Brake discs/pads replacement

[parshisa]

Car ('13 Toyota camry) has roughly 20K miles and 6years old (very little driving with lots of idle time). Car is being used in the area with salty roads during the winter time. I've inspected discs this morning and there's quite a bit of rust on the front discs (those areas that are not touching with the pads) and some rusting on contact areas on the rear discs. Overall wear is fairly low (around 1mm or so), lots of meat on the brake pads although covered in rust as well. Would everything above warrant complete overhaul (changing disks and brake pads)?

any help is appreciated

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Does the swept area look like it's supposed to? That is, are the pads making full contact with the rotor? The slide pins could have seized.

Rust on the rotors is normal. In fact, for non-coated rotors, they rust overnight, never mind 6 years. However, rust on contact areas is most likely due to the very little driving.

Of course, there is nothing wrong with replacing them, anyway. Along with new slide pins. Get coated rotors, as they will resist rust longer. Rock Auto carries Advics rotors, which are OEM and US-made

Pictures might help too

 

[parshisa]

 

[mk378]

You really need to take the wheels off for a proper inspection. As the others said, rust on the friction area is a problem. The inside of the rotor could be worse than the outside.

So far I don't see any problems. That one front brake pad looks nearly new. Of course there are three others.

 

[parshisa]

All 4 pads are pretty much the same, lots of meat left there. The inside looks quite similar to the exterior although i'm a bit concerned with the front surface of the fronts (it looks like there's quite a bit of "dark spots" there). Perhaps driving another thousand miles with help to clean it up, perhaps it won't.

Btw, car brakes fine with no vibration or any other ill effect. Although it certainly is due for a brake fluid change and brake calipers service IMO

 

[oemjunk]

Those look nearly new to me.

 

[nthach]

Hard to tell with the rotors - typically OEM ones will be better than aftermarket. There is also the risk of pad jacking where water/salt can seep into the friction/backing plate interface and rust forms - which then peels the friction puck from the backing place. Less of a risk with OEM pads.

Best thing for peace of mind is new coated rotors such as Centric Premium/Bosch QuietCast or ones that use Geomet or a e-coated finish. New pads too, Toyota makes a "service" level pad that seems to work pretty well. People here will vouch for Akebono or Wagner. I never had luck with Wagner on Japanese cars, FWIW.

/edit: now that I see the picture, you're fine. OEM pads and rotors have vastly superior rust protection from my observations compared to aftermarket. OEM pads use some kind of coating and smooth plates, while aftermarket pads seem kinda rough.

 

[parshisa]

Thanks for the feedback. Saying i'm fine you meannin your opinion those rotors/pads do not need to be changed?

 

[krismoriah72]

From the looks of those pictures, they look as good as any car with 20K miles that has driven thru the elements.

I would instead look at the date codes on your tires and inspect for dry rot.

 

[Jason_Michaels]

Clean and lubricate metal-to-metal areas and clean and lubricate slide pins. Brake fluid service isn't a bad idea either. Its good to use the parking brake once in a while too. I have found Toyota factory brakes are great quality and last a long time (I own 3 toyotas currently).

 

[The Critic]

If no vibration is felt during braking, leave them alone. If there is, have the rotors machined using an on-car lathe.

 

[doitmyself]

I don't know how much salt exposure your brakes are exposed to and we cannot really see much of your rotors. They look to be o.k..

At six years of age, I think it would be wise and safe to disassemble your brake system as if doing a pad and rotor replacement. Clean everything up, inspect all parts closely, re lube the required areas, and reassemble. I.E., Sometimes rust can bulge the pad ear areas causing binding. Pin lube dries out and binds them. You might want to index the rotors to the hubs so you can reinstall them in the same position to avoid any runout problems. This procedure recommended because you said you run the car in a salty environment. If not too bad, you might be able to leave the rotors installed and just service the calipers and pads. Just my salty Michigan opinion.

Here's a picture of my recently replaced 6 salty winter rotor (inside hat). I could have machined them and gotten a few more years out of them, but new rotors are so inexpensive:

 

[maxdustington]

A rustbelt car in Texas, what an unfortunate surprise. Super low mileage though!

 

[HangFire]

I concur with mk378 and doitmyself. The vehicle is due (because of age) for pulling off the calipers and rotors, and a careful inspection of them, the slide pins, and a re-lube with fresh pin grease and moly on the pad backs and contact points. If your rotors looks like the one that doitmyself posted, time for replacement.

 

[parshisa]

this is my dad's car and he's not in TX

 

[parshisa]

is it absolutely necessary to use new pads when installing new rotors?

 

[slacktide_bitog]

Originally Posted by parshisa
is it absolutely necessary to use new pads when installing new rotors?


Yes

 

[The Critic]

Originally Posted by slacktide_bitog
Originally Posted by parshisa
is it absolutely necessary to use new pads when installing new rotors?


Yes

Not true. New pads are only necessary if the old pads are damaged. Otherwise, you can de-glaze the pads with 80-grit sandpaper.

 

[supton]

Originally Posted by doitmyself
I don't know how much salt exposure your brakes are exposed to and we cannot really see much of your rotors. They look to be o.k..

At six years of age, I think it would be wise and safe to disassemble your brake system as if doing a pad and rotor replacement. Clean everything up, inspect all parts closely, re lube the required areas, and reassemble. I.E., Sometimes rust can bulge the pad ear areas causing binding. Pin lube dries out and binds them. You might want to index the rotors to the hubs so you can reinstall them in the same position to avoid any runout problems. This procedure recommended because you said you run the car in a salty environment. If not too bad, you might be able to leave the rotors installed and just service the calipers and pads. Just my salty Michigan opinion.

Here's a picture of my recently replaced 6 salty winter rotor (inside hat). I could have machined them and gotten a few more years out of them, but new rotors are so inexpensive:

I would have just hit with a hammer and reused. That braking surface looks mint to me. Mine look way worse at five years & 100-125k. I'm lucky if I can get more than that, usually at that point the pad starts to look like it is starting to delaminate and it's time to just R&R it all. Which is what I think the OP should do. Remove pads, run a scribe around where the pad attaches to the backing plate, look for any separation. Odds are there are none--but you'd rather find this out in the driveway and not on the road when the pedal goes to the floor. Then put it back together. After 2 or so years, probably should do annual checks. I try to do mine spring and fall, but at the very least every spring, just to make sure everything is still working after a salty winter.

 

[Hall]

Originally Posted by parshisa
....and there's quite a bit of rust on the front discs (those areas that are not touching with the pads) and some rusting on contact areas on the rear discs.

Unprotected, cast iron surfaces rust. It's 100% normal and doesn't hurt. As just about everyone else has stated, these brakes appear fine. Leave them alone other than doing a quick, basic "servicing" on them (disassemble, clean, lube, etc).