Guys, I've had problems with brakes on my car for couple years now, they keep warping on it. I'm on the 4th set of discs now, and these too have warped.

The car is looked after a reputable VW/Audi specialist. when new brakes are installed, they are fine for the first 6 weeks or so, then warp. I don't drive the car hard, and if I do use the brakes hard, I make sure not to sit with foot on the brakes, and to then continue my drive slowly to allow brakes to cool.

The hubs have been changed in the last year due to failed bearings, so fairly sure its not that causing the problem.

Its been mentioned that a left front strut looks slightly bent, so its thought this maybe causing the issue, and while I don't mind getting the strut replaced, I'm not convinced this is the issue.

Brakes were last replaced in January when it was serviced, and then by March they had warped again.

Car is Octy 1.9tdi, 90bhp so discs up front, and drums on the rear.

Has anyone any ideas what could be causing the issue? Its a shame as I really like the car, but I really hate the brakes and warped feeling from them all the time :(

What discs and pads are you using? Some people say you should brake carefully to bed them in, others say you should find a quiet road and do repeated stops from 60mph, then take a steady drive and allow them to cool down slowly. Personally I'd go with the first method, should be fine for most normal road cars I think!

What makes you believe they are warped in the first place. ??

It would take a tremendous amount of heat to warp a disc, let alone all your discs, something radically wrong here.

Funnily enough my mate has just warped her discs on her car that I fitted a few months back, yet the 312mm that I’ve got with Porsche callipers which get a right load of stick have been fine.

There is some reason behind this, where as I took my car out and followed the correct procedure for bedding them in, she didn’t

You have to give the time for the discs to heat up cool, expand contract and harden until they are at a point where they have settled.

Likewise the bonding in the pad has to cure and harden.

Taking all these things in to consideration may be a bit much, just jump in and drive on most cars but its stuff that the average motorist isn’t aware of.

To that end if you don’t bed them in and then the callipers and/or discs are hot the you pull up to a junction say on a hill and you sit with you foot on the brake for a while this can cause them to warp.

As yours have had new hubs, I don’t really see what the issue is as hubs can run out and the nice new straight disc can after time, warp to the hub.

But you won’t have this problem.

The other problem could be a sticking calliper, but if it’s both discs that are run out then is unlikely that it would be both.

Like has been said on here there could be another underling factor but without seeing the car I wouldn’t like to guess.

The thing is if you’ve put it in to get the warped disc problem fixed and all they keep doing is changing the discs and now the hubs but the fault is still there, I wouldn’t be paying for any of it, and you not legally abligded too!

do the discs look like they have "blued" with the heat? Does it pull to one side? Sticky caliper? I had a Rover 216GTi that started doing this. Never did get to the bottom of it. Sold the thing in the end.

Can you try a series of sharp 70 - 0 stops? There is a school of thought that discs don't warp, its a non uniform covering of brake pad deposits that does it. I'm sure someone will post the link to the article.

my vrs has managed to warp 2 sets of discs in the last 12 months!!!

the genuine discs that were fitted just before i bought her lasted 48k but the 2 sets of drilled aftermarket discs have thrown there dolly out the pram twice in the last 12 months

doing my head in to be honest and not sure where to go next. i've really got to get to the bottom of the cause before i go chucking more money at new discs.

When I've had them replaced in the past, I've made sure I take easy for first couple weeks (500ish miles) so as to bed them in gently. the garage tell me the they are quality Bosch discs they use on all their customer cars, and no others are having an issue. thankfully they have a 'no quibble' agreement the supplier, so I get them replaced for free, however its just bloody annoying.

The garage I use tell me they have checked the discs and they are warped. There is no signs of blueness on the discs, and the car breaks in a nice straight line, although steering wheel is 'see sawing' around and I can feel brake pedal moving up and down slightly when I'm on the brakes.

I dont sit with my foot on the brakes, instead I use hand brake, or if its on a flat road, with no brakes applied, assuming the car sits still.

