Warped Rotors after 3k Miles. No stuck Caliper

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, Skimlinks, and others.

Joined
Oct 2, 2016
Threads
2
Messages
14
Location
Charlottesville, VA
Hi everyone.

So I have now gone through two sets of Rotors on my 97. Bought the truck in 2016 with warped rotors. First set installed April 2017 (quickstop slotted and drilled that others have used here with new pads) and they warped and second set three months ago (OEM heavy duty with new pads). The rotors are warping again in the front. My mechanic who is a LC specialist has looked over the calipers and tried to make them stick and has had no luck and sees no signs of sticking or burning on the rotors that one would normally see. Daily drive is about 5-10 miles on mostly highway. No riding of the brakes. But I feel the vibration on the exit ramps. I chalked the first set up to bad luck, but it's clearly a pattern.

Truck is not lifted.
Braking is light, no towing.
No buildup on them.

Does anyone have any suggestions of other things to check on these? Sort of sick of paying for rotors unnecessarily. I suggested rebuilding the calipers but with zero sticking and them working perfectly they seemed to think that wouldn't fix it.

Thanks for any advice!
 
Last edited:
Rubber brake lines could be internally damaged/rusted. Or wheel bearings could be loose causing the feeling or even wobbling enough to cause weird wear on the rotor.
 
Are your rear brakes working?

Honestly, never thought that a possibility. I will check later. I believe them to be working. I replaced all pads and rotors three month ago because the pads were worn and there was a warp somewhere.

Rubber brake lines could be internally damaged/rusted. Or wheel bearings could be loose causing the feeling or even wobbling enough to cause weird wear on the rotor.

I will check the rubber brake lines and see if the bearings are loose. Thank you.
 
"warped rotors" are usually not warped but rather they have buildup from the brake pads leaving a deposit on the rotor. Assuming the rest of the braking system is ok I've solved the warped rotor situation before with repeated heavy braking (not to a complete stop) and then a gradual cooldown.

You situation may be different, in either case it can't hurt to check the following:

- Wheel bearing preload
- Rubber brake lines
- LPSV
- Calipers (again)
 
Thank you both. When I get back in the car I will try the hard stop and roll to try and clear it.

I do have a click on hard turns, thought it was the birf, but could be a loose wheel bearing.

Shop still has my car and just called them with all your suggestions.

I appreciate all of your suggestions.
 
Last edited:
I'd confirm the wheel bearings are good and snug before trying to clean up the rotors with hard stops. Also the brake hoses can fail internally, it won't always be visible on the exterior. If they are old then replace as a preventative item.
 
I'm also a huge fan of DBA rotors.... running them on my 80 and my LX470 without issues.. Slee turned me on to them .... its the only rotors they sell. All the technicians at our Lexus dealership are required to use a torque wrench for the final tightening of lug nuts to ensure even pressure
 
Last edited:
Uneven torque on the rotor installation.
Improperly adjusted wheel bearings.
Did the pads and rotors get a proper bedding procedure?
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom