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cdover
Dodge Dakota
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3/20/2002
09:27:57
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 Subject: Front rotors
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Is anyone having trouble with their front rotors? I have a 2000 Dakota Sport 4.7, reg cab, 5spd. It has 65,000 miles on it and I am about ready to buy my 4th set of rotors. They get extremely warped and causes an unbearable shudder when braking. This has happened to the original factory rotors as well as the three sets I have purchased from Autozone.
I'm thinking about going to a different aftermarket rotor that is drilled and slotted, but don't know if that will help.
By the way, I change shoes every time I change the rotors, and have had the truck aligned several times. Let me know what ya'll think.
cdover
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CW
GenIII
3/20/2002
09:36:09
|  RE: Front rotors
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Have you tried machining them then having the wheels hand torqued to 100lbs. Intead of just replacing them.
2001 4.7 5sp RC 3.92 LSD
Click on avatar for mods
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CThomp
Dodge Dakota
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3/20/2002
09:55:50
|  RE: Front rotors
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My '00 has 33,000 miles. ALmost ready to replace the rotors. Had them inspected and they are still safe to use though annoying. Have a set of rotors and pads set aside ready to put on. The rotors are wagner I think. Not sure who made the pads. Main problem I had was the pads grooving out the rotors. I think this means the wheels were torqued on to hard. That'll be the last time I let anyone use a torquer. Rear drums are still in excellent condition. Just have to find time to put the new goods on.
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cdover
Dodge Dakota
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3/20/2002
13:59:31
| RE: Front rotors
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I did turn the original set, but that only lasted a couple of months. There is one incident I did not mention. I was coming to work one day and the exit ramp on the interstate was flooded. After braking from +/- 75 mph and hitting the water, I'm sure this warped them. The rest of the times I cannot account for.
I haven't had any problem with grooving. The pads were still "perfect" when I changed the rotors, but I still changed the pads anyway.
cdover
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D
Dodge Dakota
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3/20/2002
14:03:24
|  RE: Front rotors
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mine squeal really loud...12,000 miles.
01/4.7/CC/mods/DJMdrop3-6
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TotalKaos
Dodge Dakota
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3/20/2002
14:32:21
| RE: Front rotors
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I have been having the same problem. I just keep postponing the inevitable, which is to turn them or replace them. My truck has about 32k on it and it has been doing since probably 20k. If anyone finds some drilled rotors post it on the site.
Best of luck!
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rez
Dodge Dakota
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3/20/2002
14:37:22
| RE: Front rotors
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just replaced mine,113000 miles!no problems.
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BlkDak
Dodge Dakota
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3/21/2002
03:09:33
|  RE: Front rotors
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Cdover,
you mentioned that when you braked at 70 and hit water you were sure that it warped them then... ?
How do rotors actually get warped ? because of braking under certain conditions..
if you know... im quite interested . . because i have the exact same problem.. havent gotten them looked at yet.. Is there anything unsafe if left to long ?
BlkDak
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cdover
Dodge Dakota
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3/21/2002
11:52:33
| RE: Front rotors
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BlkDak,
The way I understand what the guys at the tire center explained to me is when braking, especially from high speeds, the rotors get real hot. When you do this and run through water, it cools them down extrememly fast. Like any metal, the molecules get closer together, but not in uniform. This causes the warpage. They said this is not uncommon, especially with thin factory rotors like on our Daks.
I had that set turned, and they did not last long before I replaced them.
As far as safety concerns, I find it to be a real issue. With the rotors being warped, depending on the position to the caliper at the time of braking, it can cause the wheels to pull to one side. Sometimes this is severe enough to catch you off guard and could pull into oncoming traffic.
cdover
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Steady
GenIII
3/21/2002
14:21:41
| RE: Front rotors
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I changed to Powerslot rotors after 12,000 miles, no problems so far (36,000 currently)
Y2K QC, 4.7, 4wd FT, Auto, 3.55, LSD, Sport Plus
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roadracer
Dodge Dakota
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3/21/2002
14:42:38
| RE: Front rotors
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I hear a lot about bad brakes with you III gen guys, that really sucks. there is many ways that you can warp rotors, but what I have been reeding here it seems that its happening to easy. My dak had 48k on the original brakes and 4 open track events before I changed the rear to discs and changed the front pads. the front rotors are still the originals. One thing that one of you guys mentioned is torqing your wheels down to 100 lbs, DON'T! That is the easyest way to warp your rotors, espacialy if you are going to use your brakes hard for what ever reason. Torque them to factory spects + 5.
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pyrodak
GenIII
3/21/2002
15:45:20
| RE: Front rotors
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Message:
hey,
if you are gonna buy new rotors, there is a group buy going on for slotted rotors. Not too much more expensive than factory or rabestos, and probably worth the $$. Maybe? I would do it myself, but I just bought new rotors 3 weeks ago...and the wife would kill me if I bought another set.
