Brakes!!!!

[muff commander]

I recently bought a 99 toyota tacoma 4x4 and replaced the front rotors do to the fact when brakes were applied the truck would shake to death. After replacing the front rotors the issue is still there. I took it to my local mechanic last weeks to have it checked out. they said the rear drums were a little out of Round but they turn and adjusted them. they test drove it after words and the problem was still there. they said it was the front rotors that i just put on. I havnt replaced them because i dint think thats right. It had almost gone away but it's been a week and its really bad again. PLEASE HELP!!! I sick of spending money!!!

Thanks for looking any Any advice is appreciated.

 

[Thundra]

Could be cheap rotors. Could also be your struts. Have you replaced the struts? That shaking should be coming from up front. I have had rear drums with rocks in them that made groves like Ruffles potato chips in the shoe and drum and never had a shake from it.

 

[liljlandon]

Here's what id look at;

Cheap rotor
Bad tie rod, both inner or outer
Wheel bearing
Ball joint
Tire out of balance.

I went to replace my rotors with some from a parts store and the factory Toyotas still had more meat on them!

I did the tundra brake upgrade and its awesome.

 

[TallCanDan]

I have heard that when rotors are stored flat, say, sitting around long enough at the manufacturer, they stand a chance of warping just sitting there too long.

Danny

 

[wrongway around]

first up when you did your rotors did you do your brake pads too (they could be hardend an glazed ). and did you get grease on the surfaces and not brake clean them .a little grease or oil will heat or burn a hot spot on your rotor pretty quick . might even see blueish spots on it now if this is the case . plus even if you replaced everything new .and your calipers are sticky (hard or impossible to free wheel the tire when jacked off the ground) it can heat the new rotors to the point of warping . after driveing for some time with lots of brakeing,try touching around feeling for heat .to check your steering have a buddy lightly turn your steering wheel back and forth quickly and only alittle (1 or 2 inches on the sreering wheel) while your under the truck checking for a loose tie rod or bad steering damper. have you grabbed the top of the tire and shook it in and out then grabbed the side of the tire and shook the crap out of it to see if your bearings are loose .can sometimes see something stange in the suspension also. toe in toe out bit of a backyard method but its worked for me is .on level flat pavement ,line the tires up front to back so you can see the drivers front and drivers rear sidewall of the tires lined up perfect . now measure the inside backs of front tires(or rim )at the same spot you did at the backside then measure the front of the tires and you should be plus or minus 1/8 to 1/16 ,adjust you draglink to what ever the specs call for .hmmm or just take it in for an allingment . good luck

 

[Jetboy]

FWIW, I would also look again at the rotors. The IFS toyotas of this generation are VERY sensitive to rotor runout and/or tire imbalance. Any small amount will cause significant shudder or shimmy in the front end. My first set of rotors after I did a tundra conversion warped right away. Within 5k miles. They were the really cheap chinese rotors.

I've since replaced them with centric cryo rotors that were about $60 each - still pretty reasonable - and they've been good so far. I have yet to put a full winter on them yet though, so we'll see how they hold up. (I drive to the ski hill here two or three times a week all winter and it involves a 4,000 foot descent over 7 miles so it really puts the brakes through their paces).

Also, unless you have the little brakes that came with 15" wheels, I would not do the tunrda brake conversion. IMO it's only popular because it forces you to put all new components up front. The rotors are no larger in diameter, they are just a bit thicker and the pads are a bit larger. The factor brakes were fine for 100,000 miles. There's no reason good quality rotors and good quality pads can't work great for another 100,000 miles. As long as the rear brakes are adjusted, the front factory equipment is adequate for the task. Just make sure it's done with good quality components.