Hey all,

Have about 39k on the car and went to put my winter tires on yesterday. The mechanic told me my rear pads and finished and my front rotors and pads are gone as well!! Thing is, i went to GM last november because my steering wheel was shaking when i brake hard, and they refinished the rotors and what not.. Is it normal that they are already gone!?!? I dont drive hard often.. maybe a couple of times a week.. and i never brake hard!! only when driving hard...

 

just get nwe rotors and pads... and call it a day

 

great answer....

 

.. well yea i will have to replace them, but is it under warranty... was just wondering.. any case, thanks for the help?

 

no its not warrenty as they are parts that a subject to your drivin habits, and wear times vary

 

yeah, after 30 thousand miles on my cobalt i had to get full new pads and rotors. they wear out really fast and along with the clutch. after 10 thousand clutch cable snapped, and after i sold it i know the kid whou bought it and he has had in the shop 5 more times for the clutch. sp brakes and clutch=weak spots for the balt!

 

young drivers = weak spots for the balt.

 

I Have 36k On Original Pads And Rotors Not Even Close To Half Gone Yet

 

I think i'll need brakes by 30k as well. expensive!!!

 

AHAHAHA anOmalous....so true though.

32500 kms on my ss/sc, no clutch probs, no brake problems, people just need to learn how to drive most of the time.

and performance brake kits arent that expensive, there was one the other day, 500 bucks for hawk pads and slotted rotors. prob cheaper than oem at the dealer.

 

Pads and rotors are not covered under any warrenty due to them being were out parts by nature. Now sure if the car is only 2 weeks old and they mess up then your covered due to them being defective.

Now days rotors are not designed to be turned several times like they were back in the day. Rotors are thinner and lighter cause cars have gotten smaller and lighter. Be glad they lasted as ong as they did, mine is around 17,000 miles and they need to be replaced.

 

ya i agree with them, there is really no warranty, and like i said its cheaper and better to just buy new rotors and pads

 

might as well go in and tell them "my car is out of gas, is that under warranty?"

hehe, sorry man, brakes is just something you have to replace on a vehicle.

 

i bought my car and 400 miles in i had warped rotors.. the tech told me it was normal but they werent going to replace it.. so i did it my self and took the rotors to the managers office and threw them on his desk.. and said.." they dont even sit flat on the ******* table and your going to tell me this is normal."

he says." der... duh.. i.... uh..."

i say " i want the gm customer service number i want to talk to them about your poor ass service"

he says." uh.. thats not necessary maybe we can work a deal."

they payed for my new rotors and pads... and gave me 5 free oil changes

 

When it was time for a brake job I wasn't able to resurface the rotors so I had to buy new ones. I got mine from CrateEngineDepot. Nothing to brag about but they work, so far............

 

im getting slotted ones. next time round

 

slotted, less dust

 

If anything major broke on my car and wasnt covered under warranty, i will definitly be selling my car

 

Yeah I just had all four wheels off to put on my steelies and my pads look good and thick, especially the rears.

 

Warping

Warping is often caused by excessive heat, which softens the metal and allows it to be reshaped. The main causes of overheating are: undersized/overmachined brake discs, excessive braking (racing, descending hills/mountains), "riding" the brakes, or a "stuck" brake pad (pad touches disc at all times).

Another cause of warping is when the disc is overheated and the vehicle is stopped. When keeping the brakes applied, the area where the pads contact the disc will cause uneven cooling and lead to warping.

Incorrect fitting also leads to many cases of warping; the disc's retaining bolts (or the wheel/lug nuts, if the disc is simply sandwiched in place by the wheel, as on many cars) must be tightened progressively and evenly. The use of air tools to fasten lug nuts is extremely bad practice.

Several methods can be used to avoid overheating brake discs. Use of a lower gear when descending steep grades to obtain engine braking will reduce the brake loading. Also, operating the brakes intermittently - braking to slower speed for a brief time then coasting will allow the brake material to cool between applications. Riding the brakes lightly will generate a great amount of heat with little braking effect and should be avoided. High temperature conditions as found in automobile racing can be dealt with by proper pad selection, but at the tradeoff of everyday driveability. Pads that can take high heat usually do best when hot and will have reduced braking force when cold. Also, high heat pads typically have more aggressive compounds and will wear discs down more quickly. Brake ducting that forces air directly onto the brake discs, common in motorsports, is highly effective at preventing brake overheating. This is also useful for cars that are driven both in motorsports and on the street, as it has no negative effect on driveability. A further extension of this method is to install a system which mists the discs with water. Jaguar has reported great reductions in disc temperatures with such a system.

Warping can also be caused by improperly torquing the lug nuts when putting on a wheel. The manual will indicate the proper pattern for tightening as well as a torque rating for the bolts. The tightening pattern varies little between manufacturers and most mechanics are familiar with them. Lug nuts should never be tightened in a circle. Some vehicles are sensitive to the force the bolts apply and tightening should be done with a torque wrench.

Warping will often lead to a thickness variation of the disc. If it has runout, a thin spot will develop by the repetitive contact of the pad against the high spot as the disc turns. When the thin section of the disc passes under the pads, the pads move together and the brake pedal will drop slightly. When the thicker section of the disc passes between the pads, the pads will move apart and the brake pedal will raise slightly, this is pedal pulsation. The thickness variation can be felt by the driver when it is approximately 0.007 inch (0.017 cm) or greater.

Not all pedal pulsation is due to warped discs. Brake pad material operating outside of its designed temperature range can leave a thicker than normal deposit in one area of the disc surface, creating a "sticky" spot that will grab with every revolution of the disc. Grease or other foreign materials can create a slippery spot on the disc, also creating pulsation.