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Warped rotors - who's experienced this?


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Hmmm... I finally give in and buy an EJ (two of them actually) and find that they have problems the EA's didn't :rolleyes:

 

The right front rotor of the legacy has a pretty bad warp to it -- due, I think, to a misadjusted hill holder overheating that wheel before I bought it. But I did overheat the rotor on my old '82 wagon once to the point where it was glowing medium orange :eek: -- misadjusted hill holder again... and it didn't warp the rotor there....

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I think that the main issue is either with the thickness of the hub , or the material composition that they are made from. It seems like they are very susceptible to temperature. Having the mating surfaces of the hub and the rotor clean of all contaminants is very important also. It has always seemed to me that the hubs are not properly designed to handle the heat that is generated by a little more aggressive driving style. We always found that the cars that had a pad life of 20 to 25 thousand miles had more pulsation occur quicker than the cars that would get 40 to 50 thousand on a set of pads. Which makes me think that the hubs are adequate for light to moderate driving styles and not for anything remotely spirited. Wheel bearings can be negatively affected by any type of harmonic vibration which is normally caused by an out of balance condition. In an imperfect world ( which we live in ) even wheel and tire combos that are balanced almost always will show some amount of runout. While balancing is designed to even this out you still have eneven rolling surfaces that change significantly with centrifical force and varying temperatures. Having had several experiences of working with the actual Japaneese engineers on other issues over the years, I had several occasions to ride with them during rode tests. It was interesting that the way that they drove was like the proverbial little old lady. Very cautious, very slow to roll up on stops . It scared the hell out of them to ride with myself or other guys in stop and go city traffic, or on open country roads. Although this was years ago, at that time they had a completely different idea of how the products that they designed are used in other markets outside of their own. The Rally car program of the early nineties seemed to bring changes to many parts of the cars in overall reliability. Subarus have historically had issues that are prevalent in a particular series of cars that exist without correction until the next series is introduced. Brakes and wheel bearing are a problem in the first generation Legacy's, that although not corrected are less prevelent in later cars. As I outlind in the previous post, the on car brake lathe did yeild the best results as far as reduced pulsation complaints from customers. Sadly I have never seen an ultimate solution for this problem with the available parts that we have. I am currently planning my next Autocross / rallycross / open track car, that will be a first generation Legacy. Brakes are one of the issues that will have to be addressed and I am looking into alternative components/ systems to use. It will be interesting to see what can be had and what the results will be.

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Hmmm... I finally give in and buy an EJ (two of them actually) and find that they have problems the EA's didn't :rolleyes:

they're still great vehicles. stuff that is more problematic on EJ's than EA's: rotors, struts, wheel bearings, warped rotors, O2 sensors, EJ25 headgaskets and torque bind. Still lots to gain though too, just have to get to know those quirks (just like EA stuff!) They're bigger, safer, and more powerful vehicles too, so while we're used to EA stuff you can't expect upsizing without more strain on components.
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We've had similar problems, the wifes 02 OB has been a pain in the rump roast. Replaced twice, turned twice, no help. As you said, worst is leaving interstate at speed. Recently turned 'em with new pads, still vibrated so I checked run out. Two thou. on one side, nearly four on the other,( all my manuals show .004 max.) Rust and dust on mating surfeces didn't look bad, but I broke out coarse 2" pad on an air angle grinder and polished 'em up. It took the run out down to nearly zero, and the wife says there's no pulsation. We'll see how long it lasts. Thank for all the imput guys, Steve.

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calipers dragging can and will cause warped rotors. I've seen many warped rotors on EJ series cars.. And I've seen just as many on EA series cars. I drive mine for about 4 years (ignoring the slight wobble back and forth during braking) and then I end up changing them. But I buy the cheapest rotors napa has and I use the cheapest pads.

 

Driving style is another major contributing factor to rotors warping. I drive VERY aggressively so I tend to use my breaks and engine braking more than most people do. Not to mention people who drive somewhere with long downhills seem to warp rotors more commonly.

 

I refuse to have rotors turned. The ones for my car cost 21 bucks and having them turned is 35 bucks.. you do the math, but I think its cheaper to replace than repair :banana:

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To answer your question about the issue with the Jeep rotors, it had nothing to do with the de-icing substances. Rather, it was the composition of the rotors themselves. This is why I suggested that it conceivably could be a part issue. Remember, we are dealing with foreign made parts using foreign made steel. There have been a LOT of automotive issues with foreign steel over the years.

 

While I usually agree with replacement rather than returning more often than not, where are you going to have rotors turned that cost you $35, unless you are paying them to take them off of the car also. The shops around here charge much less if the rotors are off of the car.

 

Has anyone used aftermarket drilled/slotted rotors on their Soob? I have them on my F-150 and used them on the Jeep and really liked them. They do what they are intended to do as to brake fade. I had an issue with it involving the Jeep and I trailer a 24' camper with the truck and braking is better there also.

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To answer your question about the issue with the Jeep rotors, it had nothing to do with the de-icing substances. Rather, it was the composition of the rotors themselves. This is why I suggested that it conceivably could be a part issue. Remember, we are dealing with foreign made parts using foreign made steel. There have been a LOT of automotive issues with foreign steel over the years.

 

Interesting that this would have affected a "US" product because of foreign made steel but not a foreign made product :rolleyes:. Probably an accident or a fluke of some kind. These things happen. At least they made it right for you.

 

While I usually agree with replacement rather than returning more often than not, where are you going to have rotors turned that cost you $35, unless you are paying them to take them off of the car also. The shops around here charge much less if the rotors are off of the car.

 

One also has to consider the convience factor - it's somewhat inconvient to take the rotors off and then to a shop to have them turned - even the shop I go to which has about a 15 minute turn-around on most days.... I can buy the new rotors at the same place I buy the pads (a different place does my machine work), and have the job done without any real downtime for the car. The cost difference is pretty negligable when you consider the extra gas and time for the machine and downtime of the car. I pay $31 for my rotors (I don't buy the cheapest around - I get them from a parts place I trust), and machining them off the car is probably comparable - maybe a bit less.

 

Has anyone used aftermarket drilled/slotted rotors on their Soob? I have them on my F-150 and used them on the Jeep and really liked them. They do what they are intended to do as to brake fade. I had an issue with it involving the Jeep and I trailer a 24' camper with the truck and braking is better there also.

 

I have on my Turbo, but not on the N/A's I was discussing in this thread. My '91 turbo has similar brakes to the late 90's LGT's, etc. They work excelent for that car.

 

GD

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Has anyone used aftermarket drilled/slotted rotors on their Soob? I have them on my F-150 and used them on the Jeep and really liked them. They do what they are intended to do as to brake fade. I had an issue with it involving the Jeep and I trailer a 24' camper with the truck and braking is better there also.

Plenty of people use them on Imprezas. But just like plain rotors, many factors can contribute to warping. From driving style, to maintenance habits, to metal quality.

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I read you, GD. They were foreign made, period.

 

Tax man, just having drilled/slotted rotors does not mean no more warpage, for sure. I've noticed the ones on my truck are starting to show signs of that because of the hard braking trailering (even with trailer brakes, it is still hard on the tow vehicle). Those are EBC which is supposed to be a very good brand.

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