kphu

iTrader: (8)

I'm not sure why but in the past 3 years my front rotors warped 3 times even though I replaced the pads and the rotors all three times. I bled the brakes after changing them. I bought the rotors from my local auto parts store.

Any suggestions or insight as to what's going on?

Thx

Ken

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

1) try buying rotors somewhere else
2) you are possibly over-torquing the wheel lugs
3) make sure you aren't doing something like spraying water on your wheels (and rotors) after a long drive when they are hot

kphu

iTrader: (8)

How does over-torquing the wheel lugs cause warping?

cquence

Hi,

It might be the type of pads you are using. If you are using a pad that is not operating at a high enough temperature range, you will run into issues with uneven wear. How does the friction surface look? What is the vehicle year and model?

ALAN553

The rotor is not really warped, it's the build up of brake pad material on the surface of the pad that creates the uneven surface. According to most here, the rotor is under sized for a 5000 lb truck which leads to higher temps and more brake material adhering to the surface. Solutions may involve choosing pads that work better but leave much more dust on the wheels. Also calipers are know to get stuck which also lead to uneven pad wear.

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

Googled rather than writing

Read more : http://www.ehow.com/about_5672302_ov...ke-rotor_.html

ALAN553

i have been meticulous about how lug nuts get tightened and I still get the brake shudder after a year or so, OEM, centric pads rotors etc. doesnt matter, resurface rotors and good for a while, always seems to come back eventually. 84 ftlbs......crisscross etc...does not make a difference.

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

Just for clarification, not saying it is the only possible cause, but can be a contributing factor.

kphu

iTrader: (8)

I can say I'm likely guilty of over-torquing the lugs. I use a pneumatic gun and don't torque it to spec; I do tighten in a crisscross sequence but don't tighten all the way the first time around.

Is it possible to minimize the shudder by cleaning the brake pads or is it too late?

Also, during the last rotor change, one of the calipers was seized so I replaced the 1 but not both. Was I suppose to replace both?

kphu

iTrader: (8)

I haven't pulled the wheel off yet to inspect but the year/model is 2003/GX470.

Ken

Rhinetom

My 2011 GX460 with 32,000 starting experiencing squeaky front brakes. I took the vehicle to the Lexus dealer and they replaced the rotors under warranty, claiming they were warped. I had to pay for the pads.

kphu

iTrader: (8)

I think you still made out pretty good, I didn't think they would replace the rotors under warranty.

Ali SC3

iTrader: (10)

go to 100 ft lbs its not a geo metro its a small tank we are talking about.

I think it is just the weight of these SUV's and the brakes are not as massive as they should be, as in the rotor diameter is still too small for this type of vehicle.
It is funny that toyota did upgrade them for this vehicle as they are larger than ones used in other lineups of the same year, but really they should be even larger to prevent rotor warping.

some might notice the GX comes stock with 17" wheels because of the larger rotor and brakes used on the GX series, vs the prior generations of the 4runners and landcruisers came with 16" wheels and smaller brakes. I bet the reason they did not go larger on the rotor diameter was to keep the 17" wheels, which were considered large in this lineup when they first came out.
they only went to 18" and 20" on later model years.

mine seemed fine when I bought it, now after a few months I am fairly certain they are warped some. My brothers LX470 and 100 series landcruiser are the same way. even the 4th gen 4runners do it to and are a little lighter than our cars.

solution would ultimately be larger diameter wheels and a brake upgrade kit that has a larger diameter rotor, only I haven't really heard of anyone doing it the consensus just seems to be to keep replacing the rotors, but at least you know why they keep warping now.

It is actually a large problem on these trucks, and toyota knows it.
if you have removed a rotor from a 4x4 toyota you know the dissasembly time is much more involved than on a regular toyota where it practically can be knocked off once you remove the wheels.
If you go in and ask for your rotors to be turned (not replaced), they actually have a machine that bolts onto the rotor while on the car, and turns the rotor with no disassembly required.
That is the umm lets call it a "fix" for the constant barage of ruined rotors they deal with everyday at a toyota /lexus dealership. isn't that neat they got a whole tool to bandaid the problem =)

vxphan

How many miles is your car, and have you ever replace rear brake rotors and pads? If it is over 100K miles, consider to replace the rear brakes. That is what I did to my GX and fixed the pulsing issue.

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/gx-...ml#post9041818

Enjoys,

BradTank

This is definitely an issue that can lead to frequently warped rotors. Many impact guns can put several hundred foot lbs in there.

Most "good" tire shops make their techs either use a torque wrench (best) or torque sticks (better than nothing)

Get a $12 torque wrench at Harbor Freight and put them in at 85 ft lbs.

To just pound them in with an impact gun until it stops is almost a guarantee you're going to have issues with your rotors.