427500

I just picked up a brand new ZR1, it was a left over 2009. I can't find anything in the manual about brake burnishing. Was this left out of the 2009 manual? I'm guessing you still have to do it on a 2009?

RichieRichZ06

Here you go. Not sure why it was not in your manual.

Brake Pad and Rotor Burnishing (J57)
ZR1 Brake Pad and Rotor Burnishing
Note: These procedures are specific to the ZR1 with ceramic brake rotors, and should not be performed on vehicles with any other brake system.

Note: The new vehicle break-in should be completed prior to performing the brake pad and rotor burnishing procedures. Refer to New Vehicle Break-In in the Owners Manual.

The brake pad and rotor burnishing procedures, when performed as instructed, will not cause damage to the brake pads or rotors. During the burnishing procedures, the disc brake pads will produce some smoke and emit an odor. The amount of braking force required to apply the brakes, and the brake pedal travel may increase while performing these procedures.

When the burnishing procedures are complete, the brake pads may exhibit a white or light grey color at the point of contact with the brake rotor.

Proper bedding-in and burnishing of the brake pads and rotors is necessary in order to obtain maximum performance and longevity of the high-performance disc brake system.

Bedding-in the brake pads is necessary whenever the disc brake pads have been replaced in order to smooth the friction surface of the brake pads to achieve full brake pad contact with the brake rotor.

Burnishing the brake pads and brake rotors is necessary in order to ensure that the braking surfaces are properly prepared after service has been performed on the disc brake system.

This procedure should be performed whenever the disc brake rotors have been replaced, and/or whenever the disc brake pads have been replaced.

Public Road High-Performance Brake Pad and Rotor Burnishing
Warning: Road test a vehicle under safe conditions and while obeying all traffic laws. Do not attempt any maneuvers that could jeopardize vehicle control. Failure to adhere to these precautions could lead to serious personal injury and vehicle damage.

Note: Perform this procedure only on dry pavement.

Note: Due to the high-performance nature of the brake system, some amount of brake noise is to be expected during this procedure.

Select a smooth road with little or no traffic.
Note: Do not accelerate and apply the brake pedal simultaneously.

From a complete stop, accelerate the vehicle as rapidly as possible without activating the traction control to 97 km/h (60 mph).
Note: Avoid activation of the antilock brake system (ABS).

Without activating the ABS, apply the brakes with enough force to bring the vehicle to a complete stop in 4 to 5 seconds.
Repeat steps 2-3 50 times.
This process should be completed in approximately 10 minutes.

After completing 50 brake applications, drive the vehicle for 8 km (5 mi) at a speed of 97 km/h (60 mph) to allow the brakes to cool.
Observe the disc brake pads through the wheel spokes. Correctly bedded-in and burnished brake pads will exhibit a lighter color near the edge of the brake pad friction surface.
Closed-Course High-Performance Brake Pad and Rotor Burnishing
Note: The following additional brake pad and rotor burnishing procedure must be completed prior to driving the vehicle in closed-course competition.

Note: Perform this procedure only on dry pavement.

Note: Due to the high-performance nature of the brake system, some amount of brake noise is to be expected during this procedure.

Perform the Public Road High-Performance Brake Pad and Rotor Burnishing procedure completely.
After completion of the Public Road High-Performance Brake Pad and Rotor Burnishing procedure, drive the vehicle for 1 lap of the closed-course at non-competitive speeds, in a non-aggressive manner.
Laps 2 and 3 should be driven at gradually elevated speeds, and in a gradually more aggressive manner.
During these 2 laps, allow for increased brake pedal effort and travel, and increased stopping distances due to brake system fade.

Lap 4 should be completed at or near full competitive speed while allowing for increased brake pedal effort and travel, and increased stopping distances.
Laps 5 and 6 should be completed at gradually less competitive speeds, and in a gradually less aggressive manner, allowing the brake system to cool.
Lap 7 should be completed at non-competitive speeds, in a non-aggressive manner, exiting the closed-course.

hrspwr

Stolen from a previous thread that I don't know how to copy the link but here is the procedure:
ZR1 Brake Burnish Procedure
Notice: These procedures are specific to the ZR1
with ceramic brake rotors. These procedures should
not be run on other Corvette models as damage
may result.
Notice: The new vehicle break-in period should
be completed before performing the brake
burnish procedure or damage may occur to the
powertrain/engine. See New Vehicle Break-In
on page 3-21.
When performed as instructed, these procedures will
not damage the brakes. During the burnishing
procedure, the brake pads will smoke and produce an
odor. The braking force and pedal travel may increase.
After the procedure is complete, the brake pads may
appear white at the rotor contact.

Street High Performance Brake Burnishing Procedure

Run this procedure in a safe manner and in compliance
with all local and state ordinances/laws regarding
motor vehicle operation. Run this procedure only on
dry pavement.
1. From a stop, accelerate as rapidly as possible
without activating traction control to a speed of
97 kph (60 mph).
2. Use enough pedal force to completely stop the
vehicle in 4 to 5 seconds. If ABS activates,
braking is too hard.
3. Repeat steps 1 and 2, 50 times. This should take
about 10 minutes.
4. After completing the 50 stops, cool the brakes by
driving for 8 km (5 miles) at 97 kph (60 mph).
As with all high performance brake systems, some
amount of brake squeal is normal.