Later,
Mark S.
98 Club Cab 4X2 SLT 3.9
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scat pack
GenIII
3/21/2002
16:34:12
| RE: Front rotors
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Factory specs for gen 3 Daks is 85 - 115. Torqueing to 100 is actually very good advice.
2K RC 4.7 4x4
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sandman
Dodge Dakota
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3/21/2002
19:14:39
| RE: Front rotors
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Message:
The two main problems with rotors used buy domestic manufactures is as follows: 1)Poor control over quality of steel. 2)Designed too thin and light.
The big three used to have foundrys of their own that turned out some realy good casting between the late 1980's through to about the mid 1990's. All of the big three scaled back their foundrys and finaly shut them down entirely. I spoke with a long time plant manager of one of the old foundry's. He told me it is all about steel quality. You have to make it easy for the guys pouring the steel to dump a bad batch of steel. If it is too difficult to dumb a bad batch of steel the will just pour it and say the heck with it. The foundrys that are makeing a lot of the rotors for the big three are dirt floored foundrys that are very primative. The parts arive at the plant 1 hour before they are going to be used on cars. That 1 hour is just enough time to get it unloaded and stagged for production. This does not leave anytime for random testing of the parts before they go on to a car or truck. So you get a few thousand cars or trucks that have rotors made from bad steel. The company does not find out about it until it cost's them alot of warranty dollars!!!!! They hope that they will make it to 12,000 mile so they can say "sorry rotors are a normal wear item"!!!!!!!!!
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cdover
Dodge Dakota
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3/21/2002
21:31:33
| RE: Front rotors
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OK, so the general consensus is factory rotors are less than good. Also, some aftermarkets are no better(in my case anyway). What is the best aftermarket to go with? Will the caliper clearances allow you to go to a thicker, beefier rotor? Drilled and slotted or plain?
It's to the point that I am ready to trade in a fun truck because the rotors make it irritating to drive. Even worse, my next pick would be a Tahoe!!(that's right, Chevrolet!)
cdover
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HDKR
Dodge Dakota
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3/23/2002
17:56:45
| RE: Front rotors
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PowerSlot makes a nice slotted rotor, and AUtospecialties makes a real nice drilled rotor. I have had the Powerslots on my truck and used Reybestos ceramic pads. with less than 15K on the rotors they cracked severely in two places on each rotor. Put the factory ones back on since I never had a problem with them(54K on factory rotros no warping) At 85K replaced factory rotors dues to warping. Went to local Pep Boys and got some Reybestos rotors and replaced the ceramic pads as well(the pads themselves had actually cracked). Noticed a dramatic increase in stopping power. Don't know if it was just the new rotors and pads, or if the Reybestos rotors are just that much better.
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DAVERAY
Dodge Dakota
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11/26/2002
15:23:58
| RE: Front rotors
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DODGE TOLD ME I DRIVE MY TRUCK TOO HARD, AND THAT'S WHY THEY WARP EVERY TEN THOUSAND MILES.
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Nood1z
Dodge Dakota
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11/26/2002
18:39:29
| RE: Front rotors
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Really it depends on the driver, if you are real hard on your brakes, then yes you will warp them sooner or later. Especially when they are new, you have to break them in just like any other part for your truck. This is also good advice to stop squeals before they happen. I have noticed throughout my illustrious career as a mechanic for Midas, (I'm not a mechanic anymore), that chrysler cars and trucks just have a really crappy material that is used for the linings on the pads and shoes. Which can bring out some of the wierdest and scariest noises you will ever hear out of a vehicle. If you know anything about the neon's rear brakes, then you understand where I'm coming from.
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neon power
Dodge Dakota
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11/26/2002
21:48:04
| RE: Front rotors
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Message:
what i have learned on brakes, is that the rotors are covered with oil to keep them looking good and not rustng. you must clean them before installing, and with good brake, clutch cleaner, not with soap, or air. second you should replace your caliper bolts if they look rusted or not new. they have a special coating on them so they dont stick and rub. you should also regrease the bolts, and areas where the caliper slide, with special grease for brakes. they often flash to more than 550 degrees in one or two freeway stops. as far as pads go organic are stock, semi metallic are a upgrade. anything higher is unless on the street. ceramic takes to long to heat up to get to the temp at which they work, thats why they crack, and dont stop as good as semi metallic or organic. note semi metallics some will cut down on brake dust, but the trade off is squealing. you must also give them a good brake in period of about 500 easy miles. dont put your brakes on and go do 100-0 60-0 stops right away. you should do some 50-30 45-20 stops to get them going. when you stop dont hold your foot on the brake after a hard stop, put it in neutral and sit there. remember to keep them clean on install, and regrease caliper bolts, fiction points. best after market rotors should have slots and not holes, less likely to crack. if you are looking for best braking for street go with a good powerslot rotor, good semi metallic pad, and stainless steel lines. if your going threw brakes like you are and not dogging them, maybe you got a bad caliper, or mount bracket is not lined up or out of spec, causing rubbing and warpage. i seen rotor red hot glowing and not warp. make sure you are not putting to much torque on those lug nuts.
