a mechanic said it depends on various things (rotors quality, driving style, brake pad's quality), but generally he said a rotor can be turned two times before being replaced.
anyone agree?
anyone agree?
how often do you need to turn your rotors before getting new ones?
- Thread starter andylawcc
- Start date
They can be turned only to a certain thickness. I am not sure what that legal thickness is, but it depends how much they take off each time. I would say 2-3 times and then it would be time for some new ones, but that means on average a set of rotors should go 100k miles.
JulesMaximus
No Lifer
- Jul 3, 2003
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Do you understand what turning the rotors means? Definitely NOT a useless proceedure.
andylawcc, the mechanic you talked to is very correct.
Yes, I know what it means. I didn't say it was useless, I come to my conclusion because a) new rotors are often cheaper to buy and install than having old ones turned (and thus shortening their effective life anyways), b) getting your rotors turned is very often in line with getting your brake light fluid replaced, and c) if your rotors ARE actually in need of turning it's probably because you're stupid and don't drive well (you brake poorly).
So, does turning rotors serve a purpose? Sure. Whether or not it actually needs to be done depends on how stupid you are
I had an 89 Trans Am GTA that I never turned the rotors on. I put 180k mile on it before I sold it. The first time I replaced the pads, I bought some that had a lifetime warranty. They wore out quickly (seeing as I didn't turn the rotors). I replaced them 4 or 5 times. It always passed inspection though.
Come to think of it, I think I only turned rotors once in all of the cars I've had.
Come to think of it, I think I only turned rotors once in all of the cars I've had.
I don't know anyone that knows anything about cars that has ever turned rotors. On the other hand, I know a lot of women (sorry for the generalization, but it's true) that have had their rotors turned.
My wife's Taurus gets a wobbling in the breaks which is fixed by turning the rotors. It's a known problem with the 3G Tauruses, and turning the rotors is cheaper than replacing them.
I warped my car's rotors the first time it saw snow. Rotors can be very expensive for some vehicles. Also, some vehicles are prone to warping rotors very easily (such as an Eclipse). Problem solved = slotted and x-drilled rotors. They were actually cheaper than OEM. Go figure!
radioouman
Diamond Member
- Nov 4, 2002
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Not machining the rotors is definitely not the optimal way of doing a break job. The fact that rotors become glazed and/or warped is not because of "stupid" drivers. It's just a product of how the breaks work.
Yes, some rotors can be had for less than the price of someone machining the old ones. But there are certainly just as many cases (if not more) where it would be more expensive to buy new ones.
In my previous career, I was an ASE Certified Master technician of more than 10 years. I'm pretty sure I would qualify as someone who "knows anything about cars."
If your brake pads get down so far they wear the rotors, you turn them. If the wheels are not torqued down correctly it can warp the rotors, sometime turning them will fix this as well. As far as how many times, as someone stated earlier, it's the thickness of the rotor that determines if they CAN be turned. It the wear from worn out pads is bad enough, even the FIRST time they are replaced, the rotors can be toast!
I expected "break" from a noob, but from you...?Originally posted by: Wingznut
Not machining the rotors is definitely not the optimal way of doing a break job. The fact that rotors become glazed and/or warped is not because of "stupid" drivers. It's just a product of how the breaks work.
Yes, some rotors can be had for less than the price of someone machining the old ones. But there are certainly just as many cases (if not more) where it would be more expensive to buy new ones.
In my previous career, I was an ASE Certified Master technician of more than 10 years. I'm pretty sure I would qualify as someone who "knows anything about cars."
DOH!Originally posted by: Howard
I expected "break" from a noob, but from you...?Originally posted by: Wingznut
Not machining the rotors is definitely not the optimal way of doing a break job. The fact that rotors become glazed and/or warped is not because of "stupid" drivers. It's just a product of how the breaks work.
Yes, some rotors can be had for less than the price of someone machining the old ones. But there are certainly just as many cases (if not more) where it would be more expensive to buy new ones.
In my previous career, I was an ASE Certified Master technician of more than 10 years. I'm pretty sure I would qualify as someone who "knows anything about cars."
I am so ashamed that I'd commit Hara-Kari if I was into that sort of thing.
Zenmervolt
Elite member
- Oct 22, 2000
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Yes it is useless. Turning rotors reduces mass and therefor reduces heat dissipation. If a rotor needs to be turned, it should be replaced. Turning rotors is a half-assed way of temporarily ignoring the problem while guaranteeing that it will happen again and faster.
And I should point out that turning rotors is _not_ the same as re-surfacing rotors, which is done when pads are replaced to help them bed-in a little better. Turning rotors is done after warpage.
ZV
I guess I'm not understanding the semantics here... What I define as "turning" involves putting the rotor on a lathe and taking off the least amount of metal necessary to get the job done. But then again, "re-surfacing" means the same to me.
You must be talking about using a disc grinder (or drill) to hone a cross-hatch pattern on the rotor. I guess I never really had a term for that, but did it with every brake job... Even with new rotors.
When doing brakes, the rotor never wears perfectly even. Even with normal wear, there are pretty much always grooves and always some semblence of warpage. It is incredibly rare that you could take .001" off of a rotor on a lathe and have the job be done. There are always spots still left unfinished.
Besides, how would you measure warpage to determine if they needed to be turned or not? Mount a dial gauge caliper on the vehicle and actually measure it every time you do a brake job???
I always replace and never turn rotors. As to the OP's question there is a maximum and minimum rotor thickness which varies depending on the caliper. The rotors can be turned until they reach the minimum thickness.
in certain cases, they just replace them instead of turn them. it's cheaper to turn mine, so i've had them turned once, but i have no idea if they are the original rotors or if they were turned before.
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