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So I just got a brake job done on my civic and noticed the pad contact area on one side was very small after the drive home. Rotors and pads were replaced along with new abutment clips. Will the pad even out throughout the break in period? Could this be caused by something else? The other side looks to have more contact area.
Have you run a dial indicator on you rotors, looks like they could be warped. If you do not have a dial indicator you can take off the rotor and place on a flat surface and try to shine a light through it. If it is badly warped, you can tell by feel.
If the brakes work fine I would not worry about how they are wearing. With new pads and rotors it take time to wear in. Most people would not have even looked (including myself) at the rotors if the brakes feel good. PS phone the shop where they were installed with same question. Good luck.
Last edited by El original; 12-06-2016 at 10:29 PM.
They probably didn't clean and regrease the caliper guide pins. most shops try to get away without doing this, but it should really be done with every brake job (given the calipers have guide pins and and not pistons on both sides of the caliper)
If they are free floating there is a break-in period for the surfaces to mate. If the problem persist after several hundred miles then you may be concerned.
Drive the car a few hundred more miles and look at the wear pattern again. The pattern shown now may have more to do with the way the machine marks intersect than anything else.
+1 to bedding. light the ******* up and they'll be fine.
my bedding is a rinse/repeat of what brake manufacturers suggest:
* 2-3 medium pressure stops from ~20 mph
* 2-3 medium/hard pressure stops from ~45 mph
* light them up to where i can smell them from ~60mph a couple of times
* let cool completely
if the rotors are new, and its a Civic, there's a 7500% chance the things were wet cut in China. Some of the oil will bleed out as you heat cycle the first several times, so some discoloration/marking/etc is normal. Toss in some higher dollar race rotors and you wont see that.. but im assuming thats not exactly applicable here.
Keep driving with them the pads will seat in. It is quite common for the contact patch to not be small at first. It is just the way the pads were manufactured the machine that finished the friction material to its final shape needs to be recalibrated. Just do yourself a favor and take it easy in the brake game deal until it seats in so you do not cause a hot spot in the middle of your rotor.
Keep driving with them the pads will seat in. It is quite common for the contact patch to not be small at first. It is just the way the pads were manufactured the machine that finished the friction material to its final shape needs to be recalibrated. Just do yourself a favor and take it easy in the brake game deal until it seats in so you do not cause a hot spot in the middle of your rotor.
OP
Drive the car normally and it will be fine. Geezzz where do people get some of this info?
Well I must say auto correct on my phone really jacked up my words there but it was stil understandable. Serves me right not proof reading what I write. I have been in the automotive business since I got my first job I have done everything from detail to manufacturing to service obtaining ase master certification and parts sales. When you spend as much time in the Buisness as I have and in as many areas as I have you learn so much useless information it is not even funny.
Well I must say auto correct on my phone really jacked up my words there but it was stil understandable. Serves me right not proof reading what I write. I have been in the automotive business since I got my first job I have done everything from detail to manufacturing to service obtaining ase master certification and parts sales. When you spend as much time in the Buisness as I have and in as many areas as I have you learn so much useless information it is not even funny.
I was a tech in dealerships and heavy equipment for 12 years, was a service writer and shift manager for 8 years. Built cars that got into magazines. I have NEVER heard of taking it easy on new brakes or it will cause a "hot spot" on a rotor.
I have been doing track days for 6 years and DESTROYED rotors, I have never seen a "hot spot" on a rotor. I have seen them turn purple and crack all the way through with caliper temps of 450 degrees. Not once have I seen a "hot spot" on a rotor.
Well since we are on brakes has anyone heard of changing brake fluid? I have worked on brakes since the 80s and have never did this and every car i had was just fine. Now my dads Subaru says it needs to be changed 30k seem like a money grab to me
Well since we are on brakes has anyone heard of changing brake fluid? I have worked on brakes since the 80s and have never did this and every car i had was just fine. Now my dads Subaru says it needs to be changed 30k seem like a money grab to me
It is a good think to do, Brake fluid absorbs moisture and you know what that does.
Suck the master cylinder out with a turkey baster, fill with new and push it down to the calipers.
I was a tech in dealerships and heavy equipment for 12 years, was a service writer and shift manager for 8 years. Built cars that got into magazines. I have NEVER heard of taking it easy on new brakes or it will cause a "hot spot" on a rotor.
I have been doing track days for 6 years and DESTROYED rotors, I have never seen a "hot spot" on a rotor. I have seen them turn purple and crack all the way through with caliper temps of 450 degrees. Not once have I seen a "hot spot" on a rotor.
So you are either not telling the truth on your experience or you are not that observant. But it is basic metallurgy if you're u don't understand it I am sorry.
12-05-2016, 03:17 PM
Too small pad contact surface after brake job?
