He replaced the rotors. Both times.

 

while the torque suggestion is new to me, the idea that the rotors are the issue is fully understood. I know metal warps when overheated (I'm a structural engineer but not a car guy) but pads contribute to the heating which is why I asked about them, too. When you say "none of this is true" what specifically are you referring to? the torque statement or warped rotors? What is your suggestion?

 

Vibration almost always happens because pad material fuses to the rotor*. Since the rotor hat sits directly against the hub you can't begin to deform the rotor to the point of pedal vibration. I've proved this with a straight edge. Maybe it's possible to deform a rotor with severe force via the lug nuts/studs but I don't see how they are going to yield and snap off long before you warp the rotor.

*I've temporarily cured pedal vibration by taking a belt sander to the rotor this is not the correct way to repair of course but it works. If the rotor was actually warped a belt sander is not going to fix it.

This is a good read and explains "warping" in detail
https://alconkits.com/support/brake-...d-brake-rotors

 

I think there are multiple causes. The type of shudder (what you described) can be fixed by hard breaking (I've done it). Then there is the other type of shudder from warped rotor I've experienced also. It only appears after the rotor is warmed up to a certain point and goes away once the rotor is cooled
Same symptom, differt problem.

 

I spoke to a Lexus dealer in Smyrna Georgia (suburb of Atlanta) and the service consultant told me that for my 2017 RX350 the brakes are only good for 20-25K miles. While that seems to be in line with my experience, that is totally ridiculous that brakes would only last that long. Has anyone else been told such nonsense? If this is true, it's just one more reason I will never buy a Lexus again.

 

Let's use our BRAINS here!
How long brakes will last depends on a LOT of factors: Traffic, Speed, way of driving, temperature, weight of vehicle, Pad material, performance and others that right now escape me.
How can THAT dealer state how long brakes will last? At best he can only give an average.
You can always buy aftermarket pads.

 

Cocal is correct about what affects brake life. I would assume the dealer is giving you brake miles as an average from their experience. Many cars have similar brake life and that really shouldn't form your opinion of "I will never buy a Lexus again".

 

Baloney! My 2018 has 45K miles and its original brakes. I guess if you're street racing every day, you might wear them out in 25K miles, but it won't be easy.

 

Ditto for my 2020 with 42k. Original brakes and pads and rotors have a ton of life left. I bet that my rear brakes easily go another 42k.

 

From my experience, 20-25k is when dealerships start telling you that you need new brakes, same with the RX. Usually they say it's the rear brakes. My lasted to 55K before I heard the wear indicator, when I changed it out it had 2-3mm left.

 

thanks to all for your comments. I am not a street racer (who'd do THAT in a Lexus? Certainly not this 62 year old retiree!! ). And "I won't buy another Lexus" isn't just due to the brakes being crap. I've also experienced highway mileage issues. Driving the same speed, road conditions, and even the same routes, I've hit 30-31 MPG which gradually drops to 27 which is what is advertised and I can't complain about that. But other times I've struggled to hit 25 MPG so there are a lot of little disappointments with this car. I'll work with my mechanic to see if beefed up after market rotors are worth a try. Again, thanks y'all!!

 

Struggling to get 25mpg in a large, luxury SUV? If a couple of mpg is all that important to you, why not say, a Prius?

 

Hello friends.
I was using a 12v battery to manually power the electric motor that is attached to the rear brake piston in order to release pads. Everything went well and I got new brake pads, but after turning on the car I got a dashboard error - "Electronic Parking Brake Malfunction. Visit Your Dealer."
It turned out there is an EPB Service mode I should have used to replace pads but I did not know about it.
Does anybody knows is there any way I can get rid of this error or reset EPB without connecting to a computer or other devices. Or maybe you know where I can get a device and what device to get it calibrated.
Thanks in advance!

 

I am not sure how to get rid of the error message, but perhaps you could just try the procedure in Viktor's video in post #105 above. That might reset the error....worth a try.

 

Cast iron warps?