How do you know when you've got the most you can get from your brakes?

workin class · FINCH, ONT

How do you know when you've got the most you can get from your brakes?

Fordy Acres Car Farm · DORCHESTER, ONT

In this economy, it's important to get the most you can from your replacement parts. Some times when we take our cars in for a repair, we'll get a list of other things that could use replacing. Sometimes these parts will easily last a few more months. In this case, the owner must have thought: "I'll catch it next year or the year after":

YIKES!!!

2inchestoolow · CLARINGTON, ONTARIO

Vented rotors!

Fordy Acres Car Farm · DORCHESTER, ONT

Very, very vented!!!

123pugsy · MARKHAM, ONT

Sweet.

Now that's getting your moneys worth all right. biggrin

sasquatch · NORTH BAY, ONT

Lol. good post 40 acres!!
My son had a car come in on a tow truck a few years ago, the kid had driven mothers car first with a flat front, then destroyed the tire , it came off then drove on the rotor wore it down , causing the caliper to fly off and rip out the inner fender.

Never heard what became of the kid!!

flatblack55delivery · PORT HOPE, ONT

Looks like that guy is saveing money all around ,only needs one pad per wheel. Ed

workin class · FINCH, ONT

I have seen this more than once even on some peoples cars that should know better.

workin class · FINCH, ONT

We had a Lincoln Navigator come into the dealership I worked at with only the hub portion left.Customer owns a insurance company friend of the dealerships owner.The Lincoln owner was pissed that this was a total inconvenience to his precious time! The dealer patted his buddy on the back and we ate the price of parts and service. Defective parts BULL!!!!! NO SERVICE RECORD never serviced.After all its a Lincoln.

Fordy Acres Car Farm · DORCHESTER, ONT

workin class wrote:
We had a Lincoln Navigator come into the dealership I worked at with only the hub portion left.Customer owns a insurance company friend of the dealerships owner.The Lincoln owner was pissed that this was a total inconvenience to his precious time! The dealer patted his buddy on the back and we ate the price of parts and service. Defective parts BULL!!!!! NO SERVICE RECORD never serviced.After all its a Lincoln.

At what point does the excessive travel force the caliper piston out and the loss of all fluid and brake pressure?

scott420p · BRAMPTON, ONT

Fordy Acres Car Farm wrote:

At what point does the excessive travel force the caliper piston out and the loss of all fluid and brake pressure?

At this point for a 1990 cherokee lol. I have it hanging on my garage wall now.

Fordy Acres Car Farm · DORCHESTER, ONT

scott420p wrote:
Fordy Acres Car Farm wrote:
At what point does the excessive travel force the caliper piston out and the loss of all fluid and brake pressure?
At this point for a 1990 cherokee lol. I have it hanging on my garage wall now.

That was my point. I find it a little tough to believe that both sides of the rotor and presumably the pads could just go away leaving just the hub and not have the piston fall out. A vented rotor from a Navigator is surly an inch in width and the pads when new will likely be 1/2" each for a total of 2". That's lots of travel!

In both photos, the likely cause is seized caliper sliders. This causes all the braking force to be applied to the inside pad. Surely there were tell tale signs (noise?) of excessive wear long before it got this bad!!! .....Unless the said vehicles had a pretty killer stereo installed.

scott420p · BRAMPTON, ONT

Fordy Acres Car Farm wrote:

Surely there were tell tale signs (noise?) of excessive wear long before it got this bad!!! .....Unless the said vehicles had a pretty killer stereo installed.

I'm sure there was but some people are just morons. http://ontariorodders.activeboard.com/t51248607/the-brakes-stopped-working/

workin class · FINCH, ONT

OH I bet there was noise ****ed up brake pedal sensations squealing and all kinds of warnings that had to have been ignored before the loud crunch and banging that had to have happened before the rotor fell apart.But not according to the owner it just broke.

jim_ss409 · BARRIE, ONTARIO

Fordy Acres Car Farm wrote:

YIKES!!!

It looks good,,, less than 50% worn. That's one of those double rotors. They're made that way for safety. If you wear through one side, you've still got years of wear left on the other side. Once you wear through those pesky cooling fins it'll be as good as new again.

OK, just kidding but the sad thing is more than half the people on the road today would believe that. hmm

oldkoot · BROCKVILLE, ONT

Customer says, "don't know why the brakes feel grabby" or " it pulls a little to the left", yes they walk among us.

BARRIE, ONTARIO

I see tis about 2 times a yr on avge at the shop I work at over the last say 5 yrs ..77.

fatstax · COBOURG, ONT

I worked at midas years ago, ive seen so many bad brakes I lost count. I had some photos I took of the worst of the worst but they not easily found

TIME TRAVELLER · NIAGARA REGION, ONT

I found a similar rotor on a Firebird years ago, and another on a van that had just started to collapse the friction surface into the fins after wearing down to paper thin – the owner had just installed new pads and kept on driving. I also saw a rear drum on a big Ford wagon that had no friction surface left – just the inner dust lip hanging around the axle like a big ring and the mounting surface behind the wheel. The shoes had worn down to steel and worn right through the cast iron drum. The wheel cylinder wasn’t even leaking. The owner complained of a “soft brake pedal” – ya’ think?

Fordy Acres Car Farm · DORCHESTER, ONT

I guess I don't get out much. I haven't seen one this bad before or since and lotsa people are seeing it lotsa times. Scares me.

shaggn · LONDON, ONT

I should have kept photos and log of some of the things we've seen come through my shop..would make even a die hard gear head take up walking!Scary doesn't begin to describe..and that's stuff we see,imagine stuff we don't!

Cat in the Hat · BRANTFORD, ONT

Not only brakes....I have seen alot of cars sitting on the side of the road with one wheel turned out...Ball Joint / Tie rods Must have seen 10 this year alone...mostly mini vans I don't wanna get anybodies panties in a wad.....but I think its because ....and this is just me.......people in general can't or wont spend $700 - $2000 for a brake job Used to be.....a couple hundred for pads, rotors, shoe and drums.....$15 pads, $40 each rotors, $29 shoes, $40 drums each Now......second and third rate parts are double that and Pro line is 4-6 times that Then throw in shop rate at $75 to 0ver $100 and book rate....TADA! normal people cant understand or wont pay $300 - 600 for 1-2 hours labour and $4- 1000 in parts When they are told they need brakes......they push just a little farther.....and farther...then forget about the problem until their broke down on the side of the road....... Just throwin it out there.......

jim_ss409 · BARRIE, ONTARIO

Do you guys remember seeing this one from a few years back.

A guy ran over a mattress and kept driving while it wrapped around the driveshaft.

http://forums.finalgear.com/general-automotive/drive-shaft-vs-bedsprings-32706/

Fordy Acres Car Farm · DORCHESTER, ONT

jim_ss409 wrote:
Do you guys remember seeing this one from a few years back.
A guy ran over a mattress and kept driving while it wrapped around the driveshaft.
http://forums.finalgear.com/general-automotive/drive-shaft-vs-bedsprings-32706/

I do remember that! As I remember it, the vehicle in question was a full size GM p/u and not a Hummer as suggested in some of the replies. Musta had a pretty good stereo not to hear that hot mess!!!

Lightspeed Mike · BELLEVILLE, ONT

Saw one tonight on the side of the road between Stirling and Cambellford. Late model full size GM van. LF wheel hanging out. Looks like lower ball joint let go on the road. Skid marks on the asphalt probably match the ones in the driver shorts.