New front rotors + pads at 10,200!!!

[kbalter]

My brakes have been squealing for a little while now. I originally took it over to the dealer at around 8,000 miles. They resurfaced the rotors and said that the squealing was normal and the pads were wearing normally and they should last until about 15,000 miles. I was a little pissed off that I can only get 15,000 out of the pads, but whatever.

Just in the last few days they started squealing a little worse, so I decided to take it over to a local shop that I trust (One was a Service Manager for Chevrolet and the other a tech for a very long time). They told me that the front rotors are at 27.7 and that the minimum thickness was 27.5 so after they machined the rotors it would be below the minimum thickness. They also told me that the pads are below 15% life left.

So now after only roughly 10,000 miles I need two new rotors and a set of pads! I don't brake very hard at all and I only have power braked once. Is anyone else having problems like this? Because this doesn't sound right to me at all.

[wmolzon]

wow thats odd, i have an 05 LT with about 37500 and i have not had any noises nor have i had to replace anything, i think im alomost due for a front set but its almost 40k so im pretty happy with that, im not sure what the normal wear is maybe someone else has a better idea

[2002SLT]

Too many brake torques? :D

[kbalter]

Too many brake torques? :D
lol, I've only done it once (http://media.putfile.com/06-Trailblazer-SS-Burnout).

[whyte06ss]

I have just over 16,000 and mine are starting to get a slight squeal to them. It has never been powerbraked and i am not hard on them at all. I am at the point now where I have had so many problems that i kind of expect more to come.

[kbalter]

...I am at the point now where I have had so many problems that i kind of expect more to come.

Sadly, I completely agree with you.

[kbalter]

Well I just picked up my truck from my friends shop and he said that the rear pads and rotors look like they are almost brand new. So, tomorrow morning I'm taking it down the dealer to get them to replace the rotors and hopefully the pads under warranty! Wish me luck!

[wmolzon]

you should not have any problem with that, im starting to think that there is something wrong with part of the brake system. fronts to wear that fast and backs to be brand new?!!

[kbalter]

you should not have any problem with that, im starting to think that there is something wrong with part of the brake system. fronts to wear that fast and backs to be brand new?!!

Yeah, that's what I was thinking.

[CARBONGSXR]

lol, I've only done it once (http://media.putfile.com/06-Trailblazer-SS-Burnout).



i counted two...lol..:cool:

[trailblazingold]

I have a 06 LS with 9300 miles and I don't brake hard at all either but my brakes squeak usually just like the first couple of times depressing the brake after it has sat for a few hours. So I took it to my dealer and they had to replace my front rotors and my front pads as well.

[PEDRO]

Im hard on mine and ive had no sqeals and im at 15xxx miles

[ghoster]

My 04 with 34k was just inspected. Pads are at about 50% and rotors were all fine. Wonder if the years make a difference??

[Abelcastro1]

Yeap just inspecet mines on an 04 voy xl about a month ago and to my surprise still well over 50% life in to them.

[JCattSS]

Don't the SS's have corvete based pads? That might be the reason our pads are wearing faster than the regular Trailvoys. I guess you can't have a 5k lb truck that stops from 60-0 in 115 feet and long lasting brakes. :)

[DrkPhx]

Don't the SS's have corvete based pads? That might be the reason our pads are wearing faster than the regular Trailvoys. I guess you can't have a 5k lb truck that stops from 60-0 in 115 feet and long lasting brakes. :)

Correct. They have the Corvette Z51 pads.

[envoykid]

I got 36k and still about 50%

[The Black Pearl]

I don't have an SS, but my front rotors were changed at about 30,000km under warranty and I changed them again in November at 70,000km. I decided to go with ceramic pads and cross drilled rotors this time. I was told that my rear pads still had 40% left but since I had the parts and time I had them replaced as well.

[ScarabEpic22]

Crazy, that sucks big time. At least you are in warrenty (and if the next set go in 15K you will still get them warrentied) so it doesnt cost you anything but time.

I powerbrake a couple times a month maybe (depends on season, weather, etc) and have almost 70K on my 02 with the stock rotors and pads all the way around plus I tow probably ~1-2K mi each year with ~4000lbs load.

[blautens]

I just rolled over 10K, and my brakes are still strong, quiet, fade free, and not a hint of rotor warping. 98% city driving with the "must be out front" mentality. No crazy stuff, but I don't baby the brakes. And I'm an ace at picking up on even the slightest rotor warpage. Annoyingly so.

Still...It's not unheard of to get only 15K miles on front brakes. GM has developed platforms before with notorious braking rotor warping issues (the N car comes to mind - no more than 10K miles before they'd tank). Personally, I almost never get more than 20,000 miles out of front brakes (although once I got 36K out of my 2003 Honda CRV). These aren't directly related to the TBSS, just past experiences. Your mileage may vary (pun intended).

Here's the thing - our brakes aren't quite the same as a regular TrailVoy, so you can't count on their experiences, but regular TrailVoys don't have wild reports of short brake life. Too early to guess at TBSS brakes, IMO, but we have a heavy, fast truck - add your particular driving habits (perhaps mostly city? somewhat aggressive? who knows?) and that could be the recipe for shorter than average brake life.

Regardless, I almost always do the following:

1) Never turn rotors. They're almost always too cheap not to replace. My time costs money, and I'm not saving much by turning versus replacing - because my time costs the same to do both, and turning just postpones replacement, usually only slightly. And thinner rotors warp even quicker.

2) Replace OEM rotors with an upgraded rotor (unless the factory rotors are REALLY good). Wagner, Power Slot, Performance Friction, etc. Brembo's would be nice, but are too costly, usually, but there are LOTS of low cost replacement rotors that perform better than the OEM. And just because they LOOK cool (referring to drilling/slotting) doesn't mean squat in terms of durability and performance.

3) Ditto for the pads. You might even find one that dusts less. Just know the properties and drawbacks to each (some dust less but are harder on rotors, some grab better when hotter but squeak when cold).

[matts]

evidently the OEM rotors aren't too shabby, they're stopping quicker than the SRT8 with their Brembos.


i've got almost 13000 miles on my SS and *knock on wood* not a problem yet. i dont ride them, but on the other hand i dont baby them.

[Sparkz28ss]

I decided to go with ceramic pads and cross drilled rotors this time.

I would ditch the ceramic pads...they are rock hard and will make short work of your drilled rotors..they are nice because they dont dust...but they are killers on rotors....just a heads up