Rear rotors

[Brian8256]

So 2 or 3 months ago I had new rear rotors put on, and they're warped already. The place that put them on said they're going to warranty them for me but..

After doing research apparently this isn't just a problem I'm having. Apparently there's something about the parking brake staying engaged in the rear causing the rotors to warp super fast? Anyone heard of this? This is what the shop is telling me they researched.

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[airline tech]

Yes a sticking parking brake can cause warpage, excessive heat on rotor.
It’s more common though if improperly tightened and torqued.
Moreso the tightening sequence.
I do use my impact gun to install but I only seat the lug nuts and then go back with torque wrench and torque them - 100 ft lbs - criss/cross pattern.

 

[JLC04]

I had to get my rear rotors machined at like 20-25k miles. One or both of the rears warped. They charged me to machine them though.

 

[BDUb]

Do yall have an electric parking brake? I heard those may stick sometimes. I have the old school manual hand e brake. I'm at 60k miles with original brake components and at this rate won't need any brake work for many thousands more miles.

 

[rang19ca]

Yes an applied parking brake can warp rear rotors.

 

[Brian8256]

Yes I understand an applied parking brake would screw up a rotor lol. I was wondering if anyone's heard if the parking brake jamming, causing this. No electric parking brake here.

 

[airline tech]

I don’t think I have seen it specifically on the Ranger (via this forum)
But vehicles in general- yes
If you do not frequently use the parking brake - the cables can rust and corrode causing them to stick (hang up) inside the cable housing.
In older vehicles it was more common
In my days of ASE Cert for brake systems, this was a common issue for owners who just happened to use the parking brake that they have not touched in years.

Now, being that the rear brake job was performed 2 to 3 months ago, and the rotors are warped. I am assuming pulsating brake pedal.

I am going with the most logical causes of the rotor warpage to happen so quickly.
But I have a feeling it's one of the first (2) below.

*One possibility and that is improper install, the Ranger uses a integrated parking brake into the caliper. When rotating piston back into the bore, you must ensure it is in this position before you install it back on the truck and fully retracted into the bore.
If this piston is not correctly positioned, then the Parking Brake could be causing a drag on the rotor, this gets overlooked sometimes by a mechanic who does not know the system.

*Improper Lugnut Torque, Tightening Sequence, this one is common.


Other Possibilities:
Improperly adjusted Park Brake, Too Tight (Cable Adjustment)
Sticking Caliper Pistons or Slide Bolts
Rotors improper machined (Excessive Runout) (factory issue)


A quick check would be to look at the Pads Themselves, at (2) months they should look new.
As this would show greater pad wear for sticking park brake or caliper
With the Rear, off of the ground.
With Helper, Press and Release Brake Pedal, check for any hanging dragging at the wheels with brakes released, you are looking for any delay when the brake pedal is released, does the wheel drag for a moment or does it release (freewheel) immediately.
Do the same test with the Parking Brake, pull up and release, check wheels for dragging.

 

[D Fresh]

Stay out of traction control.

 

[landiscarrier]

Going through issues with my rear brakes (again) right now. I'm on my 3rd drivers side rear caliper and pads and second rotor. My brake keeps hanging up causing excessive heat and premature pad wear. But it is intermitnet. Some days it totally fine, other days I get out after a drive and can smell buring brakes and the wheel itslef it very hot to the touch. I have had it apart looking for issues more times than I can count. Only the rear drivers side.

Wondering....on the back of the pads there are "dimples" one side has 2 about 2-3 inches apart the other has 1 dimple in the center.....is one for inside and one for outside?

 

[taralon]

So 2 or 3 months ago I had new rear rotors put on, and they're warped already. The place that put them on said they're going to warranty them for me but..

After doing research apparently this isn't just a problem I'm having. Apparently there's something about the parking brake staying engaged in the rear causing the rotors to warp super fast? Anyone heard of this? This is what the shop is telling me they researched.

