Just replaced rotors and pads.. questions..??

[UVaJester]

I jsut got done rplacing the rotors and pads on the front. I sprayed everything with brake cleaner to make sure everything was free of grease and dust. I have heard that it takes a little driving for the brake pads and everything to get set right, but I drove the car for a few miles when I was finished and the brakes still feel odd. It almost feels similar to a warped rotor. Has anyone else had this happen? Thanks in advance.

Jester

 

[MrAWD]

In some cases brake pads like to be seated correctly on the rotor before you should start your regular abuse. That usually goes for 10 semi stops from 40 mph down to 10 mph with moderate brake pedal pressure. You would need a 1-2 min of cooling in between those as well. Once that is done, you should drive your car normally for about 100 or so miles without heavy braking (unless you really have to of course). After that you should safely start with the regular torture of those.

Friend of mine had a pad caught fire just from driving on the highway because he missed those steps…


Fedja

 

[PudrowDSM]

In brakes class we did 3 slow stops from 30mph and gently brought it to a stop and then 2 panic stops which were from 30mph and you slammed on the brakes... i've never had a problem with this method.

Travi§

 

[UVaJester]

(I didnt drive the car today).... After looking at the rotors today.. it looked kinda like the pads were only hitting the outer edges of the router. So I figured something wasnt right and took everything back apart. I then tried to clean everything and scrub some of the rust off the hub (I think thats what it is called) to make sure the rotor was sitting flat... sprayed everything down with brake cleaner again and reassembled.. I then double checked all my tourque specs and took it back out for a test run.. After braking about ten time.. It started to feel somewhat better, less vibration... but I still have a little vibration from the front brakes, but it did get somewhat better...

I am going to drive the car tomorrow to work and then see if its gone after some interstate driving... I'll update tomorrow...Thanks again..

Jester

 

[UVaJester]

Well, I drove the car today and tried the above suggestions on how to seat in the pads. I still have the same problem of what feels to be like warped rotors. I am removing the new pads and rotors and taking them back to the auto parts store and getting everything brand new again. Maybe I just got a set of brand new rotors that are warped. We'll see...

Jester

 

[FORMONTOYA]

when i installed my new rotors i had to use a dremmel tool to TOTALLY CLEAN the front hubs...the new rotors would not set on the hubs properly otherwise. the backs did not look like they would need this, but i also 'polished' the rear hubs. double check to get ALL the rust, scale off the hubs and see what happens.

jim

 

[bigjdog84]

When you say it feels like a warped rotor are you saying that it shakes? Its a possibility that you might have a bad outer tie rod, that could cause pulsating when the brakes are applied. You may want to tug on the rotor on either side and see how much play you've got goin on down there.
Later/joe

 

[UVaJester]

Well I found out it was the calipers that were bad... I guess the pistons in the calipers weren't working smoothly.. I described the problem to a few mechanics and they all suggested that the calipers were bad... So, I went back and dug the pads out that I just took off the car and they were worn funny, too. On the passenger side, the inner pad was worn more than the outer pad, which is a sign of bad calipers. So it all kinda came together... and with new calipers on the car, it brakes smoother than I ever remembered... Thanks again for everyones help and suggestions...

Jester