roadfrog

That CAN work for some owners, but not all. What happens is it removes the buildup on the rotor. It did not work in my case.

Gotcha350

The reason it works for some is because the pulsing is caused by glazing of the pads, not of the rotors...not necessarily warping. The procedure you did can sometimes remove the glazing.

roadfrog

And there are some that argue that rotors in fact do NOT warp and that the pulsing is indeed glazing and build-up on them. I do not believe that, but there ya go.

All I know is that replacing the rotors will sovle the issue for the same price and less hassle than resurfacing/turning them. Plus you're usually getting a better quality rotor.

1BlinkGone

One thing to remember is that if you ever make a "panic stop" and heat up the pads quickly then re-apply them right afterwards, what can happen is that an uneven transfer of brake material gets on the rotor surface. See, when you bed a new set of pads, it leaves an even "film" of pad material on the rotor surface. But if one makes a panic stop, or heats up the brakes and makes an application before the pad cools down, many times it will leave the rotor surface "uneven"...leading to a pulsing or shimmy in the brakes when you apply them later. Oftentimes this is the case, and not a warped rotor; and after about 100 miles or so of useage, your rotor surface cleans up. Oftentimes what is diagnosed as a warped rotor actually ends up being excess & un-uniform brake material on the rotor surface. Then when they turn the rotor, they think the rotor was in fact warped, when many times that wasn't the case. This can also happen when setting the parking brake with hot brakes before they get a chance to cool enough.
FYI, YMMV, etc...

geolyte

After having brakes replaced at 39K and 49K because of shaking, I had the car in for 60K. Same issue was back. Lexus paid for rotor and pads at 39K and 49K. Now with the same issue their explination was my driving habit and weight of car. I didn’t agree with this. After reading the forum, I went out and bought EBC OE Premium (Solid) Rotors and Akebono ProACT Ultra Premium Ceramic pads. I took the car to my Porsche mechanic. They did some simple tests measurements. The first was on old rotor and hub and second was on hub alone. Turns out the both the hub and rotor were warped. So as much as Lexus wanted to keep putting rotors on my car, turns out the hub was warped too.
To everyone that reads this, take your car to a great mechanic and have them test the rotor and hub. My mechanic sent me video evidence of each measurement and this is what I would recommend to everyone. It has been over two months and brakes work like a charm. This shouldn’t take them more than 15 to 20 min a wheel. I have voiced my opinion with the local Lexus dealer and how incompetent they are. I have attached a zip file with the .mov file for viewing pleasure on the hub. Good Luck All.

williakz

Shouldn't matter since factory and all replacement rotors SHOULD be precisely mated to the hub using an on-vehicle disc brake lathe (see http://www.procutinternational.com/92dro.aspx). I wonder whether this is done at the factory or whether Lexus ASSUMES hub runout (no doubt from one supplier) and rotor runout (no doubt from another) are within specified tolerances and simply bolts the two together. Depending on whether runouts tend to cancel each other or whether they stack, you the owner will have no problem, a minor one, or a major headache. How the dealer does rotor replacement and resurfacing, I don't know, but if shop simply bolts on new rotors, could be the same crapgame, no?

honeygee2

As far as I know CPO warranties are honored at the dealerships but they are not part of the lexus auto group. An independent warranty company gets the paper on the CPO car. Any major repair has to cleared by the dealer thought them before the dealer can touch it. You can also buy an extension of the CPO warranty at the point of purchase. It's about 1700 bucks and it covers the car for five years instead of three and up to I believe 120000 miles.

Brakes and rotors are not covered nor are any plastic parts that break inside the car lie a cup holder or sunglass holder.

cruzinZ

There are many causes to warping break rotors. The main one is cooling down the rotor too quickly. It's basic material science. If you wash your vehicle and hit it with water you run the chance of warping the rotor.

As others have said when ever you have the rotor turned you are in essentially removing the high side if the rotor and making them straight again. This makes them thin and they are able to warp much sooner than when they are thicker. From everything I gather the stock rotors are a weak point to the car. I would advise you to replace them with a better quality product & put on a good break pad when you do this job. Have it done at an independent as the dealer just charge you a premium for such a simple service.

williakz

Does that really make sense to you? Lexus would cheap out on $200 brake rotors on an $80,000 car? REALLY? Why? So they can **** off untold numbers of owners, salesmen, auto mag reviewers, service managers, etc., etc., etc.? And to save what? 50%? That'd be $400 in total. It doesn't make sense. The saying goes "Never ascribe to malice that which can be explained by incompetence." Therefore, an alternative explanation is called for. I suggest that a chance combination of sample part variances, factory assembly sequencing, and gradual appearance of the problem is more fertile ground in which to find an explanation than cold water hitting hot rotors which happens to EVERY vehicle even though only SOME vehicles evidence warped rotors.

cgawelko

Wow.... that video is a great example of why to check the hubs too. What did the hubs cost you ontop of the brake supplies?

superdenso

I called two brake manufacturers Frozen Rotors and Centric. Both stated that a street car's rotor will never get near heat ranges to warp rotors. Let it go. The pad choice is the culprit. Your rear brakes are probably fine. The front can be turned and ran with new pads (too much work for a chance of recurrence imho). I chose to replace the front rotors and pads with Stoptech and Akebono non Toyota brake parts. The directions instruct replacement of caliper bolts. I hope you enjoy your braking in the future.

Hannaabe

Warped rotors - 99% certain.
the pulsating/vibration is pronounced when brakes get 'hot'.
vibration will not exhibit if brakes are 'cold'

LS2k

Same story here, been commplaining about it evvery 5k miles when they changed oil but dealer would not do anything about this issue eventhough the car was under extended warranty. They wrote: "Measured run out of all rotors and the all have. 002-.003 runout, would recommend to machine all 4 rotors." Now my warranty has expired but does this mean that I need to replace all 4 rotors+brake pads? If so then I'll get the bendix+akebono package but would someone be able to recommend a trustworthy place to get it done in the SF bay area?

superdenso

Hanaabe, I mean this as friendly as possible. If you contact rotor manufacturers and query them about the warped rotor theory. You may get told what I was told. Above average Joe will never get the brakes hot enough to produce a warp condition. Todays metallurgy is pretty good from Top manufacturers (EBC, StopTech, AcDelco, Bendix, FrozenRotor). They even go through the hassle of balancing the rotors for your enjoyment.

S/N-We go through a lot of annoyances with these cars. The LS has a few TSBs. I will assist with research when I can so that LS owners can enjoy what is an exceptional car