i did my neon brakes 4 wheel disc no problems no squeals, that was over 2.5 years ago. a word of advice when i do brakes make sure you take the cap off master cylinder, you should be able push, screw in caliper with your hand not c clamp. but dont take off if your going to replace lines or calipers, it will empty faster than your wallet at the strip club, thats not good. do not let the system run dry very bad.
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alan
Dodge Dakota
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11/28/2002
02:07:05
| RE: Front rotors
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I have 150,000 miles on my 98 dakota , have never had to touch my rear drums ... but i"m on my third set of front rotors , most of the miles are flat land freeway driving ... I found dodge far from helpfull .. kinda like the rough idle .. dealer says " it'l smoth out once its broken in , 60,000 miles or so " , turned out to be a loose valve seat ..
the big 3 are doing it again .. remember the cars of the 70's and 80's ? pure trash ..
also where can I get a good exaust system , for my 2.5L , maybe turbo , headers ... anything !!
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Doug
Dodge Dakota
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2/11/2003
07:17:17
| RE: Front rotors
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I have a 1999 dakota, I have new rotor but are unable to remove the old ones. The manual indicates that the rotor just slip on and the ones I purchased are the same. The manual show a clip on one of the stud but I have had the rotors replaced by the dealership 3 times. Does anyone have a sugguestion.
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Jay
Dodge Dakota
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2/11/2003
11:07:20
| RE: Front rotors
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I have a 2000 Dakota and have the same front rotor problem. I had to replace my rotors 2 months after I bought the thing. 44,000 miles later the second set is bouncing too. I don't drive and brake hard either. Must be a design flaw.
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HSKR
Dodge Dakota
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2/11/2003
13:49:43
| RE: Front rotors
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You have to take the caliper off to remove the rotor. Two bolts on back of caliper. 7mm size allen wrench. Then rotor shoudl lside right off as manual says.
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DW
Dodge Dakota
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2/14/2003
02:50:32
| RE: Front rotors
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Common problem, easy fix. I had the same problem, drove me nuts until someone said, "have you checked your rear brakes". Well no, the problem is with the front brakes not the rear brakes. If the rear brakes are not properly adjusted then the front brakes are doing 100% of the work, and they were not designed to do this. I adjusted the rear brakes and the front brake problems resolved themselves. Try it you'll be suprised. DW
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Texas Todd
Dodge Dakota
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2/14/2003
08:22:31
| RE: Front rotors
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I'm starting a new thread about rear brake adjustment, where it SHOULD be, on the general board. This is not a performance issue, brake performance, yes, but I think this board is for the engines performance issues.
Thanks, lets end this one HERE.
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Dakota39M
Dodge Dakota
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2/14/2003
08:35:26
| RE: Front rotors
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Are ya'll sure you got warped rotors? I use to think the front rotors warped easily till I got my 98 Dak. I have changed the front pads once in 95k+ miles and have no problems with my brakes. I also found the following article and thought it may shed some light on the warped brake rotor problems.
Ray
Dover, DE
http://www.stoptech.com/whitepapers/warped_rotors_myth.htm
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canadian chic
Dodge Dakota
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7/11/2003
16:18:01
| RE: Front rotors
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Message:
just came back from the shop,was informed that the reason my truck sounded like a train on the front passenger side, was because i need new caliper,rotor. guy sez i should replace both sides on front,as this should always be done at same time? is this really necessary if all the noise was obviously only on passenger side? also i just had the same side done 2 years ago to the day almost. what's your opinion...are both sides necessary? thx
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Rob454
Dodge Dakota
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7/11/2003
22:38:43
| RE: Front rotors
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I had a 89 GMC truck. its still on the original rotors I jsut change the pads when they start to squeal. My wifes GMC has 84000 miles on it and I jsut changed her pads at 40K and theire still good. I did change one rotor of hers because she didnt tell me the pads were squealing and she went to the backing plate and scored the rotor.
My stock dakota rotors lasted 38000 miles and they started to warp so I turned them and put new pads. Only lasted 10 000 miles and I recently jsut replaced them with raybestos pads and rotors.
2000 miles so far and no problems.
I think its really just a case of a heavy truck and not enough rotor surface. My GMC sierra rotors had huge rotor surface and it was a 1/2 ton. my wifes GMC JIMMY has bigger rotor surface than the dodge does. Im gonna turn the stock ones one more time and keep them as spares
Rob
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