I have thought about getting new calipers just to eliminate them, but dont really want to be spending money if I dont have to. After saying that, there's a little extra due in my pay this month, and want to use it to get brakes looked again.

I'm on my second set of warped discs. Had them checked at my local garage which does all my servicing and repairs. The mechanic agreed that the pads are almost like new, yet the discs are warped and causing the juddering. He advised that the brakes are working fine and if I can live with it for a while, then save my money, however its rather annoying with the judder all the time under braking.

Not sure why this has happened a second time, as I do let them bed in before doing any harsh braking. They are just normal discs and pads, nothing special.

Not sure what to do, as I've been quoted around £350 for discs and pads all round.

buy genuine we never have problems with ours

Just a thought, you say they're warped so I guess you're feeling something? What's your symptoms?

A friend of mine was convinced they had warped discs, under heavier braking the wheel shuddered, that turned out to be bushes I think it was, would need to check.

Tom

Just a thought, you say they're warped so I guess you're feeling something? What's your symptoms?

A friend of mine was convinced they had warped discs, under heavier braking the wheel shuddered, that turned out to be bushes I think it was, would need to check.

Tom

Juddering while braking (gently or heavily), steering wheel is 'see-sawing', and brake pedal is 'moving' up and down to the juddering, as if brake pedal is 'lifting' when brakes hit a 'raised' section on the disc if that makes sense.

I think the only certain way to see if your discs are running (assuming wheel bearing is ok), out is to :-

Jack car up remove road wheel, use a dial gauge clamped to something heavy (perhaps a heavy jack), press the stylus on the disc, zero the dial,

rotate the disc slowly and note any movement shown on the dial.

Do this 3 times, (near the disc hub, midway on disc surface (from edge near to hub to disc outer edge) and about 5 mm inboard from outer edge of the disc),

repeat for other side.

I did this when I fitted new front discs and there was a runout on both discs of about 0.025mm total (well within limits). I do not feel anything during light or heavy braking.

Umm...why are you throwing money away if the discs warp? I mean, they come with warranty right? So they should be replaced free of charge.

I had the factory discs for 80k (km) then replaced with ATE Powerdiscs. They warped within days and were replaced with another identical set. These warped in about 3 weeks. Finally changed to Brembo Max (same pads for all 3 sets were used, these were not replaced with the discs) and have done 12.000km so far and all fine. So I guess just try another make and wish for the best. Note: all discs were replaced under warranty, even the ATE->Brembo was not a problem, actually the garage suggested I not try another set of ATE and fit the Brembos.

I subsequently found out (when talking about the warpings) that two friends had the same problem with ATE Powerdiscs.

Edited 14 July, 201114 yr by jmf

what brand of discs are you all using?

If its a mixture of brands then this many people warping 2 sets in a year points to a vehicle defect.

To warp a massive chunk of metal (which is all a disc actually is) is a huge effort and for 3 or 4 of you to do the same - somethings not right.

What Silver Bullet said is the best idea - see if they are running true when fitted, bed them in correctly and if they still warp then something is causing it other than the wheel.

I had this happen on a toyota, I sold the car before solving the problem but i DID wonder if it was a hydraulics problem. If the pump had a bad vane, it could "pulse" the brakes and cause uneven wear to the disk.

Anyone care to shoot my theory down in flames?????

I thought most cases of "warped" discs are actually nothing more than an uneven distribution of friction material transferred to the disc?

I thought most cases of "warped" discs are actually nothing more than an uneven distribution of friction material transferred to the disc?

That suggests my theory has merit???

well, turns out the 'hub carrier' was kinked, causing the problem. thats been replaced, and new pads and disks fitted, and its driving lovely again now

good news. Worth filing that one away.......

well, turns out the 'hub carrier' was kinked, causing the problem. thats been replaced, and new pads and disks fitted, and its driving lovely again now

How did you figure that one out?