Brakes Replacement Questions

fronts - do i want to mess with resurfacing rotor or simply have them replaced?

rears - drums should be resurfaced?

dealer will be doing this; truck has 32k

2019 tacoma

 

People will debate back and forth if you should just turn the rotors or upgrade to something else. The bigger issue I'm wondering is why do you need brakes at 32k miles? You may have bigger issues. Fronts should last well over twice that. Rear drums even longer. Fronts will always wear out before the rears.

 

Rotors should last a few brake pad changes. You can check the minimal thickness yourself, it will be stamped into the rotor in millimeters. You’ll need some calipers.

The issue is usually if the rotors are within spec for lateral run out. You’ll need a mic for that, to do it correctly. I would ask the dealership about these things first, unless you hate money.

The drums will need to be checked for round….like in 50 years. If all your brakes are warped, then yeah, you’ll be paying a decent bill to replace all that.

 

it was all a PM on my part. i became concerned when the last inspection indicated the rears were "more than 4 mm" but no indication of how much more.

i thought factory new was 12 mm.

 

32,000 and you are considering brakes already? Are you left footing them? I have 80,000kms and they are maybe at 50%!

The front pads are ceramic, so when it is time to replace, do the rotor as well. Ceramic pads really burn up the rotors. Disc pad minimum is 3.2mm.

Rear drum shoes start out much thinner than front pads. They might be 10mm to start...if you are seeing more than that on your inspection report, the dealer is not removing the wheels and putting down a disc brake measurement. Remove them yourself and inspect. As for more than 4, means more than 4 but not 5. Drum shoe lining minimum is 1.6mm.

I would need to look in the manual for rotor and drum limit measurements.

 

Replace rotors when doing pads. Don't turn them, you reduce heat dissipating material and they will warp faster. Just my advise we learned in automotive classes.

New shoes are 5mm from the factory. I will bet my annual salary the dealer did not check the thickness on the shoes with 32k on the truck...and for good reason. Front pads from factory are 10mm thick.

After 25,000 miles on my truck, my fronts are still at 8mm and I have slotted and drilled rotors which eat pads faster than smooth and my rears are just under 5mm. I would leave it alone if it was me.

 

If you do in fact need front brakes, go on tire rack , and you will find plenty of options. 32,000 is kind of early for front pads. On my vehicles every 2 years I break down the fronts to just the caliper components. I wire brush and clean all pieces with brake cleaner. This includes the slide pins. Then I relate lube the pins and other parts and slap it all together. Sometimes the slide pins freeze up in their bore and you only get one side of the pad doing the work.

 

@ 32K, you should not need pads unless something unusual is going on. If the dealer is giving you questionable info, get another opinion. I agree with others though, replace rotors when doing a brake job. Also, I think OE brakes are the best out there.

 

thanks all for the affirmations. i've cancelled my service appointment for next week.

appreciate the tech savvy responses since my wrench time in life has been sparse and limited to minor stuff.

 

You can easily take the front wheel off and give it a quick clean and lube. Check you tube videos, easily in your wheelhouse.

 

never resurface the rotor. if it's that warped just replace it. turning it reduces the amount of material and it will warp even faster at lower temps. when I was in school we were taught too but usually just putting new pads on takes away wobble...but turning always makes them warp SUPER fast under less severe braking so if they're that bad, really just replace the rotor...but try just pads first.

rears...again, don't resurface.

32k? I have 125k and original pads front and back and she'll lock 'em up if I hit them with even medium pressure...you ride the brakes or something?


*edit...sorry I never read replies when I first post...I see you decided not to do this yet

 

I did brakes on my 2016 a few months ago. 80k miles and I likely could have gone to 100k on the fronts. I was in there and had the parts so did new rotors and pads on the front. Took the drums off and the shoes still had plenty of life left. Sprayed the drums with flat black high heat paint to make them look new and put it all back together. I’ll check the rears at 120-130k.

the one thing you should do if not recently is flush the brake fluid to ensure you have fresh fluid in the system.