John92LS

It seems like I'm Warping my front rotors every winter.

I have a 92 LS 400 with 215k.

Is there a recommended fix for this problem? Is there a stock Toyota/Lexus rotor that can stand-up to the heating/cooling, or is there a High-quality aftermarket rotor that is recommended?

Lvangundy

I didn't think the 1992's had this problem. Lexus corrected the rotor width every year since 1990.

In 1993 it was changed again. I tried aftermarket cross-drilled rotors and I found them to be noisy and warped faster than the stock toyota rotors. I replaced mine about 7 months ago and they are warping a bit - I can feel it at low speeds.

Depending on how thick the rotor is every winter, you can try having them resurfaced instead of replaced.

I guess it's a remote possibility, maybe the calipers need re-building? Maybe they are grabbing too hard? Sticking?

rybikowsky

See that they are installed using a torque wrench. And that they are tightened in stages. A lot of so called techs, put them on with an air wrench. Totally tightening one fastner at a time This stresses the rotor, and they often become warped. carpe diem

persian451

one way to ensure teh life of your rotor is not to perform "hard braking" for the first 500 miles of the rotors... if you brake too hard too many times, a thin layer of glaze is built up on the rotor making it very brittle and suspecptible to crackin in the future..

Pilot

Here are my ideas on how to prevent warped rotors.

Never wash your car in a drive thru car wash, where water is sprayed onto the wheels, and directly on the hot rotors. Never wash your car unless it has cooled off for several hours in your driveway for the same reason. The most important tip, is to try to creep the car slightly forward (inches not feet) at traffic lights to reposition the brake rotor to another part of the rotor. When the rotor is hot from braking, holding the brakes in one spot generates more heat to the stopped rotor under the brake pads causing the rotor to warp. Also if you have a hard braking session, (or a bunch of small ones) try to drive for a short distance with little brake usage, so as to air cool the rotor before stopping.
I have warped many rotors in all types of cars over the years. I do all my own brake work, and have learned over the years how to prevent this. The first gen LS has smaller rotors, and were made larger on the 93 when they went to 16 inch wheels. I finally bought new rotors and have 10K miles on them, with no warping. I decided not to machine the old rotors again due to wanting all the metal possible due to the known problem on the first gen LS.

Pilot