the exhaust system. A growiling noise could indicate a leak before the muffler.

Hi Kate,sounds like your valves need adjusting,here's a link on how to do it.Here's how you remove the valve cover.

sometimes the brake shoe can that noise

you would have to find out where the speedomator wire/cable
connects
heres some idea

there is a gear at the end of a speedomator cable

try this 1st hit me back if this dosent work

Bearing problems in the manual trannies is common, tear it down and rebuild it.

takes a long time to run the rediness test since there are 6 different tests to complete...

PROCEDURE 1
EVAPORATIVE EMISSION SYSTEM LEAK MONITOR
Inspection Conditions
Engine coolant temperature: 30°C (75°F) or less (The engine is stopped before the test drive is started).
Atmospheric temperature: 5 - 30°C (41 - 113°F).
Condition of A/T: Selector lever D range.
Fuel remained in fuel tank: 30 - 50% is recommended.
Time required: 16 minutes or less after started the engine.
Drive cycle pattern: One trip monitor (from start to ignition switch to "LOCK" (OFF) position. Well be completed while traveling with the following drive cycle pattern.
Test Procedure
Engine: start.
Accelerate until the vehicle speed is 89 km/h (55 mph) or more.
While keeping the accelerator pedal opening degree constant, keep the vehicle speed at 89 km/h (55 mph) or more and travel for 16 minutes.
Return the vehicle to the shop, then turn the ignition switch to "LOCK" (OFF) position.

PROCEDURE 2
FUEL TRIM MONITOR
Drive Cycle Pattern
Inspection Conditions
Engine coolant temperature: 100°C (212°F) or less.
Atmospheric temperature: -10 - 60°C (14 - 140°F).
Condition of A/T: Selector lever D range.
Time required: 30 minutes or more.
Drive cycle pattern: One trip monitor (from start to ignition switch to "LOCK" (OFF) position). Will be completed while traveling with the following drive cycle pattern.
Test Procedure
Engine: start.
Accelerate until the vehicle speed is 89 km/h (55 mph) or more.
While keeping the accelerator pedal opening degree constant, keep the vehicle speed at 89 km/h (55 mph) or more and travel for 30 minutes.
Return the vehicle to the shop, then turn the ignition switch to "LOCK" (OFF) position

PROCEDURE 3
CATALYTIC CONVERTER MONITOR
Drive Cycle Pattern
Inspection Conditions
Atmospheric temperature: -10°C (14°F) or more.
Condition of A/T: Selector lever D range.
Engine coolant temperature: Not set.
Time required: 16 minutes or more.
Drive cycle pattern: One trip monitor (from start to ignition switch to "LOCK" (OFF) position). Will be completed while traveling with the following drive cycle pattern.
Test Procedure
Engine: start.
Accelerate until the vehicle speed is 89 km/h (55 mph) or more.
Travel for 300 seconds or more while keeping the vehicle speed at 89 km/h (55 mph) or more.
Decelerate until the vehicle speed is within 80 km/h (50 mph) or less.
While traveling at 56 - 80 km/h (35 - 50 mph) for 10 minutes or more, fully close the throttle at least once in 2 minutes and decelerate for 10 seconds or more.
Do not repeat deceleration too often.
Vehicle speed may go below 56 km/h (35 mph) after the deceleration.
Stopping and braking are permitted. (If stopped or drive at 56 km/h (35 mph) or less for more than 5 minutes the monitoring may be stopped. In this case please restart monitoring from the beginning.)
After completing the above deceleration, bring the vehicle speed back to 56 - 80 km/h (35 - 50 mph) and keep it in the range until starting the deceleration again.
Repeat the above deceleration at least 5 times.
Return the vehicle to the shop, then turn the ignition switch to "LOCK" (OFF) position

