Rennteam 2.0 - EN - Forum - Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle? - Page1

Feb 12, 2006 12:52:20 AM

SonOfStig: Pilot; Loc: United Kingdom; Posts: 387, Gallery; Registered on: May 28, 2005

Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Commited the cardinal sin of not driving a week or so after rinsing off the underside of the car and my brake discs are now rusty.

I get a fairly innocuous rubbing sound at low speed (up to 70mph or so) but this turns into an alarming vibration at high speed, where I guess I put a lot more force into braking. Anyone had the same problem and / or have any ideas about how to handle without having to buy a new set of rotors?

Thanks!

SoS.

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Feb 12, 2006 12:58:31 AM

uzj100: Co-Pilot; Loc: California, USA; Posts: 169, Gallery; Registered on: Sep 28, 2005; Reply to: SonOfStig

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

You might try driving at slow speeds with the brakes lightly applied to remove the rust. And use a leaf blower or shope vac (switched to blow vs.vacuum) the next time you wash the car to get as much moisture as possible out of the rotors.

I suppose if the rotors are really bad and pitted, you could turn them

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Feb 12, 2006 5:03:06 AM

Silver Bullet: Veteran; Loc: Canada; Posts: 1126, Gallery; Registered on: Nov 24, 2004; Reply to: uzj100

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

If the issue really developed after only a week, you should be fine if you just keep driving the ccar - it'll go away. I think you've got some good advice in the post above.

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Feb 12, 2006 8:46:52 AM

zack: Co-Pilot; Loc: Dubai; Posts: 174, Gallery; Registered on: Oct 20, 2005; Reply to: Silver Bullet

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

I was wondering what that rust colour on the brake was, i thought it was caused by heat........
Got me worried now

my baby is rusting

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Feb 12, 2006 8:56:49 AM

MMD: Rennteam VIP; Loc: usa; Posts: 9652, Gallery; Registered on: Dec 16, 2004; Reply to: zack

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

It is a sin and therefore you must and will suffer.

NEVER allow that to happen again.

Repent and plan your washes to include a strategy of clearing all moisture from calipers and rotors.

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Feb 12, 2006 10:11:27 AM

john999s: Senior; Loc: Hessen, Germany , Germany; Posts: 630, Gallery; Registered on: Sep 10, 2005; Reply to: MMD

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Drive the car after washing it and stand on the brakes a few times to dry/heat them and they look like new and stay that way. Difficult on salty roads I know but the only way to keep them clean. If you park it for a week or 2 without doing it the pads stick to the discs and you have the same problem. Also you can leave it in gear with the handbrake off which also helps avoid pads stuck to discs. If you just dry them with compressed air or blower after a good wash (you need to in the UK weather/salt) they still stick if you park it. I drive my C2S all year round and if you have to park it (I do because I spend time abroad) make sure the brakes are hot and dry when you leave it and you'll get no problems.

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Feb 12, 2006 10:15:23 AM

john999s: Senior; Loc: Hessen, Germany , Germany; Posts: 630, Gallery; Registered on: Sep 10, 2005; Reply to: john999s

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Oh, by the way when I did the same as you, son-of-stig (!), I washed them again, left them for an hour so the rust was even then drove it again quickly, over-using the brakes and they cleaned up OK. Also if you do this remember to wipe the debris from the rims otherwise it eats into the paint on the wheels and you get another problem....

I'm told ceramics solve this last issue though-but expensively!

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Feb 12, 2006 3:29:05 PM

dan996: Expert; Loc: Delray Beach, Florida, , United States; Posts: 1563, Gallery; Registered on: Sep 24, 2003; Reply to: SonOfStig

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Quote:
SonOfStig said:
Commited the cardinal sin of not driving a week or so after rinsing off the underside of the car and my brake discs are now rusty.

I get a fairly innocuous rubbing sound at low speed (up to 70mph or so) but this turns into an alarming vibration at high speed, where I guess I put a lot more force into braking. Anyone had the same problem and / or have any ideas about how to handle without having to buy a new set of rotors?

Thanks!

SoS.

I live in Florida and the brakes rust within minutes after washing a car. Just use soft application of regular brakes and emergency brakes. This usually works.

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Feb 12, 2006 3:52:57 PM

bstew: Expert; Loc: NC, USA; Posts: 1797, Gallery; Registered on: Oct 11, 2005; Reply to: dan996

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Just drive the car. When you apply the brakes it will go away. This happens to mine after washing the car but I never gave it a second thought. After driving the car it is gone.

