2001 Accord Coupe Rear Rotor Replacement

Hi all,

I just took my 2001 Accord Coupe EX-V6 in for rear brake pad
replacement. The dealer told me that my rear rotors need to be replaced
as well - I only have ~58,000KM (or about 35K miles). I find it a bit
surprising that I need ot replace my rotors so quickly.

The car is driven every other day, and most of the time it sits in my
garage. I live in Toronto Canada so maybe that'll give you an idea how
the weather is like (Hot in the summer, cool in the fall, cold in the
winters).

On average I get about 250KM a week. Could leaving the car in the garage
so much cause the rotors to wear out prematurely? The service technican
coulnd't come up with a concrete reason as to why they would wear out so
early besides:

-Driving Habits
-Leaving the car outside/inside for extended periods of time (rust/dew
build up?)
-Inconsistent service (Not the case... i take my car in at the
recommended periods regularly)

I had always thought rotors would last 80,000KM to 120,000KM before they
need to be replaced.

Anyhow, I'm just wondering if 58,000KM is a bit early for a rear rotor
replacement and if other 2001 Accord owners have had their rotors
replaced so early(?) as well.

Thanks.

 

My '94 Civic with 168 000 km on it still has the original rotors front
and back. Having the rotors worn out at 58 000 km seems strange. Doing a
brake job is easy money for the shop, and it is hard for most customers
to say that they don't want it done if the shop wants to do it.

In my limited experience, cars with automatic transmissions wear out
brakes more quickly than stickshifts do. I am guessing you have an
automatic.

How many times have you replaced the rear brake pads? Any chance that
they were worn out and that the backer was scraping against the rotor?

Did the shop say why they were replacing the rotors? Were they warped
or were they just worn too thin for continued service?

 

It's rust.

Lack of driving is what does it. Very common, especially in Northern US
states and southern Canada. The absolute worst is when you drive the car in
the snow or rain, then park it in a garage. That salt-laden moisture then
takes a long time to evaporate and munches away at metal like crazy.

Sorry, but what you're experiencing is normal for your climate and driving
habits.

If you drive a lot or live in a warm climate, yes they will.

 

Strange only if you've never seen the horrors of rust.
Take a look at these 4-year old rotors:
http://www.tegger.com/hondafaq/rustybrakes/brakes1.html

Do yours look like that?

 

Nope. I left snow and road salt nearly 20 years ago. I am not going
back!

 

First time replacing my brake pads - I had the whole set replaced (front
and back). Two shops told me my brake pads were low - about 5 - 10% of life
left in them.

The shop told me my rear rotors were thin and could not be machined.
However, the front rotors still had enough material to machine.

The service tech was a bit surprised himself I needed to replacement them.
He said that rotors last between 60,000KM - 120,000KM and I caught the low
end. He also said because I leave the car in the garage for a couple days
at a time, rust may have built up and caused premature wear. In anycase, he
didn't have an idea why they would wear out so quickly... just bad luck he
said?

Any other ideas?

 

I did notice the rust build ups... I used to go away to school during the
week and I would leave my car at home. On the weekends I would notice a
thin layer of rust - and after driving the rust would be gone. I didn't
think much of it at the time, but I did wonder how much material was being
stripped away and the effects on the car... I guess I now know.

Thanks for the info.

 

Rust doesn't happen when its cold. All chemical action slows down at
low temperatures. The rusting occurs as temperatures rise above
freezing. Heated garages are murder on cars that have to drive on
salt-laden roads. Leave it outside if you can.

 

I think the rust explanation seems plausible. I am just particularly
paranoid about dealerships and brake jobs. At service, my local dealer
told me that the front pads were down to 2 mm and had to be replaced. I
told them no, thinking I'd do the job myself for less. After taking out
the old pads, I was not able to measure less than 7 mm anywhere. And
yes, I know to measure only the lining, not the whole pad.

 

hideous. that thing needs to be hosed off every time it comes home from
the salt. i used to do that with my old rust buckets when i lived in
that kind of climate - always proplnged their lives significantly.

 

i noticed a lot of use of emory cloth... why not use a fine bristled
wire brush in a drill? i figure as long as the bristles are fine, it
shouldnt do any harm to all that cast iron and steel. dont wanna use it
around the rubber seals, however

 

50-grit emery cloth is more aggressive than a wire brush, and as you imply,
you get better control around the rubber components. The areas you need to
sand are small and are difficult to get at completely with a wire brush.
Also a wire brush has a tendency to polish the rust instead of actually
removing it, so I prefer emery cloth.

If I have the rotor off, then I do the mount bracket with a file.