I've also had issues with the slide pins for the rear calipers on both my Ford Fusions (and a prior Camry, and a prior Probe) building up brake dust and not allowing all the pressure to release on the pads. This causes the brake(s) to constantly drag which will result in warped rotors if too much heat builds up. If you had the issue on a prior set of rotors, it would be worth it to have the shop check to make sure the pins are polished and correctly lubricated (which they should do anyways, but rarely bother with).

 

[navsnipe]

Going through issues with my rear brakes (again) right now. I'm on my 3rd drivers side rear caliper and pads and second rotor. My brake keeps hanging up causing excessive heat and premature pad wear. But it is intermitnet. Some days it totally fine, other days I get out after a drive and can smell buring brakes and the wheel itslef it very hot to the touch. I have had it apart looking for issues more times than I can count. Only the rear drivers side.

Wondering....on the back of the pads there are "dimples" one side has 2 about 2-3 inches apart the other has 1 dimple in the center.....is one for inside and one for outside?

The pads are position specific. They are also labeled "inside" and "outside". The inside pads have dimples that line up with the grooves in the piston surface that @airline tech showed in the service manual diagram.

 

[RedDakooter05]

Going through issues with my rear brakes (again) right now. I'm on my 3rd drivers side rear caliper and pads and second rotor. My brake keeps hanging up causing excessive heat and premature pad wear. But it is intermitnet. Some days it totally fine, other days I get out after a drive and can smell buring brakes and the wheel itslef it very hot to the touch. I have had it apart looking for issues more times than I can count. Only the rear drivers side.

Wondering....on the back of the pads there are "dimples" one side has 2 about 2-3 inches apart the other has 1 dimple in the center.....is one for inside and one for outside?

Have you considered aftermarket solutions?

If I was dealing with my 3rd repeat, I think I would toss OEM and switch to good name brand aftermarket. <insert whatever is a good aftermarket brand> Calipers, pads and rotors.



I smell burning brakes on my front driver side occasionally, But I'm still under warranty so I'm just gonna roll with it. Get it? Roll cause it's a wheel n-rotor... *Gets more coffeee*

 

[landiscarrier]

Have you considered aftermarket solutions?

If I was dealing with my 3rd repeat, I think I would toss OEM and switch to good name brand aftermarket. <insert whatever is a good aftermarket brand> Calipers, pads and rotors.



I smell burning brakes on my front driver side occasionally, But I'm still under warranty so I'm just gonna roll with it. Get it? Roll cause it's a wheel n-rotor... *Gets more coffeee*

The rotors and pads have been aftermarket (currenty PowerStop), the caliper is Ford. I did all the work myslef and my son (a GM tech) helped as well and he is stumped on why this one is consistantly hanging up. We even tried replacing the left rear brake line to the caliper thinking maybe it was partially collapsed.

I could drive it today and it might be 100% fine and tomorrow i might drive 20 miles and it will smell and the wheel will be hot....totally unpredictable.

 

[navsnipe]

Have you considered aftermarket solutions?

If I was dealing with my 3rd repeat, I think I would toss OEM and switch to good name brand aftermarket. <insert whatever is a good aftermarket brand> Calipers, pads and rotors.



I smell burning brakes on my front driver side occasionally, But I'm still under warranty so I'm just gonna roll with it. Get it? Roll cause it's a wheel n-rotor... *Gets more coffeee*

He needs to determine if there is something malfunctioning or failed versus needing better components. With the weight of the truck, it's easy to overwhelm the braking system when driving aggressively. If that is the case then better components suited for the task are worthwhile.

 

[navsnipe]

The rotors and pads have been aftermarket (currenty PowerStop), the caliper is Ford. I did all the work myslef and my son (a GM tech) helped as well and he is stumped on why this one is consistantly hanging up. We even tried replacing the left rear brake line to the caliper thinking maybe it was partially collapsed.

I could drive it today and it might be 100% fine and tomorrow i might drive 20 miles and it will smell and the wheel will be hot....totally unpredictable.

Out of curiosity, when you replace the pads are you fully retracting the brake piston by rotating it according to the manual? Have you inspected the parking brake cables and retractor springs on the calipers to make sure the parking brake is actually disengaged when released. If a spring fell off it would possibly cause a problem of not letting the piston retract properly.

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