Yet Another Brake Issue?
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 1,270
Likes: 278
From: Kiln MS
Yet Another Brake Issue?
Hello to all. New guy here with a brake question. I just bought an 07 Z06 with some miles on it several months ago. Knowing that the car would need maintenance I started with the brakes first. The brakes on the car were pretty much shot so I have replaced all four corners with new rotors and hawk pads. I did notice when I looked at the old pads that there was uneven wear on each and every one. Basically the top of the pads showed more wear than the bottom. It was only about a 1/8 of an inch, but again it was on every pad. Now that I have the new brakes installed it looks like the same thing is happening. I notice that the bedding of the pads seems to be more noticeable at the top of the rotor. I have tried to search for this problem without success. Anyone know if this is normal?
Thanks for any positive input...
JwT.:
Thanks for any positive input...
JwT.:
Pro
Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 514
Likes: 49
From: Ohio
I'm in no way an expert, but the first thing I would check would be the torque on the lug nuts. I do not mean to insult your intelligence, but tightening in a cross pattern in successive torque steps is the best method.
I torque the lugs 35, then 70, then 100 ft lbs.
I own a 2008 Z06 and the brakes appear to wear evenly. It seems strange that there would be uneven wear if you weren't feeling any vibration when stopping (an 1/8 of an inch is a good bit of difference). That's my $0.02 - hope it helps.
I torque the lugs 35, then 70, then 100 ft lbs.
I own a 2008 Z06 and the brakes appear to wear evenly. It seems strange that there would be uneven wear if you weren't feeling any vibration when stopping (an 1/8 of an inch is a good bit of difference). That's my $0.02 - hope it helps.
Tech Contributor
Joined: Oct 1999
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From: Charlotte, NC (formerly Endicott, NY)
It isn't normal for them to wear evenly. I have a couple of boxes of different make and compound tapered pads that I use for track and autocross events. If you watch the wear you can move the pads around in the caliper to get more wear out of them by equalizing the taper. I have seen the tops thin with the bottoms thick, the other way around, a combination of top or bottom thin with one side thin. One pad I have looks like it sits in the caliper at about a 30 degree angle as one part is not worn and the other part is. Are you sure you needed to replace your rotors? They can take a lot of abuse and be pretty bad looking but still perfectly functional. Unless they are worn out, cracked (so you can see through the crack), or have heat checks that have propagated through the holes and are close to the outside edge they are pretty much capable of giving good service.
GM's pad replacement kit comes with new pad guide pins and there may be good reason why those should be changed with every pad replacement. New pins may reduce tapering by reducing the chance of a pad hanging up on a pin and not fully releasing from the rotor.
Bill
The attached picture shows a rotor that was used just a little too long.
GM's pad replacement kit comes with new pad guide pins and there may be good reason why those should be changed with every pad replacement. New pins may reduce tapering by reducing the chance of a pad hanging up on a pin and not fully releasing from the rotor.
Bill
The attached picture shows a rotor that was used just a little too long.
Thread Starter
Drifting
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 1,270
Likes: 278
From: Kiln MS
Thanks For The Response
Hey thanks for the advice. I have checked the torque of the wheels and they are all good. I guess I should have explained a bit better. I bought the car with 67000 miles on it and the brakes looked like the originals. The rotors were grooved pretty bad so I just changed them as well. While I had the brakes apart I also replaced the shocks with new FPADT units and just for p.m. I also replaced the front bearings. The rear bearings will have to be done at the dealer. All of the pads I replaced looked like they should have been replaced sooner but I guess that's one reason why the owner sold the car. The Z06 with over 50k miles are sold pretty cheap but I guess thats when maintenance starts to pile up. I'll buy new pins as soon as possible and thanks for the info.
JwT
JwT