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Feb 12, 2006 4:04:05 PM

percymon: Senior; Loc: Chester; Posts: 765, Gallery; Registered on: Aug 23, 2005; Reply to: bstew

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

You must do a brake drying run after washing, which pouts all the dirty gunk off the rotors back onto your newly washed alloys

Leave the wet brake discs and that surface rust will pit the discs to the point where they will become a service issue sooner than you might expect, especially the inner face which you cannot see. Its a well known issue in the UK on 986/996s , and Porsche UK will not cover them under warranty.

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Feb 12, 2006 4:19:46 PM

MMD: Rennteam VIP; Loc: usa; Posts: 9652, Gallery; Registered on: Dec 16, 2004; Reply to: percymon

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Problem is (I guess, I'm not really sure if this is true), if left wet and parked for a while, the rust can get a good start between the pads and the rotors then you have a *patch* of serious rust which causes an unevenness on the rotor surface that can accentuate itself as you drive. Rotors have a very small tolerance for run out and you could ruin your rotors by getting a nice big advanced patch of rust on them. Again, I heard this somewhere and I'm not sure if this is true though.

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Feb 12, 2006 4:35:26 PM

john999s: Senior; Loc: Hessen, Germany , Germany; Posts: 630, Gallery; Registered on: Sep 10, 2005; Reply to: MMD

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

You are bang-on MMD. It's a big problem in wet salty UK especially if you leave it parked up for while (say at an airport). If there's any moisture when I leave mine for couple of weeks the pads stick to the disks and you get a patch of corrosion. I leave mine in the garage but if I don't dry the pads/disks 100% they stick. When you try to drive off for the first time it won't move then Bang! off you go! First 50 miles it vibrates on the brakes like a b*std the it cleans up and it's ok. Needless to say I try to dry them properly before I leave it.

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Feb 12, 2006 4:42:34 PM

wtsnet: Rennteam Pro; Loc: Bath, UK; Posts: 2430, Gallery; Registered on: Nov 19, 2004; Reply to: MMD

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

I can sympathise with this. I drive mine pretty much every day, but it's surprising how easy it is to get the discs rusty, or to get pad-prints on the discs. I try to take the car for a quick spin and a few hard stops after washing to get the standing water out of the vents of the rotors. Don't seem to be getting as much crap drip back onto the clean rims as I used to when doing this. I also try to leave the car in gear with the brake off whenever I can to avoid pad-marks. I've had instances when I've perhaps not been as careful where the car has wanted to pull to one side on light braking. After a bit of use, the brakes come back to normal though, so don't panic too much. I used to get some brake squeal on light application a couple of months ago, but that seems to have gone again.

I do find that, sometimes after being parked up (in gear, no brake) for 48 hrs that something seizes up (or perhaps freezes up?). Feels like the pads have stuck to the rotors, but they can't have - it couldn't be wheel bearing seizing could it?

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Feb 12, 2006 5:03:09 PM

fritz: Rennteam VIP; Loc: BaWü , Germany; Posts: 10248, Gallery; Registered on: Jul 23, 2003; Reply to: wtsnet

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Quote:
wtsnet said:
I do find that, sometimes after being parked up (in gear, no brake) for 48 hrs that something seizes up (or perhaps freezes up?). Feels like the pads have stuck to the rotors, but they can't have - it couldn't be wheel bearing seizing could it?

The parking brake does not act on the rotors. The rear axle has two drum brakes incorporated into the hub carriers.

Anyone know if the phenomenon described above is due to rust build-up on the drum brake friction surface, or does rust build up between the pad and rotor, due to the gaps in either / both cases being very small?

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Feb 12, 2006 5:14:14 PM

MMD: Rennteam VIP; Loc: usa; Posts: 9652, Gallery; Registered on: Dec 16, 2004; Reply to: fritz

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Quote:
fritz said:

The parking brake does not act on the rotors. The rear axle has two drum brakes incorporated into the hub carriers.

BTW, if you haven't already, you guys should stop the car now and then by applying the e-brake during break-in to seat (break-in) the brake shoes of the emergency brake. This makes it a better parking brake for hills too.

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Feb 12, 2006 6:39:32 PM

wtsnet: Rennteam Pro; Loc: Bath, UK; Posts: 2430, Gallery; Registered on: Nov 19, 2004; Reply to: MMD

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Quote:
fritz said:
The parking brake does not act on the rotors. The rear axle has two drum brakes incorporated into the hub carriers.

I didn't know that!