PROCEDURE 4
HEATED OXYGEN SENSOR MONITOR
Drive Cycle Pattern
Inspection Conditions
Engine coolant temperature: 100°C (212°F) or more.
Atmospheric temperature: -10°C - 60°C (14 - 140°F) or more.
Condition of A/T: Selector lever D range.
Time required: 16 minutes or more.
Drive cycle pattern: One trip monitor (from start to ignition switch to "LOCK" (OFF) position). Will be completed while traveling with the following drive cycle pattern.
Test Procedure
Engine: start.
Accelerate until the vehicle speed is 56 - 80 km/h (35 - 50 mph).
While keeping the accelerator pedal opening degree constant, keep the vehicle speed at 56 - 80 km/h (35 - 50 mph) and travel for 16 minutes or more.
Stopping and braking during this operation are permitted. Keep the accelerator opening degree constant for 1 minute or more after each acceleration.
Return the vehicle to the shop, then turn the ignition switch to "LOCK" (OFF) position

PROCEDURE 5
EXHAUST GAS RECIRCULATION (EGR) SYSTEM MONITOR
Drive Cycle Pattern
Inspection Conditions
Engine coolant temperature: 100°C (212°F) or less.
Atmospheric temperature: 5 - 60°C (41 - 140°F).
A/C switch: OFF.
Condition of A/T: Selector lever D range.
Time required: 16 minutes or more.
Drive cycle pattern: One trip monitor (from start to ignition switch to "LOCK" (OFF) position). Will be completed while traveling with the following drive cycle pattern.
Test Procedure
Engine: start.
Accelerate until the vehicle speed is 56 - 80 km/h (35 - 50 mph).
While traveling 16 minutes or more at 56 - 80 km/h (35 - 50 mph) with engine speed 2,000 r/min or above, fully close the throttle at decelerate for 5 seconds or more until the engine speed reaches 1,000 r/min or under.
Do not repeat deceleration too often.
Stopping and braking are permitted (Rapid deceleration and sharp steering are not permitted).
After completing the deceleration, bring the vehicle speed back to 56 - 80 km/h (35 - 50 mph) and keep it in the range until starting the deceleration again.
Repeat the above deceleration at least 8 times by fully closing the throttle valve.
Return the vehicle to the shop, then turn the ignition switch to "LOCK" (OFF) position

PROCEDURE 6
OTHER MONITOR (Main Components, Sensors & Switches, Wire Breakage & Short Circuit)
Drive Cycle Pattern
Inspection Conditions
Engine coolant temperature:
100°C (212°F) or less (Except engine coolant temperature sensor monitoring).
30°C (86°F) or less (Engine coolant temperature sensor monitoring).
Atmospheric temperature:
5°C (41°F) or more (Except engine coolant temperature sensor monitoring).
-10°C (14°F) or less (Engine coolant temperature sensor monitoring).
Condition of A/T: Selector lever D range.
Time required: 21 minutes or more.
Drive cycle pattern: One trip monitor (from start to ignition switch to "LOCK" (OFF) position). Will be completed while traveling with the following drive cycle pattern.
Test Procedure
Engine: start
Accelerate until the vehicle speed is 56 km/h (35 mph) or more.
While keeping the accelerator pedal opening degree constant, keep the vehicle speed at 56 km/h (35 mph) or more and travel for 16 minutes or more.
Return the vehicle to the shop.
After stopping the vehicle, continue idling for 5 minutes, and then turn the ignition switch to the "LOCK" (OFF) position. Moreover, the vehicle should be set to the following conditions for idling.
A/C switch: OFF
Lights and all accessories: OFF
Transmission: Neutral

Brake pads are worn out. The ABS light would not come on because there is nothing wrong with the ABS. The grinding you are hearing are the brake pad backing plates rubbing against the rotor. You should have heard a high pitched squeal long before this happened. More than likely the rotors are now destroyed and will need replacing or at the very least turned in a machine shop. Fix this yesterday.

speed sensitive issue could more likely be a loose heat shield on the exhaust system. this would change with speed and heat. check hangers and connecters on exhaust, I've come across a muffler clamp that set up quite a rattle as it vibrated around the ex. pipe. could be a bent dust shield on one of the disc brakes that is rubbing on the rotor but would likely change with steering direction. take off and check the belt pulleys and idlers for a loose bearing assembly.

Is there any "clunking" when going from f to reverse? drive train joints could be responsible, and they would be sensitive to power up or deceleration differences. usually more of a vibration and not a loud noise however.