Someone said that it is recommended to use the emergency brake once in a while to prolong the life of stock rotors. The way I look at it, is that your rear brakes will wear more, thus relieving the front ones.

My stepbro said that it is written in his '01 BMW 325i manual that it is recommended to use hand braking once every two weeks to "adjust all brakes".

If the brake system is hydralic, but emergency brakes are not...now how in the hell do you self-clean and adjust the brakes on all 4 wheels by using the emergency brake for stopping once in a while?

 

the hand brake still uses the pads and rotors to stop so this won't help. using the e brake once in a while will help the line from sticking due to rust or dirt.

To prevent warping, follow these tips:
-don't drive in puddles, espically after braking
-don't wet the rotors when washing your car, especially after braking
-Don't ride the brakes and cause them to heat up
-make sure your fluid is good/filled
-if they are warped, get them milled or replace

warping is caused by rapid heating then cooling or excessive heat..

 

The emergency brake adjusts the rear brakes keeping them from getting too loose and giving a low pedal. Therefore, using the handbrake "adjusts all brakes" (keeps the pedal high). It doesn't do anything for front rotor warpage.

 

Performance Friction pads run much cooler- pad compound I guess.I love the bite on em too. Get em at AutoZone $32

 

Im gonna put my Performance friction pads in tonight. Also got them for 32 bucks fro autozone. I really dont care if they dust more. Cant be more than a german car. The stock 17s are so easy to clean.

 

I would add this to the list... torque lugs nuts to correct value, in a crossing pattern, in steps. Don't trust shops to do it correct; unless you watch them do it, loosen and torque yourself within a day of getting work done.

BuddyWh

 

I have NEVER been to a shop that torqued my wheels correctly. Even when I asked them to hand torque them AND I watched them. In fact, the last time, the guy pushed on the torque wrench and when it clicked at the dialed in 87ft-lbs, he just kept going. A good 3 inches more on a very long handle. He was easily over 100-105. I had to undo them all and retorque them. Its a pain and 85-90 ft lbs is not very tight, but I have one of the oldest 2ks here and no warpage yet. I'm also almost through my pads, so I've been using the brakes pretty hard (@30K). I have even hit some deep water with hot disks, and no warpage. I think the key is really watching your lugs.

Now, I think you could still warp the 2k rotors even with proper torque, but even the Nissan dealer has over torqued them every time I rotated there. I just do it myself now. $15 pnuematic floor jack at Harbor Freight, $10 jack stands and I get it done faster, no scratches on my rims, and I know my lugs will be torqued properly. And I save money..

I was helping Maximus1000 get his (my) rims off, they loosened like butter. Finally the factory is also torqing wheels properly. Mine came from the factory so tight I had to stand on a breaker bar.

 

One more... Brake way in advance, not waiting to the last minute and do it applying gradual controlled pressure on the pedal, not just hammering it down.

 

Just a thought...F-Body's have the same problem with brake warping. Years ago a guy over at LS1.com suggested not holding your foot on the brake while at a stop. It make sense too, figure you just used the pads to bring the car down to a stop. That generates a lot of heat. By holding your foot on the brake you don't allow them to breath and cool. Keeping a hot pad clamped on the rotor is what causes the warp.

So give it a try...

 

you know, I've never really thought about it, but if I come to a stop after hard braking, like down a large hill to a stop sign, I always let off alittle and let the car inch up a few times while I wait.

I did this because up in NorCal, I could get the brakes to smoke or glow pretty easily in those hills So when I did get stopped, I would try to not let the pads sit in one place on those hot disks. Just inch up alittle a few times until I could get moving again.

I guess that has helped alittle too..

 

good idea, also don't set the e-brake after hard braking.

-steve

 

To prolong the life of your brakes, don't stop at the last second, make sure the wheels are torqued on right in the proper star method, and if you are braking hard and hard, give your brakes time to cool. For example, at the track your going 90+ mph at the line, you have to slow down by the turn, you hit the brakes, well hit them hard to slow you down from 95 down to 70, let off for 1-2 sec and hit them hard again, slow down more and let off again. Also to help, I never hold the brakes after hard braking if I am stopped let off the pedal, and use the parking brake if needed to hold yourself still. The backs are not near the temperature as the fronts and won't warp. When your at the track just put the car in gear and leave all the brakes off to help it also. I did this in my 2000 and 2001 Maximas, and never had a problem with warped rotors.

 

The reason for this is thickness variation. You can also create high spots if the car is left unmoved for extended periods of time. After autocross / roadrace runs, racers will park the car and not use the parking brake.

 

Thanks for all your responses. Russ, I do not run my car on the track. And I never brake hard, and at the last second.

As far as letting the pedal go after stopping, now think of this: If your street light is on top of the hill and you can't roll back or you'll hit cars in the back? This is especially true with automatics, some autos move forward when in the gear.

The manual did not specify what is a proper method of braking, what we are just trying to find our way around (to save Nissan the $$ )

 

also the weight of ur car will warp the rotor...if ur car is way to heavy and u hard brake it, it will shorten the life of ur rotor. and overtighten the wheel will warp the rotor faster too.

I was thinking about to pump only 10 gallon of gas each time instead of full tank

 

Didn't I say use emergency brake? I believe I did. Use that to hold yourself if you can't. Auto, put it in N and use the parking brake to hold yourself stopped.

I never said you ran your card hard either. I was giving advice on what to do to prevent brake issues.

 

The main purpose for using the parking brake (it is not a emergengy brake) is to ensure that (on most vehicles) the rear caliper slides and parking brake cables do not rust/sieze which can cause the frt brakes to do all the work thus increasing heat and the possiblity of rotor warpage. Please also note that warpage can occur from over-torquing of the lug nuts on a wheel which will cause the center hub plates to deflect causing warpage. Many manufactures have released bulletins regarding these issues.
Hope this helps.
l8tr -- SS

 

It may be an "old wives' tale" but I always make sure that the car has rested at least 20 minutes before washing the car because when you wash your wheels, the cold water from the hose will easily hit the rotors, which are hot, and that this may cause some warping. It really shouldn't make any difference...but I have done this for years on my other sportscars where you can easily see the rotors through the wheel. And knock on wood, no warped rotors!

 

I want brakes, check your mail.

 

I just changed my rotors to slotted/cross-drilled. I also took advice on the lug-nut torqueing. I'll keep a close eye on the rotors to check for cracks and warpage. And that is no "old wive's tale," one of the causes of warping is extreme heat changes. Thus cold water on a hot rotor can lead to warping, not always, but CAN. So best thing to do is eliminate the possibile causes of warping.