Will look out to see if there is a pad print the next time it happens, and make a note of how long the car was standing, and what the overnight temp was. Thanks for the info guys.

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Feb 13, 2006 12:12:37 AM

SonOfStig: Pilot; Loc: United Kingdom; Posts: 387, Gallery; Registered on: May 28, 2005; Reply to: percymon

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Guys, thanks for all your advice (and, yes MMD, I have sinned!). I drove the car in London in the rain quite a lot today and the rust seems to be going away now. I will certainly try to avoid in future, as I don't really want to replace my order for nice new snow tyres for my ski trip to Austria next month with new rotors instead!

I have no hair dryer (or power) in my Garage to dry the wheels after washing so I think I will do this by just driving around for 10 mins or so to heat them up and dry them off that way. My main worry is with the vibration I now get at over 70 mph - was really heavy when I tried yesterday, but I presume that will go away too.

Thanks again - great forum.

SoS.
Atlas Grey 997 C2S
Cocao interior and all the usual gubbins.

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Feb 13, 2006 12:28:30 AM

uzj100: Co-Pilot; Loc: California, USA; Posts: 169, Gallery; Registered on: Sep 28, 2005; Reply to: SonOfStig

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Quote:
SonOfStig said:
I have no hair dryer (or power) in my Garage to dry the wheels after washing

Um, couldn't you run an extension cord from somewhere with power to the garage--or is it too far away from the house or whatever other building is near your garage to be practical?

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Feb 13, 2006 8:50:48 AM

wtsnet: Rennteam Pro; Loc: Bath, UK; Posts: 2430, Gallery; Registered on: Nov 19, 2004; Reply to: SonOfStig

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Quote:
SonOfStig said:My main worry is with the vibration I now get at over 70 mph - was really heavy when I tried yesterday, but I presume that will go away too.

Service manager reckons the discs are hard to warp, so I hope it goes away. I never got that much vibration though... when braking or just driving? Check one of the balance weights hasn't come off?

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Feb 13, 2006 4:37:57 PM

SonOfStig: Pilot; Loc: United Kingdom; Posts: 387, Gallery; Registered on: May 28, 2005; Reply to: wtsnet

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

I only get the vibrations when braking (hard) from high speeds. I suspect it's because the rust was (hopefully was, anyway) half-removed on the rotors and the pads were gripping on the patches of rust left on the discs then sliding on the smooth parts. I can't see why the rotors would warp - I haven't exposed them to sufficient heat/quenching for this to happen.

I accept I drive spiritedly but hopefully not like a complete nutter!

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Feb 14, 2006 6:05:20 PM

Dan L: Expert; Loc: Santa Barbara, CA , United States; Posts: 1957, Gallery; Registered on: Jan 2, 2006; Reply to: SonOfStig

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Never put them away wet! (Or buy the PCCB option and avoid it entirely).

ALL disc brakes in steel do this,--you just have to use them harder to break that mess away.

Dan

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Mar 8, 2006 7:27:45 PM

SonOfStig: Pilot; Loc: United Kingdom; Posts: 387, Gallery; Registered on: May 28, 2005; Reply to: Dan L

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Still have (a bit) of vibration at high speeds - OPC says they want to replace the front disks for Pounds1.1k

- but I'm not spending over 1G on a car which has <5k miles! Is there a chance that braking really hard several times might still be able to sort this out?

SoS.

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Mar 8, 2006 9:43:35 PM

Dan L: Expert; Loc: Santa Barbara, CA , United States; Posts: 1957, Gallery; Registered on: Jan 2, 2006; Reply to: SonOfStig

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Vibration at high speeds is something I have experienced in abused cars,--where the rotors were warped. If you have been the sole driver and have been careful I'm with you,--what's wrong with the car? They should SHOW you on the rotors what is causing the vibration.

Of course, this could also be caused by your tires being out of spin-balance. Do you think you might have flung a weight off one of the front wheels? Of course, we're assuming that you're experiencing this on a vareity of roads.

dan

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Mar 9, 2006 10:58:14 AM

SonOfStig: Pilot; Loc: United Kingdom; Posts: 387, Gallery; Registered on: May 28, 2005; Reply to: Dan L

Re: Rusty brake rotors? How best to handle?

Hi Dan, only get this when braking at high speeds. A juddering sound along with a feeling that the front right is snatching a bit. I think the situation is that there are still patches of rust which the pads are gripping a lot on, then they hit a smooth patch, and so on. I guess I might need to go down to the OPC to have a look for myself...

How do rotors get warped, by the way? I don't think I have abused my car...

SoS.

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