Racing/Track Brake Burnish Procedure

To prepare the ZR1 brake system for track events and
racing, the Street High Performance Brake Burnish
as described previously should be completed.
In addition to completing the Street High Performance
Brake Burnishing Procedure, the following additional
procedure needs to be completed to make the
ZR1 brake system ready for track events and racing.
This procedure should only be run on a track and only
on dry pavement.
Notice: Brake pedal fade will occur during this track
burnish procedure and can cause brake pedal travel
and force to increase. This could extend stopping
distance until the brakes are fully burnished.
1. Drive a normal first lap and not too aggressive.
2. Laps 2 and 3 should be gradually driven faster and
more aggressive, while allowing for reduced brake
output and increased stopping distance due to
brake fade.
3. Lap 4 as near to full speed, while allowing for
reduced brake output and increased stopping
distance due to brake fade.
4. Laps 5 and 6 should be cool down laps
5. Lap 7 should be normal driving or an easy out lap.

The search function is a great tool. Enjoy your ZR1

05dsom

Am I missing the brake application instructions for the track burnishing?
It basically says "...drive slow..drive fast...drive faster..drive slow again!!"
Where is the braking?

jvp

Ummmm. Is this a sincere question or a rhetorical one? I didn't catch a smiley, so I'm assuming sincere. You do realize that you use your brakes on the race track, correct? And the faster you drive, the more you'll use them?

jas

427500

Thanks Richie Rich and Hrspwr for the reply, I wonder why it's not in my manual, I have looked everywhere. Has anybody else with a2009 found it in there manual?

Tom Steele

Where do you guys go to do this?

50 TIMES? Wow...

I guess that I have some time during the break-in period to look for a good place to try this.

mpizz

It's not in my 2011 book either, so I got it here !I open my book and it fell apart !

jvp

In the 2010 manuals, it's in section 5, pages 20-25, or in and around there. Now, the manuals will likely be different per year given the different options available each year. For instance, 2009 didn't have the PTM, 2010 did. 2010 didn't have the Z06s available with the Z07 option, 2011 does. So, those will likely mean that the burnishing is in different spots in the respective manuals.

Look for a section called "Racing and Competition" or something like that. Go from there.

jas

hrspwr

It seems like this burnishing of the brakes is a good opportunity to practice 0-60 times almost. I thought it was interesting that you are instructed to go from 0 to 60 as rapidly as possible. I guess this will speed up the process and make it more fun at the same time. This procedure is suppose to be completed after the break-in period is done.
(The manual warns that "the new vehicle break-in procedure should be completed before performing the brake burnish procedure or damage may occur to the powertrain/engine.)

pcguy2u

Yeah, but, where have any of you folks safely performed this procedure on a public road?

Seems legally problematic and may very well be viewed as unsafe by any LEO.

jvp

Absolutely. Know that GM struggled a lot internally deciding whether they should put those steps in the manual. It's a case of customers facing potential legal issues if they do burnish, versus experiencing the hair-raising "fun" of green fade if they don't burnish.

I did mine on the race track. Before the track activities started for the day, they closed the track for me and let me rip up and down the main straight a bunch of times doing the 0-60-0 stops.

jas

BEZ06

I have an '09 also, and the procedure is not in my manual either.

However, here's a link to an online version of the 2009 Owner Manual, and you can go to page 4-15 to read the procedure:

http://www.c6registry.com/Technical/...tte_owners.pdf


It's very curious that it's not in our 2009 manuals, but it is in that online version!!

Bob

jvp

GM often will revise the manuals anywhere in the model year. New pages will get inserted and not attached to the binding, etc. I'm sure you've seen that. Odds are, the instructions weren't ready by the time you got your car, Bob. But were sometime later.

And, if I had to wager a guess: it was during that time that GM did their internal battle of legality versus liability...

jas

05dsom

Yes, exact same thing happened to my book..dealer ordered another..WTF?

05dsom

Yes it is a sincere question. The second part (track burnishing) say NOTHING about braking. I've read it over 5 times...thought maybe I was missing something.

Thank you for pointing out that I need to use my brakes when driving on the track

The street burnishing instructions are very clear and explicit on how often, how many times, how forceful and at what speed you are to perform this procedure, but the track part is almost like the author got bored or had to go somewhere so he just cut it short...weird since the first part is so detailed

jvp

The vast majority of the work you need to do with the burnishing is done with the first step. That's why it's as detailed as it is. The track burnishing is just there as the final step, and only needed if the pads will regularly see higher track temps.

Clearly the writer assumed the reader could read between the lines regarding the use of the brakes during the track burnishing procedure. The faster you go, the more you use the brakes...

jas

range96

I agree. The track burnishing procedure is lame. Tracks vary in length, number of turns, etc. A slow track vs. a long one will make completely different demands on the brakes. What I read between the lines is "go slow, go fast, go faster, go slower..." Basically, bring the temp up gradually to the max it will see then cool it down gradually. Kind of like a tire heat cycling. I'm still looking for a place/time that allows me to do the darn procedure.

BTW. an Owner's Manual that shows the Brake burnishing procedure is worth an extra $500 on ebay!