Rotors keep warping
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Junior Member
Joined: Apr 2005
Posts: 46
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Rotors keep warping
Does anyone have issues with your rotors constantly warping. I have a 98 accord that I bought new back in 98. I had to replace the brakes at ~40K miles. The pads on those wore down. Ever since then, I find myself replacing brakes about every year or year and a half. The problems is the rotors keep warping. I'm not sure why. The pads are just fine.
I drive rt80 in NJ a lot. I've gone to Midas and two other private mechanics. Midas sucked! The private mechanics all said it was because of the high speed driving on rt 80 causes the rotors to heat and therefore warp. My confusion is
1) why didn't I have this problem with the original factory pads and rotors?
2) I don't have this problem with my civic which sees the same amount of driving and driving conditions.
I recently got them replaced again but I now have ceramic brake pads instead of semi-metallic. My mechanic said they will run a lot cooler. I've heard that Honda's have an issue with warped rotors. A friend has a 2000 Prelude and has the same issues. She's heard the same thing about the Honda rotors.
I drive rt80 in NJ a lot. I've gone to Midas and two other private mechanics. Midas sucked! The private mechanics all said it was because of the high speed driving on rt 80 causes the rotors to heat and therefore warp. My confusion is
1) why didn't I have this problem with the original factory pads and rotors?
2) I don't have this problem with my civic which sees the same amount of driving and driving conditions.
I recently got them replaced again but I now have ceramic brake pads instead of semi-metallic. My mechanic said they will run a lot cooler. I've heard that Honda's have an issue with warped rotors. A friend has a 2000 Prelude and has the same issues. She's heard the same thing about the Honda rotors.
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 428
From:
RE: Rotors keep warping
yes weird , Honda still trying to find sollution to the problem - not only that - Acuras still have the same problem , imagine that?? we're working in partnership with Acura dealer so I have lots of comments on Acuras as well.
heres what i'm gonna suggest , now this might seem weird to you and this might trigger all kinda replies from others but heres what I was taught!
Do not , under any circumstances let the mechanic tighten the lug nuts with Impact gun.
1. Use the torque wrench and tightet the wheel lugnuts to 80 psi . <--- it's usually as hard as you can turn it with your bare hand and a lug wrench
also the bolts in the brackets for front pads sometimes get stripped - if someone trying to tighten it with impact/air wrench. - Theres a special sealant that works really good and I can guide you how to replace them yourself - however If you letting someone else do it - they will not beleive in that and thats just the waste of time.
I have worked with so many people that will just argue with why doing the job the right way = they say or it's just the waste of time .. or it doesnt make sense...
you'll have to start by getting new rotors and new pads -- if its financially possilble for you get - Crossdrilled rotors, and Ceramic pads ( brembo rotors are OK) pads - any ceramic brand is fine.
cross drilled will release all the gasses from the brake pads fast and give it much more cooling - but don't buy the slotted -crossdrilled - as they slice your brake pads fast , only crossdrilled
heres what i'm gonna suggest , now this might seem weird to you and this might trigger all kinda replies from others but heres what I was taught!
Do not , under any circumstances let the mechanic tighten the lug nuts with Impact gun.
1. Use the torque wrench and tightet the wheel lugnuts to 80 psi . <--- it's usually as hard as you can turn it with your bare hand and a lug wrench
also the bolts in the brackets for front pads sometimes get stripped - if someone trying to tighten it with impact/air wrench. - Theres a special sealant that works really good and I can guide you how to replace them yourself - however If you letting someone else do it - they will not beleive in that and thats just the waste of time.
I have worked with so many people that will just argue with why doing the job the right way = they say or it's just the waste of time .. or it doesnt make sense...
you'll have to start by getting new rotors and new pads -- if its financially possilble for you get - Crossdrilled rotors, and Ceramic pads ( brembo rotors are OK) pads - any ceramic brand is fine.
cross drilled will release all the gasses from the brake pads fast and give it much more cooling - but don't buy the slotted -crossdrilled - as they slice your brake pads fast , only crossdrilled
Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 569
From: Raleigh, NC
RE: Rotors keep warping
ORIGINAL: Evlampius
yes weird , Honda still trying to find sollution to the problem - not only that - Acuras still have the same problem , imagine that?? we're working in partnership with Acura dealer so I have lots of comments on Acuras as well.
heres what i'm gonna suggest , now this might seem weird to you and this might trigger all kinda replies from others but heres what I was taught!
Do not , under any circumstances let the mechanic tighten the lug nuts with Impact gun.
1. Use the torque wrench and tightet the wheel lugnuts to 80 psi . <--- it's usually as hard as you can turn it with your bare hand and a lug wrench
also the bolts in the brackets for front pads sometimes get stripped - if someone trying to tighten it with impact/air wrench. - Theres a special sealant that works really good and I can guide you how to replace them yourself - however If you letting someone else do it - they will not beleive in that and thats just the waste of time.
I have worked with so many people that will just argue with why doing the job the right way = they say or it's just the waste of time .. or it doesnt make sense...
you'll have to start by getting new rotors and new pads -- if its financially possilble for you get - Crossdrilled rotors, and Ceramic pads ( brembo rotors are OK) pads - any ceramic brand is fine.
cross drilled will release all the gasses from the brake pads fast and give it much more cooling - but don't buy the slotted -crossdrilled - as they slice your brake pads fast , only crossdrilled
yes weird , Honda still trying to find sollution to the problem - not only that - Acuras still have the same problem , imagine that?? we're working in partnership with Acura dealer so I have lots of comments on Acuras as well.
heres what i'm gonna suggest , now this might seem weird to you and this might trigger all kinda replies from others but heres what I was taught!
