Went to put some new pads on up front and my rotors have alot of hairline cracks on them. I was going to leave for a trip on friday and tow my travel trailer, but I'm thinking I should replace these asap. How dangerous are these will a rotor actually crack in half or anything like that?
heat cracked rotors
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Well I don't have a full answer, but I had a neighbor who had a rear rotor on his suv break in half at about 40mph. It caused his whole rear end to lock up immediately and his truck came to a screeching halt in the middle of the road. Fortunately, he wasn't going any faster and was able to control the truck until it came to a stop. If he had been on the highway it could have been much worse.
Unfortunately, I don't know what condition his rotor was in before it broke. I just know that they can break and it sure could be scary. If I had cracks in my rotors I'd probably replace them ASAP, unless someone else here convinces me otherwise.
Incidentally, I did just replace my rotors. $54 bucks each from Autozone, plus $8 for two grease seals and $40 for pads.
Unfortunately, I don't know what condition his rotor was in before it broke. I just know that they can break and it sure could be scary. If I had cracks in my rotors I'd probably replace them ASAP, unless someone else here convinces me otherwise.
Incidentally, I did just replace my rotors. $54 bucks each from Autozone, plus $8 for two grease seals and $40 for pads.
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Most times ignorance is blis. If you can't get it done before your trip, run it.
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Once mine began to show hairline cracks, I kept a close eye on them for 10k + miles. When one hairline opened up into a definite crack, I replaced that rotor.
Also, I have to say I changed my braking style after the first heat stress discovery & I'm sure that made them last longer.
Lastly, there has been some threads here about the differences in quality between rotor manufacturers. You get what you pay for in this case.
I've yet to hear from anyone running them but there was a shop in Ca. that was drilling & slotting new OEM sets for a good price. If I find the link, I'll pass it on. He had them on Ebay for a while.
Also, I have to say I changed my braking style after the first heat stress discovery & I'm sure that made them last longer.
Lastly, there has been some threads here about the differences in quality between rotor manufacturers. You get what you pay for in this case.
I've yet to hear from anyone running them but there was a shop in Ca. that was drilling & slotting new OEM sets for a good price. If I find the link, I'll pass it on. He had them on Ebay for a while.
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2,038 Posts
I don't really know any specifics on light truck disc rotors but if they are not really "cracks" but instead "heat checks" then I would not worry too much. Heat checks are small cracks that only involve the surface and in big truck drums they are allowed to be up to 2" long though in a light truck rotor I would probably limit them to say 3/4" or less. Any full thickness crack, or crack that wraps around the outside edge, puts it completely out of service immediately.
Birken
Birken
I had the same issue a while back (last year). The cracks may have been there for a while, you just can't tell. I'd get them fixed to remove the possibility of problems on your trip.. I ended up going with some vented and drilled rotors from NAPA, and they've worked great.
D
D
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212 Posts
My brakeman said that he wouldn't turn them because of the cracks, but he put new pads on them and told me to replace the rotors next time, he also said that our rear pads were to hard and to put softer ones on, so that the rear brakes would do a little more of the work in order to keep the front brakes cooler.
Hans.
Hans.
My front ones have actual crack in the disks. They have been this way for a while with no adverse affects to braking. I should replace them, but just have not gotten around to it. The crack is threw one side of the disk, but is completely flush when I run my finger over it, so the pads do not bind on it at all. No binding or pull when braking either. This is not a heat checking type thing, but a crack from center of disk to edge. I understand this is not at all uncommon. My thinking is that many folks never even check thier brakes until they sqeal or chirp. If these cracks are fairly common, and lots of folk do not inspect the disks often, we would be hearing about a lot of people having accidents or hard pulling to the side when braking. Since this is not the case, it probably is not a very real safety issue. There is no doubt it should be replaced, but it is not like you will go careening off the road due to it - now if the whole thickness of the disk would split in half, then it would be a big problem, but these disk are made with an inside and an outside friction surface with intermmittant air spaces, so the possibility of a full thickness crack ( one that actually splits the whole disk) is low. If you are worried about heat checking, then just go ahead and drive on- you will not be at any safety risk. As long as no grooving due to wear, why bother turning them? Of course the shop will advise replacement, but we don't have a money tree in our back yards.
Yeah the cracks I have are real tiny and I don't know if I would have noticed them if I didn't have a shop lite right on them. The rotors didn't have any grooves either so I will just run them for a while longer. When I get back I have a bunch of other projects I want to do on the truck and I will just replace them then. Anyways thanks for the input I appreciate it.
all the hubs lockout parts & wheel bearing retainer nut(s) need to come out to get the hub & rotor off.
if you get only rotors, then all the wheel studs need to come out to remove the rotor from the hub assembly.
theres plenty of pics & instruction scans in my sig of manual & auto hubbed axles that may be helpful.
Cheers
if you get only rotors, then all the wheel studs need to come out to remove the rotor from the hub assembly.
theres plenty of pics & instruction scans in my sig of manual & auto hubbed axles that may be helpful.
Cheers
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402 Posts
You have to ask, how much is your life worth? What if your brakes fail, and you hurt someone else? I just dealt with a FORD truck that had complete brake failure from broken rotors, guy hit 2 other cars and seriously screwed up a young guys back. All to save a couple hundred bucks on brakes. Just replaced mine with the drilled slotted from Napa. I haul grandkids around, so I have to error on the safety side. In the big picture, I'd rather be safe than sorry. Figure it will cost you about .04 a day if you live another 20 years.
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