[Kalani938]

So about 73k miles ago I installed the Power Stop brake kit on all four corners like a lot of guys on here recommended. About a month or so ago I started getting the steering wheel shake during heavy braking and high speed braking. It got really bad on our drive to Disney World at high speeds on I75. I took my truck in to the shop this morning to get a brake inspection done and they said my pads still had a lot of life in them and my rotors looked fine, not warped. I asked if they could turn them just in case and they said they can't turn grooved/slotted rotors (even though O'Reilly's will). I said if my rotors look fine then why all the steering wheel shake while on the brakes? The worker said let me talk to my supervisor and I'll be right back. He came back and said yeah you need new rotors. As you could imagine I was very confused and I told him that nothing really made sense. Of course he then quoted me $320 to put on 2 front cheap rotors. I said no thanks and left the shop so now I'm kinda stuck and don't really know what route to take? I guess I could take the rotors off and take them to Oreilly's to get turned and then see if that fixes the issue, but I hate to go through all that work and that not be it. I assume if I get my rotors turned that means I have to get new pads correct? It's just frustrating b/c I got 223K miles out of my original brake pads and rotors. I spend the extra cash on these "high performance" brakes and they don't even last me 70k? I would say 60k out of that 70k is highway miles too. Anyone have any suggestions or ideas? Thanks guys!

 

[jdmartin]

Man, I wish I could offer a suggestion but I have nothing. I hate to admit it, but I do the Advance Auto brakes & rotors because I just bring them back and get them replaced for free when they crap out. Which I'm about to do tomorrow, if everything goes well, since my driver's brake has bit the dust.

 

[Kalani938]

Man, I wish I could offer a suggestion but I have nothing. I hate to admit it, but I do the Advance Auto brakes & rotors because I just bring them back and get them replaced for free when they crap out. Which I'm about to do tomorrow, if everything goes well, since my driver's brake has bit the dust.

Which pads and rotors do you get from there? Wearever Gold Ceramic or Wagner?

 

[jcb]

You might try re-bedding the pads. JUST BE CAREFUL AND PICK A TIME AND PLACE WITHOUT MUCH TRAFFIC!

Perform 3-4 medium stops from 45mph. Slightly more aggressive than normal braking. You don't need to come to a complete stop for each pass. This brings the brake rotors up to temperature so they are not exposed to sudden thermal shock.
Make 8-10 aggressive stops from 60mph down to 15mph. For this set of semi-stops, you want to be firm and aggressive, but not to the point where ABS activates and the wheels lock up. It's important to note that you don't come to a complete stop but rather a semi-stop (~15mph). Accelerate back up to 60mph as soon as you slowed down to your semi-stop.
The brake pads and brake rotors are extremely hot at this point and sitting on one point will imprint the pad material onto the surface unevenly. This can cause vibration and uneven braking.
You may notice that your brakes will start fading, and sometimes smoke, after the 6th or 7th pass. This fade will stabilize and will gradually recess once your brakes have cooled down to normal operating temperatures. Drive carefully as your brakes may feel softer for the next few minutes.
Try not to come to a complete stop and find a stretch of road where you can coast for 5-10 minutes, preferably without using your brakes.

 

[VRamkelawan]

Man that makes me concerned. One, for the fact that I'm at 100k on factory rotors and they're finally warped. I was contemplating going with the Power Stop kit for my Titan. But possibly not...

As far as rotors I have always stuck to the Duralast Gold from AutoZone on all of my prior trucks and cars throughout the years. I've never had a problem with them.

 

[Kalani938]

You might try re-bedding the pads. JUST BE CAREFUL AND PICK A TIME AND PLACE WITHOUT MUCH TRAFFIC!

Perform 3-4 medium stops from 45mph. Slightly more aggressive than normal braking. You don't need to come to a complete stop for each pass. This brings the brake rotors up to temperature so they are not exposed to sudden thermal shock.
Make 8-10 aggressive stops from 60mph down to 15mph. For this set of semi-stops, you want to be firm and aggressive, but not to the point where ABS activates and the wheels lock up. It's important to note that you don't come to a complete stop but rather a semi-stop (~15mph). Accelerate back up to 60mph as soon as you slowed down to your semi-stop.
The brake pads and brake rotors are extremely hot at this point and sitting on one point will imprint the pad material onto the surface unevenly. This can cause vibration and uneven braking.
You may notice that your brakes will start fading, and sometimes smoke, after the 6th or 7th pass. This fade will stabilize and will gradually recess once your brakes have cooled down to normal operating temperatures. Drive carefully as your brakes may feel softer for the next few minutes.
Try not to come to a complete stop and find a stretch of road where you can coast for 5-10 minutes, preferably without using your brakes.

I will definitely give this a try. Just gotta find a stretch of road to do it on. Thanks for the advice.

 

[jdmartin]

Man, I wish I could offer a suggestion but I have nothing. I hate to admit it, but I do the Advance Auto brakes & rotors because I just bring them back and get them replaced for free when they crap out. Which I'm about to do tomorrow, if everything goes well, since my driver's brake has bit the dust.

Which pads and rotors do you get from there? Wearever Gold Ceramic or Wagner?

I usually use the Wearever Silver. I pulled my driver side wheel and caliper today because I could see a groove in the rotor, figured I'd find a busted pad but the pads looked great, they have 10k miles on them.

I don't think I've ever noticed any difference in wear between the silver and gold pads. I'm not that hard on brakes, though.

 

[Kalani938]

Man, I wish I could offer a suggestion but I have nothing. I hate to admit it, but I do the Advance Auto brakes & rotors because I just bring them back and get them replaced for free when they crap out. Which I'm about to do tomorrow, if everything goes well, since my driver's brake has bit the dust.

Which pads and rotors do you get from there? Wearever Gold Ceramic or Wagner?

I usually use the Wearever Silver. I pulled my driver side wheel and caliper today because I could see a groove in the rotor, figured I'd find a busted pad but the pads looked great, they have 10k miles on them.

I don't think I've ever noticed any difference in wear between the silver and gold pads. I'm not that hard on brakes, though.

Aren't the silver ones semi-metallic and the golds are ceramic? Which rotors?

 

[jdmartin]

Don't know. Rotors are the Advance Auto ones. All of it is (likely) China-land, but that goes for most of the parts anyway.

 

[titan14]

I spend the extra cash on these "high performance" brakes and they don't even last me 70k? I would say 60k out of that 70k is highway miles too. Anyone have any suggestions or ideas? Thanks guys!

remove that "high performance" crap you paid up for because the less informed think slotted rotors are "cool", and go back to OEM or auto parts store brakes. I use the least expensive "silver" pads (semi-metallic is fine, no reason to pay twice as much for ceramic) from advanced. Work great, last long time, and inexpensive.