Do not , under any circumstances let the mechanic tighten the lug nuts with Impact gun.
1. Use the torque wrench and tightet the wheel lugnuts to 80 psi . <--- it's usually as hard as you can turn it with your bare hand and a lug wrench
also the bolts in the brackets for front pads sometimes get stripped - if someone trying to tighten it with impact/air wrench. - Theres a special sealant that works really good and I can guide you how to replace them yourself - however If you letting someone else do it - they will not beleive in that and thats just the waste of time.
I have worked with so many people that will just argue with why doing the job the right way = they say or it's just the waste of time .. or it doesnt make sense...
you'll have to start by getting new rotors and new pads -- if its financially possilble for you get - Crossdrilled rotors, and Ceramic pads ( brembo rotors are OK) pads - any ceramic brand is fine.
cross drilled will release all the gasses from the brake pads fast and give it much more cooling - but don't buy the slotted -crossdrilled - as they slice your brake pads fast , only crossdrilled
Cross Drilled and slotted rotors
These rotor surface treatments do not automatically guarantee a shorter stopping distance, but can. As mentioned, cross drilling and slotting is useful when the pads become sufficiently hot to emit gasses. Without an escape route, the gasses are trapped between the pad and rotor and actually prevent the pad applying pressure to the rotor (brake fade). For the most part and within the working heat range of the pad, slotting and drilling prevent this from occurring. The extra capacity afforded by these surface treatments can mean the difference between being able to make those last few stops driving down a mount road or not. They offer that extra capacity for sports drivers and an extra margin of safety for everyone for a very small investment.
We always recommend slotting on the surface of drilled rotors as it has a tendency to keep the pad surface clean and free from glazing. While the irregularity of the rotor surface does not necessarily improve friction, it does help maintain a high friction coefficient as a result of the constant cleaning action of the slots as they wipe the rotor, allowing more consistent (non deteriorating) performance between pad changes.
Senior Member
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 569
From: Raleigh, NC
RE: Rotors keep warping
Wildwood also states choosing, between slotted only and drilled only rotors depends on the durability desired. For performance only cross-drilled would be the way to go, but for more durability and near matching performance slotted would be wiser choice. The reason being that the constant heating and cooling may develop cracks. Unless you get the cryogenic cross-drilled rotors which resist this cracking.
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 428
From:
RE: Rotors keep warping
i'm not quite sure what you're talking about 
cross drilled is to better cool the brake rotors i dont care about braking distance nor i ever seen them crack -
we're talking about regular family car not a nascar race stud
cross drilled is to better cool the brake rotors i dont care about braking distance nor i ever seen them crack -
we're talking about regular family car not a nascar race stud
Administrator
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 440
RE: Rotors keep warping
i worked as a tech, and i have seen LOTS of the drilled rotors crack..they are Very small cracks....but none the less..they do crack...i talekd to some people who sell rotors for my car and they recommend slotted and dimpled...dimpling does away with the cracking...if youve never seen a drilled rotor crack, you must not have seen many drilled rotors..
and lots of people want better stopping distance out of new rotors....mostly to avoid slamming into other cars...thats what brakes do, stud.
and lots of people want better stopping distance out of new rotors....mostly to avoid slamming into other cars...thats what brakes do, stud.
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 428
From:
RE: Rotors keep warping
oh hmm.. how do you inspect the cracking?? i mean can you see it from the outside? or thats the indication that the rotors are warped. To tell the truth i dont get a lot of cars in the area with crossdrilled -
yet i havent seen the cracks - i have cross-drilled rotors on my car they are fine - i cant say i feel any difference than it was regular rotors before but it does cool the brakes a lot better.
I'm not sure what is dimpling - can you explain plz?
... hehe to avoid slamming into other cars the only remedy is the distance! and i guess everybody learns it the hard way
like my wife!
Patrick what kind of car do you have?
yet i havent seen the cracks - i have cross-drilled rotors on my car they are fine - i cant say i feel any difference than it was regular rotors before but it does cool the brakes a lot better.
I'm not sure what is dimpling - can you explain plz?
... hehe to avoid slamming into other cars the only remedy is the distance! and i guess everybody learns it the hard way
like my wife!Patrick what kind of car do you have?
Administrator
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 440
RE: Rotors keep warping
the cracking is subtle, like the light cracking you get ona glazed pad..it is very slight...if you look around the edges of each individual hole...there will be slight lines..tiny cracks in the metal...the dimpled rotors look relatively the same in appearance, but it looks like the drill didnt make it all the way through...the holes arent drilled until they hit the vents...just some of the metal is removed...ive never seen just dimpled...but ive seen slotter/dimpled...
Joined: Mar 2005
Posts: 428
From:
RE: Rotors keep warping
interesting 
you made me wanna go check mine pretty sure they are crossdrilled , not dimpled though
so some of the holes are drilled a bit - like a slot? and some are all the way??
yes you know why that happens - some rotors come from the factory crossdilled
and some performace shops buy regular and crossdrill themselves - so i guess sometimes they damage it.
you made me wanna go check mine pretty sure they are crossdrilled , not dimpled thoughso some of the holes are drilled a bit - like a slot? and some are all the way??
yes you know why that happens - some rotors come from the factory crossdilled
and some performace shops buy regular and crossdrill themselves - so i guess sometimes they damage it.