Rotors rarely get warped from driving. They get warped from Disc Thickness Variation (DTV). DTV occurs when brake pad material gets transferred to the brake discs when they are hot. This excessive material increases the thickness on the rotor. When the rotor heats up, so does the brake pad material that adheres on the rotor, causing vibration as the brake pad passes rubs the pad material.

The only time they are warped is when they are glowing hot and you pour water on it, or when you tighten them with unequal torque using an impact gun.



It is a good practice to sand down the rotors before installing new pads. This removes SOME of the DTV and glazing on the rotors. It also removes old brake pad material, allowing the new material to transfer onto the new rotors for improved compatibility.

It is also a good time to index the rotors for minimum lateral run out.


You should consider having the brake pad "misunderstanding" resolved before proceeding to other upgrades.


According to the 350z Factory Servce Manual (FSM), Nissan recommends resurfacing the rotors using an on-car lathe to fix any vibration issues due to lateral runout. Yes, rotors can be resurfaced and is recommendation by Nissan to fix various brake and hub problems.

Nissan North America no longer recommends the use of traditional brake lathe because they can potentially cause more vibration issues if they are poorly maintained or operated by an unskilled operator.

The reason why some dealers recommend replacing rotors over resurfacing them is because those dealers do not have the required on-car brake lathe that is required by Nissan North America.

Also, if your hub flange is slightly bent from hitting a pot hole or a curb, then replacing the rotors will NOT solve the vibration issue. In that case the rotor, whether new or used, must be resurfaced using an on-car lathe.

 

i think you would be suprised as to how the matrix pricing is setup on things like brakes. dealers have to be remotely competitive with independent shops even though the parts they use are not. i would guess in this case the markup(parts only obviously) on a complete brake job is less than 25%.

the labor price to replace a rotor vs machining a rotor is less.

AJCaron12 hit it on the head. say the op gets a pad slap done because he thinks he's getting ripped off. a week later he complains about a brake squeal. after a bunch of words later, the dealer buys the customer a pair of rotors--the customer is always right after all. now the dealer is out the money for the rotors, and has an angry customer that is not only never coming back but is also telling everyone he knows that the stealership did some shoddy work. i can't tell you how often i see this happen, typically the dealer will even reimburse the customer a certain amount of the work originally completed.

 

You won't get any sympathy from me... My brother in law is a tech for Volvo - I know how things work.

 

Isn't that their job? Isn't that how every business in the world works? Isn't that why you go to work every day?

 

i hate ppl doing that in front of me stuck in traffic. When i seeThat **** red brake lights, i most likely hit the brake also. i drive MT so if i slow down, i gotta shift.

 

Those pads are a breeze to change. 1 hour tops for all 4 plus a test drive to bed them in. Take it to a "local" shop and let them order you a set of Axxis pads and do the install. You should come in under $200 WITH labor. Alternatively, post up in your local subforum and bribe someone with a case of Molson Canadien or XXX - I know I'd do them for you for a case of that goodness.

Front pads are $53USD, rears are $46 from my good buddy Kyle at IPP: http://www.importpartspro.com/brakepads1.html

Order those, then start shopping for an installer if you can't do it yourself.

 

Alright guys, so here's an update.

I used a LED flashlight and was able to indentify the thickness of the front pads-----I have 0.25" left. This is on March 4th (today)

The inspection paper was given to me by the Stealership on Dec 5th. It said "there are 2.5mm left".

2.5mm = 0.1".



I think the numbers speak for themselves. If I still have 0.25" left NOW, I couldn't possibly had 0.1" back 3 MONTHS AGO?! LOL.

 

My local shop suggested that with 0.25" left, I should be able to drive for at least another 3-6 months (depending on braking habit) before pads need to be changed.

When that time comes, I am going to have them install either OEM Brembo or Stoptech pads, and see if there's any squeaking / vibration. If not, I will move onto installing Stoptech SS lines and such.

 

Glad to hear everything worked out for you.

 

Look at it this way, new brake pads are about 0.5" thick. It takes around 2 years or around 30,000 miles for them to wear down 0.25", depending on how you drive.

So if your pads have 0.25" left, shouldn't they be good for at least another
year or so?

 

There is a wear indicator on the pads. It's a metal tab that I think is too conservative - when I install new pads I always push them back a bit more. Point is this - if your brakes are not squeaking now, don't sweat it.

 

^^^hey thank you guy very much for the help and advice!

It took me 2.5 years / 37000KM to wear the pads down from 0.5" to 0.25", if I continue to drive the way I do, you would be right-------the pads should last around another year before needing to be replaced.

And yes, I saw he metal tab. My tab are about 0.125" away from the tab.

I guess the reason I got nervous was because it now takes longer / deeper press of the brake pedal to bring the car to a stop. But no, no squeaks or anything (knock on wood).

 

Make sure the brake fluid reservoir is still near the line. As the pads get lower, more fluid is extracted from the reservoir. If the fluid is low or if there is air in the line, that would cause the situation you're experiencing.

 

Sure! I will go check it out. Thanks again for tipping me out