How often do you need to get your roters changed on a four year old car?

Question

I live in Los Angeles and only have 37,000 miles on my car (Saab 9-3). Everytime I come in to get my break pads changed, they tell me I need new roters.
I've already changed them once.
Is it possible they're lying about having to change them again?
This seems a bit excessive to me.

Answer 1

They are definitely lying to you. Your rotors wear out just like your brake pads but at a much slower rate. Usually they just have to be turned, which means they have to file them down so they are even all around because braking creates uneven wear on them. Depending on the type of brake pads (metallic or organic) your frequency of braking and pressure used (if you have ABS your golden) your rotors should last an average of 30 to 40 thousand miles.

Answer 2

I assume you mean "rotors".
They wear out from braking, with disc brakes..

The answer depends on how often you use your brakes,
and how you use them If you are too hard on the brakes,
or do a lot of stop-and-go driving, they will wear out faster.

If you think they are wearing out too fast,
ask the mechanic if there is something else wrong.
(Maybe the calipers are misaligned. Maybe there is excessive dirt or debris, etc.)
Or maybe you're too hard on your brakes.

Spread out your stopping process over a longer distance, whenever possible. (If there's a red light, don't go all the way up to the car ahead before jamming on your brakes. Instead, gently apply them over a longer distance; apply a little braking from far away, then let up and coast a bit, then another small dose, etc.)

Try using more engine-braking -- i.e. take your foot off the gas well before a red light, and let the engine slow the car down a bit, before you do most of your braking.
(This is especially effective with a stick shift, but it also helps a bit with an automatic.)

Also, try having your brakes checked more often.
If you wait until the pads are gone, then the rotors will get scratched. You might avoid that by not waiting so long, and changing the pads as soon as they are nearly gone!

Of course, if you have drum brakes,
then you won't ever need any new rotors!
(Just new drums, if you keep abusing your brakes. :^>

Answer 3

Stop and go driving in busy cities will wear your pads and rotors out faster than just simple highway cruising. You can always take your Saab to a brake shop and ask them to "mic" your rotors for you. Mic = micrometer - taking the measurement of the rotors and comparing to a listing of minimum rotor requirements. Sadly it does not take a lot of visible wear to make some rotors unsafe- ie down to the minimum thickness set by SAE and other organizations. Also, if you went with a ceramic performance pad, instead of OE organic/semi metallic, those will make your rotors wear out faster as well. Good luck.

Answer 4

you must be hard on brakes if you already had the brakes replaced 2 times in 37,000 miles, you need to lighten your foot up, but anyway, the rotors should have been turned the first time and not replaced as they are usually good for at least 2 brake changes, I would take the car someplace else as they are trying to rip you off.

Answer 5

they are jerking you around. the rotors could last an incredibly long time, like 10 years as long as your changing the brakes. see, when the brakes dont get changed, they wear away to little stumps that dig into the rotor and cause grooves to form. if youre replacing the brakes when they tell you to, you probably wont need rotors for a very long time.

even if they have grooves in them its not the end of the world, it just makes grooves in the new brake pads and they dont last as long. anyways, if you want to have a look for yourself, just look through the holes in the rim and you can see the rotor surface in there. if its smooth then they are fine. chances are they are fine anyways. i prolly wouldnt even change them at all. even if they broke it wouldnt only cost you a new set of brake pads on top of the rotors, so you could drive for 10 years and not ever have to change them.

Answer 6

I am curious when you say "every time I come in to get my brake pads changed", how many times are we talking here? If you have changed your brake pads multiple times in 37,000 miles you must be really hard on your brakes and it could be possible that your rotors are taking beating as well.

Answer 7

Yes, its possible Tell them to measure the rotors and tell you what the specs and measurements are. Also tell them you want your old parts back and take them to an independent shop to have them checked.
However I am curious why you need brakes so often. If your hard on your brakes the rotors can get warped and cause a pulsation. If that's the case it may be difficult to machine your rotors out flat.

Answer 8

They are just trying to get $$ from you!!! Unless you are wearing your brake pads down to bare metal, there should not be anything wrong with them!! If they tell you to replace them again..... tell them to show you why! The more you learn and know about your vehicle the less you will be taken advantage of!! Go get a chilton or hayes manual on your car and read it! They have them at any auto store or you can check them out from a library!!!

Answer 9

That is excessive. If you change your brake pads before they wear down to far - in theory you wouldn't have to change the rotors.

I changed the rotors on my Maxima for the first time last year, @ ~145000 miles.

Answer 10

Rotors should last at least every two brake pad changes. In my area, a lot of rural w/ little city driving, my rotors lasted 100k mi.