zpaul

For 18 month I thought we found the dream car for my wife, but here we go again. Toyota/Lexus quality issues.

I owned 07 Tundra and had issues with brakes. Every 20k. I was not the only one on Tundra forum with those issues.
18k - replaced 4 rotors under warranty.
38k - no can do, wear item, out of warranty, extended warranty doesn't apply. Quoted $1k by dealer to replace it. $500 from Napa with install.
60k - 4th set of rotors $800 out of pocket, got EBC slotted/drilled.
Finally replaced it with F-150.

Now here is my wife driving GX460 50/50 highway/city. 21k noticed slight vibration when applying breaks. Now 2k later really bad.
Got an appointment for that. Dealers plan is to resurface the rotors, that's what Lexus wants the dealer to do. Was told that if the pads are less then 20% it would be $400 out of MY pocket?!?! (Highly doubt that with my wife's driving) Anyway, I am 100% sure that it won't solve the warped rotors issue, may be for another 3-7K.
I am actually really pissed with that fact, since rotors should last more then 80k. What kind of garbage Toyota is pushing on us now? That was the reason I sold Tundra, I didn't like replacing rotors every 12-18 month.

I don't buy the wear item BS since on Tundra I had 60% on pads at 38k and was getting the 3rd set?!?!?

I really like GX but can't budget another $1k each year for break gob!

Anyone else with same symptoms? Or am I the first one on 2nd gen?

Symptoms of warped rotors:
- after driving for a while at speeds around 60mph and applying breaks you will heat them up
- if the rotors are warped you will fill vibration in break pedal and steering wheel

T4Fun

if youre good with working on cars the rotors and brakes are not that hard to replace. I will be doing our gx when it comes time.


fyi the rotor lifespan depends on the car and how you drive it. Our infiniti g35 ive replaced the front rotors once at 30-40K and the rears at 60+ and installed hawk brake pads on them twice. My corolla the rotors lasted about 6-7 years or 80K before i replaced them. Resurfacing rotors is a waste of money imho, just get a new set for about the same money. the pads you can get aftermarket ones, we usually use hawk pads, but they need to be warmed up first. Go to sewell website for parts. I would use brembo rotors if they make them for the gx. Toyota doesnt make any of the brake parts, they are outsourced just like most of the other stuff that goes on the cars.

zpaul

Agreed on resurfacing.
Tundra and GX are the first ones to spoil my 12 year Yota experience. I drove all my Yotas to 60K and NEVER had to do ANYTHING but oil and rotation.
I want Lexus to swallow this repair with replacement since it's not acceptable.
Don't plan to replace it on my own. After so many issues with Tundra I know who can help me to install that stuff for $150-$200. Dealer will charge $350.

By the way another popular explanation for warped rotors at Tundra forum was that bolts on wheels are not torqued properly and overtightened that will cause that.

Thanks for site and recommendations.

Craig B

I had my rotors warp at 4400 miles. They turned them, I live 110 miles each direction from the dealer. They didn't tell me until I picked up the vehicle that they turned my rotors. I complained and they've agreed to replace the rotors on my next service visit. Either they over torqued my wheels when I had my new wheels installed, or the rotors aren't thick enough for this vehicle. I'm not a heavy brake user and find this unacceptable. I've always thought the brakes were weak for this size of vehicle compared to my BMW X5. The rotors shouldn't warp at 4400 miles or 20,000 miles. Once the rotors are turned, they're much more likely to warp again and much faster in my opinion.

zpaul

So far it's been 1,5k on resurfaced rotors. No complaints yet. Lexus covered the repair. Which is $275.

caha14

My LS was pulsating, and the dealership turned the rotors under warranty (very nice of them, considering the age of the car). The brakes felt perfect for a whopping 500 miles, and the pulsation returned. The rotors were replaced.

Lexus used to simply replace rotors if warping happened under warranty, but they are now requiring the BS, Band-Aid fix that machining the rotors represents.

And our LX, just shy of 14k miles, is also starting to pulsate.