Permanent solution for wavy/vibrating rotors?

[sdrone]

I've got a 2007 Camry V6. My front rotors were doing great until about 42k miles, when they started vibrating. I knew from the forums here that it was relatively common, and I replaced them with NAPA OEM parts.

That lasted about 15k, when they started vibrating again. I halfway expected this, and replaced them with high end NAPA parts - ceramic pads, the high end rotor thinking that better parts would equal longer life.

So here I am about 10k or 12k later, and I've got wavy rotors again. I've let it ride for a while, but now I'm tired of it and even my wife is complaining.

Is there a permanent solution for this? A particular brand of pads and rotors? Do I need to replace the whole brake system on both of the front wheels?

[nevada]

why are you replacing them?
were they too thin to be resurfaced?

and how are you torquing the lugnuts on?
are you cleaning the coating off the new rotors before you use them?
and always using new pads with the freshly turned, or replaced rotors.

there is no permanent solution. but you seem to be experiencing it a bit more often than is normal. some vehicles are really bad about pulsation. jeeps in particular. off the top of my head, i dont remember this being an issue with the camry.

i would suspect driving style, improperly torqued lugnuts, or any of the above other conditions. there really isnt one single thing that can cause it.

often times its not the rotor being warped, but uneven friction material build up. which is why its important to always replace the pads, if you resurface, or replace rotors. and also to never just slap pads on, without taking care of the rotor aswell.

[sdrone]

I'm replacing them because a) I'm not sure who around here resurfaces roters and b) it wasn't that expensive. To be honest, I've always been told that if they were wavy, it was usually too bad to be fixed by resurfacing.

Yes, I'm cleaning the rotor. Yes, I torque the lugnuts. yes, I've replaced pads each time I replaced the rotors.

My driving style has been pretty tame for the last 10 years.

[deuce106]

check both your wheels and tires for lateral run out...if they are out of balance, they can cause the rotors to warp...in my opion

[gator1939]

The single biggest cause of rotor warp is HEAT. Heat can be caused by improperly installed pads, sticky pistons or in most cases; either very hard and often braking or riding the brake.

gator1939

[JohnGD]

If different sets of pads/rotors are still ending up as warped rotors (or as mentioned more likely rotor thickness variations), then I would

1) Check the wheel bearing
2) Check the rotor lateral runout with a dial gauge. The rotor runout should be < .002" at the friction surface. If not this can cause "rotor thickness variation" and vibration.
3) Check the anchor pins and make sure they slide. They should move with two finger pressure even initially. It should be that easy. Permatex Ceramic Extreme disc brake lube is good, so is Silglyde "Brake Lube" at NAPA.
4) After these problems are resolved I'd consider in the future Akebono ProAct ceramic pads and Centric C-Tek rotors.

I think the current rotors can be resurfaced and see if that helps, but you're right it may not save you much money. At least this is slightly cheaper than new rotors for a while if the real cause isn't fixed. And if you're within the warranty period obviously claim warranty.

[alexorozco92]

Yeah man, no need to be replacing so fast.
New rotors should be worn in.
Stop very slowly for the first week or so.
Also, if you haven't been doing much braking and all of a sudden you do, like coming off a freeway then to a sudden stop, itll warn your rotors really quick and cause them to warp.

I warped mine going to vegas, sucked but I had them replaced and 6k miles later, still in good condition. I have drilled/slotted rotors now, they're more for aesthetics then staying cooler though because i didn't really notice much of a difference.
Maybe if they were a quality brand like brembo or akebono then there'd be a difference.

Another thing is, I think our cars are too much for the little weak rotors/pads toyota puts on em.
This is especially true if you have a v6, cars too heavy for the poor braking system.

Look into performance rotors if you feel your going through them a lot.
Or bigger breaks.
There was a thread on here titled
"cheap big brake upgrade"
They had some quality info on there

[nuchieboy]

ebc flat rotors

[sdrone]

Thanks for the feedback everyone.

What are EBC flat rotors? is that a brand?

I'll be honest, this just isn't a wear/heat issue. My driving style isn't what it was 15 years ago (too many tickets in too little time ==> permanent change in driving style) and even back THEN I never had a problem like this on any car.

I don't know what lateral runout is or how to measure it, but when I look it up, it looks like it's part of front end alignment. Frankly, I've been thinking that a front end alignment would be something worth trying on this car. So I'd need to get the front end aligned, then decide what to do about the brakes.

I'll admit, replacing the pads on this car just annoys me. I was spoiled by it being so easy on previous vehicles - no futzing with the pad or little pieces of springed steel - pads just slid in.

Thanks for the pad/rotor brand recommendation.

[JoelSolid]

Ever since I installed the Akebonos and the Raybestos Advanced Technology rotors on the front I have been fine. I hope it stays that way! I got everything from rockauto.

[JohnGD]

+1.

A Toyota TSB asked to check the pads' edge code, so the problem was the pad material. And then if the rotors were warped they'll replace them during the warranty period.

So after making sure there are no other problems (binding anchor pins, air in brake lines etc) Akebono ProAct ceramics FTW.

The Raybestos Advanced Technology is very similar to the Centric Premium. Both have powder coated hubs to fight corrosion especially in snowy regions. Otherwise the Centric C-tek non-coated ones ~$20/each are fine.

[JohnGD]

EBC is a UK brand, quite well known on that side of the pond. I prefer TMD Friction like Pagid brand for European vehicles myself. You don't get warped rotors on Porsches and Mercedes with these and they are "physics defying" in performance.

I think what he meant by "flat" rotor is just a plain surfaced rotor that is not cross drilled or slotted.

But for these cars I think Akebono ProAct Ceramic pads and Centric C-Tek rotors do just fine.

http://www.akebonobrakes.com/aftermarket/index.html
http://www.centricparts.com/index.ph...d=51&Itemid=85

Originally Posted by sdrone

What are EBC flat rotors? is that a brand?

[jbrnigan]

Not to contradict pad and rotor suggestions, just another perspective - years ago (about the time that disc brakes became standard equipment (yeah I'm an old guy) on cars, I learned to ease off the brake pedal and apply only eough pressure to keep the car from "creeping" thereby minimizing creating hot spots on the rotor. I often shift the car into neutral at stoplights. Uniform heating of a quality (including O.E.) rotor allows for uniform expansion and contraction of the rotor material. A prolonged stop with the pad forcefully applied to the rotor (especially after a hard stop) concentrates heat in the area of the rotor/pad contact area. As the rotor cools after the stop, part of the rotor cools at a different rate than that not in contact with the pad during the stop. Rotor warping can occur when the rotor is not uniformly heated and cooled.

[JohnGD]

+1 that's actually what I do. I would even stop a little further back and let it creep up once, especially after a good highway off ramp braking.

Originally Posted by jbrnigan

I learned to ease off the brake pedal and apply only eough pressure to keep the car from "creeping" thereby minimizing creating hot spots on the rotor.

[aagitch]

Sdrone
I've noticed on previous vehicles that the rotors warp much more quickly on the ones my wife drives. We have much different driving habits. Shes a quick sudden stop person I'm more of the gradual stopping person. It was mention that a set of rotors lasted til about 42000 miles. Was there any changes u can think of besides the brand of rotors/pads?