Rotors

[AYC_SportsFan]

Does anyone know how much it costs to replace or shave rotors at the dealership? Only 16K miles and I think I might have to get mine done.

[coontai]

Seems a little premature.... Are you sure you need this service already?

[AYC_SportsFan]

I have got to find out what the grinding sound on my brakes is associated with some way or another.

[camry man68]

It could be worn out break pads, and they could be so worn out that they are damaging the rotors. Do some research first, dealerships often charge more for factory parts when you can get oem parts or performance parts for less money than the stock parts. Examine your brake pads and pay attention to what happens when you brake. Do you feel resistance or roughness when you press on the brake pedal?

[Mike Gerber]

If you are not going to do the inspection/work yourself, I would take the car to an independant shop for brake work. They generally charge much less for this type of work than dealerships do. Ask your friends and neighbors if they can recommend a good independant shop.

Mike

[TRD VVTi]

Originally Posted by AYC_SportsFan

Does anyone know how much it costs to replace or shave rotors at the dealership? Only 16K miles and I think I might have to get mine done.

If you haven't worn the brake pads out, replacement or resurfacing of the rotors should be covered under the factory warranty.

[Yazovets]

Originally Posted by TRD VVTi

If you haven't worn the brake pads out, replacement or resurfacing of the rotors should be covered under the factory warranty.

Oh I'm sure that's the case in THEORY, but dealers in my area often make the customer feel downright guilty for asking for help of any kind once the sale is made. I'm sure there are a lot of a-hole dealers like this all over.

I don't even bother with the two dealers nearest my house because they're both owned by the same guy...and they are both filled with family relatives/cousins of his who don't know jack $hit about customer service.

Speaking of re-surfacing the rotors, I'm giving my Camry to my mechanic friend tomorrow. He's going to change the oil and filter, lubricate some rear bushing crap that's been creaking and re-surface my front rotors. Ever since late November I've been experiencing a vibration when I initially touch the brakes at highway speeds. Furthermore, sometimes when I'm very lightly breaking at low city speeds, I can certainly feel the uneven "grasp" of the brakes - has a speed sensitive pattern to it. I've already had this "inspected"...my mechanic recommends to re-surface the rotors before we try a full front brake job.

[oronocova]

Hello, I grew up in the mountains of Virginia (lots of braking) so, I have had many a set of warped rotors and I have had many a set turned. Generally a warped rotor will cause you to feel a shuttering effect when braking. The worse they are warped the worse it feels, sometimes you may even feel the car lurching as it comes to a stop because of the uneven contact between rotor/pads. Usually you will feel the shuttering worse when braking heavily at high speeds. Rotors can only be turned so many times, i.e. they can only machine so much material off the rotor before it has to be replaced. A reputable shop will mic. the rotors thickness before machining them. Also once a rotor is warped I have noticed it will warp faster again the next time(s) around. If you take the rotors off yourself you should be able to find a place to turn them for less than $10 each, some parts stores do it. If you have the shop take them off you'll pay a lot more.

[AYC_SportsFan]

Looks like this is what might have happened with me, the warped rotors that is. It's gotten so annoying that sometimes I even feel a vibration in my accelerator! I hope it's not a big deal though.

[Yazovets]

If you get vibration even when you're not touching the brakes, then it's quite possibly a warped rotor - had such an effect in the past with another car. But if it just happens when you break, then I bet on the rotor surface being uneven (which is not that bad of a problem).