Brake Rotor Question

Open the manual, and find the regional manager contact at Toyota

What line of work is your "friend" in?

So what is your problem with that "qualified" diagnosis? You've only had the car for a week and you have a long warranty time ahead of you.

Talking to your sales manager about mechanical issues is outside of his perview. "I dunno, I just sell 'em".

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- Philip @ Maximum Torque RPM

How could he see your brake rotor without taking off the wheel? Is your brake squeaking? Is there a dusty black buildup on the rim?

Mike

"What line of work is your "friend" in?" Yeah, I know what you mean, the service guy at the dealer said the same. He's a machinist, but he as well as 3 of my other friends who do most of their own repairs said the same as well as my own regular mechanic.

"Talk> > If you haven't read my previous posts, I just bought a '04 Camry

Their 5-spoke aluminum wheels, so there's large gaps in between...hard not to notice. In fact a co-worker noticed them just in passing (I'm assuming anyway, unless he was checking everything out). Dealer tech said that a rock or pebble probably got up in there and it would probably happen eventually to the others as well and not to worry. I've also been told that a rock should not do that as the rock should disintegrate and not do any damage to the rotor.

Not any squeaking that I can hear, that's what the tech asked me too. I don't think there's any dusty buildup, but I will double check.

Thx, Brian

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The first thing I'd do is recall both your US Senators!

That is a real problem you guys in Mass have!

Scott in Florida

Brian Grigg wrote: || If you haven't read my previous posts, I just bought a '04 Camry SE || last week. A day later I went out to lunch with a friend and he || noticed that my rear driver side brake rotor had grooves in it, but || the other three are all perfectly smooth. He told me that I need to || have them replace it or else I'll end up replacing the pad and || possibly the caliber down the road which won't be cheap. He even || gave me a micrometer to measure the rotor to see if they replace it || or just turn it down. And all my friends say the same, even my || regular mechanic. But the service department at the dealer is || telling me it's fine, that as long as it's not making any noise or || affecting my braking that it'll be fine. || || I was wondering if maybe things have changed and that it won't || infact be a problem on the newer cars ('04 Camry) or is the dealer || just BS'ing me? I'm going to talk to the service and then sales || manager next. || || Thanks, || Brian || || Dealer: || George Grey Toyota || Lexington, MA

Huh. My 99 Camry only has 30% wear on the front pads and 50% wear on the rear.

Scott in Florida wrote: || On Fri, 7 May 2004 12:37:50 -0400, "Brian Grigg" || wrote: || ||| If you haven't read my previous posts, I just bought a '04 Camry SE ||| last week. A day later I went out to lunch with a friend and he ||| noticed that my rear driver side brake rotor had grooves in it, but ||| the other three are all perfectly smooth. He told me that I need ||| to have them replace it or else I'll end up replacing the pad and ||| possibly the caliber down the road which won't be cheap. He even ||| gave me a micrometer to measure the rotor to see if they replace it ||| or just turn it down. And all my friends say the same, even my ||| regular mechanic. But the service department at the dealer is ||| telling me it's fine, that as long as it's not making any noise or ||| affecting my braking that it'll be fine. ||| ||| I was wondering if maybe things have changed and that it won't ||| infact be a problem on the newer cars ('04 Camry) or is the dealer ||| just BS'ing me? I'm going to talk to the service and then sales ||| manager next. ||| ||| Thanks, ||| Brian ||| ||| Dealer: ||| George Grey Toyota ||| Lexington, MA ||| || || The first thing I'd do is recall both your US Senators! || || That is a real problem you guys in Mass have! || || || Scott in Florida

Once that is done, the grooves will disappear.

Well some of them...at least

Scott in Florida

Brian,

A friend of mine bought a 2002 Camry (new) in early 2003. Very soon after (a few weeks?), her brake pedal was vibrating when pushed and I suggested that the rotors were bad (with a few hundred miles!). The dealer replaced them (possible cut them but I am not sure). They said it was cause the car sat a long time. Bunk! My guess is uneven/too tight lug nuts.

Either way, your problem sounds like a warranty issue. Sometimes after

12K miles or a year they will say the brakes are a wear item, etc. So don't let this go. Your car is too new and you should complain until they fix it.

BTW, my '99 Camry has 205K on it's original rotors (4 or 5 pad sets) with NO grooves on them.

Gary

Gary, Bunk? Not quite. Many cars develop this problem, we see it regularly. It is not uncommon for a rotor to do this when sitting , and when you consider a new car can sometimes sit on a lot for months , moisture can do a number on rotors. What we see most often is the rotor will develop a light rust formation directly beneath the brake pad. This has alot to do with the high metal content in the pads, we actually see it more in some of our Ford and GM products. Some don't do it at all , some it is commonplace. Sometimes the rust is actually so thick it sticks the pad and rotor to gether and when you move the vehicle after it has been parked for a long time the brake is locked and then 'pops' and starts to turn. The fix that works 90% of the time is a test drive where the brakes are aggressively applied several times and I mean aggressively applied. The hard metallic pad does a great job of cleaning this rust off. in one out of ten of these however the rust is enough to casue a pulsation in the pedal as the rust passes the pads, an incredible small amount will push the pads , moving the piston in the caliper and transfering the shake to the wheel. We see it every week. A light cut on the brake lathe and good as new. Brad

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Brian ,

1) I can't say without looking at it but I would not worry. If you have no brake pulsation , its not an issue. In order to replace that rotor under warranty, your dealer has to retain that part after taking it off to return it to Toyota if it is called back (which is not uncommon). That rotor would have to exhibit a flaw that would cause the car top be unsafe or not operate as designed. If it does not have that Toyota will reject the claim, because small grooves will do nothing to the brake system. If they were to do a warranty parts return and ship that rotor back and Toyota found no defect , the dealer would be charged for the rotor and the labor. Its also possible that the pad itself did it, there are actualk pieces of small metal in todays pads that sometimes will do this. Its normal. 2) You need to have your friend keep to his own expertise as car braking systems are not it. A grooved rotor could NEVER cause a caliper failure. Period. Anyone with even the most basic hydraulic theory in brakes knows this. On a side note about dealers and warranty ,alot of the time people (not saying you) think dealers can warranty anything they want as long as it is on warranty, to the contrary, for instance , most GM dealers have to retain 100% of the parts they replace and a GM rep will come through monthly and inspectr EACH part. If they do not find a defect, the dealer is forced to pay the full bill. Many Ford dealers are now on a digital imaging warranty program , REQUIRING the dealer to take digital pictures of a defctive part, transfer the picture to Ford engineers and await approval (usually 15 minutes) BEFORE they are allowed to begin repair.

You can prevent or reduce it by moving the car from time to time. Even just moving it a few feet, enough to make the pads rest on a different part of the rotor, may be sufficient.

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those must be some kinda creative pictures their dealers take..

Boy, you ain't kidding!

"Ted Kennedy's car has killed more people than my gun..."

I'm with Gary on this, make a stink about it. We have a 1989 Corolla GT-S and there are the original rotors on them, one time pad change 5 years and

32,700 miles ago.

Brad, I take it you're in New York? This doesn't seem to happen in San Diego, is it the rain or what other factors contribute to this? We often go on extended trips and leave the car in the side yard unmoved for up to 6 months at a time and no problems. In fact, the same is true for the Prerunner and 4Runner, but they're in the garage out of the elements. I'm really curious as to why this happens in some cars. Al I can think is the rain or a sprinkler hitting the brakes.

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