How do you wear out a rotor?????? Could the window squeak and trim issue have been caused by the person doing the tinting. I don't know, just saying

 

Driving the car and using the brakes is what caused the rotors to wear out. Apparently the rotors and pads are both made of a very soft compound. When I was at the tire shop getting new tires installed a few months ago they showed me a rotor from an AMG Mercedes that had the same kind of premature wear. I guess if you can afford an AMG Mercedes you can afford new brakes and rotors every 25,000 miles.

As far as tinting causing the rear window to squeak, that thought did cross my mind, but Almost everyone in southern California gets their windows tinted. If it were a common problem I'm sure I would have heard of it before.

 

I've never heard of a rotor wearing out. The only way that happens is if you let the pad wear too far and they begin to grind away the rotor. The other being the rotors are turned too much (below recommended tolorence) when doing a break job. There is no way a rotor will wear before pads.

As for the tinting; I didn't say it is a problem. I have a IS350 that has tint. I said the PERSON who installed it.

 

Sorry, no sympathy here on your brake issue. Your driving is the problem with your brakes.

The squeaks you are hearing are directly related to rubber seals making noise and some of them are a result of your tint. Dash rattle fixes are well known issues on some cars. My car has not suffered anything even close to what you describe. Sorry for your misfortune.

Oh, I bought my car at Longo in July of '06 and moved here to Georgia in May of '07, so I am keenly aware of the rigors of California driving. I lived there 24 of the last 28 years.

There's also a tremendous amount of information on all of these subjects both in the FAQ and using the search function.

 

Unfortunately, Rotors can wear before pads if they become warped or blued. This typically happens when you have to slam on the brakes when they are new. This happened to my father several years back with a brand new car. The rotors had to be replaced. Our 2Gens, have "High Friction" pads that wil contribute to a greater redution in the life of them. pads are designed to last 20-25k and the rotors are said to last up to 45k.

 

My old car, '96 Maxima, would go much longer without needing brakes, and the rotors would last for several pad changes. How can you be so sure it's me and not the Lexus?

Do big brakes wear out faster than small ones?

~Jay

 

Read the link I posted. It's factual, based on my own measurements, not conjecture or some service adviser telling me I need brakes. I am projecting a 100k+ service life from the rotors on my IS350, and I drive 55 miles daily in traffic at speeds from 25 to 85 mph. That's how I know it is your driving.

Bigger brakes do not wear faster. Aggressive pads wear rotors faster. The OEM rotors and pads in my TT Supra wore out together at 63k miles. They are quite comparable to the IS350's brakes, and they still didn't wear out anywhere near as fast as yours have. FWIW, I replaced the rotors with OEM and put Hawk HPS pads in the Supra at 63k miles. It has 144k miles now and isn't anywhere near needing pads or rotors.

Both of these cars have been driving extensively at high speed, just not tracked. So, it is quite possible to get long service life out of them.

Also, it is impossible to blue a brake disc on a modern car with a single stop. You would have to drive with constant left foot braking to blue the discs on your IS350. I believe this to be the root cause of most premature brake pad replacements, and I have about 35 years of driving experience to base it on.

 

I'm a bit confused by that link. Maybe you are basing your measurements on different pads than I have had. You referred to TISB pads in the post. I don't know if my car had those or something else.

Can you break down at how many miles you driving habits changed from 99% highway? Perhaps it was the first 21,000 miles with the old pads?

Now the new pads that may not wear the rotors prematurely, where they installed at about the same time your driving habits changed to 70% city?

Help me make sense of that.

With your 35 years of driving experience can explain why I would have such poor results with the Lexus vs any other car I have ever owned?

We have already established in this thread that the Lexus IS is the most perfect car ever to exist. Any lame parking brake, or dash rattles, or brake dust must be caused by the driver.

Please help me take better care of my car!

~Jay

 

Your post sounds sarcastic. I showed you through my own measurements that the discs will last 100k+ for the way I drive. You are not experiencing the same thing. The materials are the same, the weight of the cars are the same, the pads are the same, the only difference is the driving style.

The IS is far from perfect. It's overweight, underpowered, corners at far less than 3g's, and is frustrating to drive on a winding road quickly because the transmission does not cooperate the way a manual does. Your sarcasm does not help your case, it only makes you sound disingenuous.

Help you take better care of your car? 1. Stop using the brakes to adjust your speed all the time. Lift off the throttle and let it slow of its own accord. If you can't do this, you're probably following too closely, and if you give me the lame excuse you are in SoCal, I'll call BS because I've driven SoCal and NorCal for years without having to mash the brakes every time I needed to adjust speed. 2. Stop braking with your left foot. I followed a BMW M3 driver down I-5 between Hanford Ranch and the Grapevine who clearly had his foot on the brake the entire time. His rotors were glowing dull red. I'm sure he was buying brakes long before someone who brakes with the right foot exclusively. If you are doing this, you are costing yourself maintenance and fuel far in excess of what you should be paying.

My post was quite clear. I drove for 21k with the OEM pads. I measured the discs. It is documented. I've driven much further with the TSIB pads and experienced wear at a similar rate to what I experienced with the OEM pads despite my driving profile changing from long trips to a half hour commute twice a day.

Your dash rattles are not uncommon and can be fixed. Your other noises are not uncommon and can be fixed. MY IS350 did not have these issues. Again, as I said before I am sorry for your misfortune. It is NOT common to these cars.