Brakes At 38k?

[gxed]

So my GX has started to 'bite' and release at low speeds when under light braking. I took it to the Cerritos Lexus and they found nothing. So 3,000m later its still doing it and has become quite annoying. I take it back w/ same complaint. Now they want to replace all pads and resurface rotors all around even though the pads last time showed 60% life left in them. But the service advisor throws out it could be air in the lines.

thoughts? I have no problem replacing the brakes but now im forced to question the dealership. Did they drop the ball first time around or is it indeed air in the lines and the brake job is just gravy for the dealer? Definately an unfortunate experience with these guys so far.

[steviej]

If they are covering all of it under warranty, let them swap it all our and recut what they want.

Maybe the first tech that looked wasn't as thorough as the second tech or maybe they couldn't duplicate the problem on the first evaluation. Did you ride along on either?

steviej

[lexuus]

if theyre not covering it under warranty try another dealer and see what they suggest.

[gxed]

Well I had them do the work and the problem is of course fixed. No warranty Im afraid. I understand that because its a wear item, my only issue is did I really need the entire brake job or was it simply air in the lines? I asked when I picked the car up yesterday and got the run around as the tech was gone for the day.

I should have hit up another dealer but time constraints and the safety concern I had (my 14 month old gets carted around in the GX) were the problems at hand.

At any rate I learned a lot about Lexus service at Cerritos and Im not fired up about the way they kept me in the dark and or mis diagnosed the problem to begin with. There was simply no way anyone with a drivers license could not feel the grabby brakes.

[The G Man]

If the brakes feel like they are biting and releasing, then its a warp rotor. Warp rotors are a common problem for the GX, it is a tough call, some dealer will replace it under warrenty and some would not. A lot has to do with how demanding you are.

The problem with re-surfacing warp rotor is that the rotor is now even thinner, therefore easier to warp again. I usually just change the rotors out, since it is not that much more expensive.

[BobsGX470]

If the brakes feel like they are biting and releasing, then its a warp rotor. Warp rotors are a common problem for the GX, it is a tough call, some dealer will replace it under warrenty and some would not

Warped rotors are a problem on every vehicle made, not just the GX. Thats what happens when they use cheap iron from China.

[denslexusgx470]

I had the same problem, but they fixed it up after i had my pads replaced. They SHOULD replace it under warranty. ;)

http://us.lexusownersclub.com/forums/index...0&hl=rotors

[anthonyiez]

If the brakes feel like they are biting and releasing, then its a warp rotor. Warp rotors are a common problem for the GX, it is a tough call, some dealer will replace it under warrenty and some would not

Warped rotors are a problem on every vehicle made, not just the GX. Thats what happens when they use cheap iron from China.

yes easily warped rotors are a problem on all cars, but i have to disagree with the china part.

1st...all manufactures are under pressure to increase the CAFE numbers. one of the easiest ways to do this is to cut weight. one the 1st places they always go to, is that heavy piece of iron called a rotor. the rotors are thinner to begin with.

2nd...cars these days are more powerful than before and people tend to use that power then they have to nail the brakes more often.

3rd...cars are made with sealed wheel bearings. these bearing do not absorb any rotor run out variation and transmit it right up to the driver.

4th...the average person has no idea that the wheels need to be torqued on to a certain spec. you have no idea how many vehicles i get in with lug nuts so damn tight its hard to believe. usually these cars have nice new fresh tires from sears, sams, walmart or costco on them. people love to go to these places to buy tires then can't figure out why they now need brake rotors. when they get warped this way, cutting them is impossible, because its the mounting surface that is warped.

oh and i agree, cutting rotors is a complete waste of time.

[Jim_Chow]

Warped rotors can also be caused by improper torquing of the lug nuts. Make sure they use a torque wrench and hand torque them to spec. Impact wrenches should only be used to loosen the lug nuts. High quality rotors will tend to warp less than cheaper rotors...metallurgy is better, heats dissipates much better (the bottom line). When they thin to a certain point, they aren't able to dissipate the heat and will warp. Also, as previously mentioned, don't bother turning the rotors. They just get thinner and warp faster. You're just wasting money & time. I had a toyota dealer replace the front rotors on an old 4runner; they used cheap (non-OEM) rotors. They warped in less than a year (< 20K mi), and I barely use the brakes (manual transmission), so it wasn't a rotor is getting thin issue. I replaced them myself w/ slotted brembo's and they've been perfect in the 5 yrs and 70K miles I've been driving on them. Toyota OEM rotors should be good quality, but you can do better for the same price or slightly more.

[koonta]

If the brakes feel like they are biting and releasing, then its a warp rotor. Warp rotors are a common problem for the GX, it is a tough call, some dealer will replace it under warrenty and some would not. A lot has to do with how demanding you are.

The problem with re-surfacing warp rotor is that the rotor is now even thinner, therefore easier to warp again. I usually just change the rotors out, since it is not that much more expensive.

how much do new brakes costs on the 2004 lexus gx470

[denslexusgx470]

I don't quite remember, but i think they're gonna run you about $300 a pair. I remember before my warranty was up, i had my warped rotors checked, and they charged me $300 for the rear (geez, it ate up the rear that fast, within 50k miles) but replaced my front pads, and resurfaced all rotors for the price of the $300. They replaced the front ones free because i only had those replaced like 10k miles before (at about 40k miles) so they think it might be their problem.