Ridges on my brake rotors

jaybertx said:

01 GT. My brakes have felt "funny" to me for a few days. Not all of the time but every so often I feel like they're not working perfectly. It only happens occasionally so I kept forgetting that it was happening. So yesterday when I came home I checked all of my brakes and found that I could feel ridges in my front rotors . I can feel ridges in them with my finger. The brake pads look fine.

Is this the reason to have rotors turned? Or can I possibly have another underlying issue?

Thanks!

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Kilgore Trout said:

You do not need to do anything unless your pads are worn out. If your pads are ok, just keep driving it.

Heck I used to have an old Honda Civic that had serious grooves in the rotors. New pads would simply conform to the high and low spots. I wouldn't treat my Mustang that way though...

When you do your pads next time, address the rotor issue and take corrective action as necessary and as recommended in the other posts in this thread.

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DerekStangGT said:

i disagree. after my study of disc brakes, ive learned that the ridges are caused by uneven pad wear. not only are there ridges that can be felt, but i promise you there are valleys that you cant even feel w/ your fingers, but you would see if you got a micrometer on them. this drastically affects braking performance and should be addressed ASAP. both the pads and rotors should be corrected. new pads w/ existing rotors is a stupid move and just a waste of $$$. you need new pads and get the rotors turned. cutting rotors cost all of $50 and about the same for pads. another hundred for labor, thats $200.....chump change.

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DerekStangGT said:

i disagree. after my study of disc brakes, ive learned that the ridges are caused by uneven pad wear. not only are there ridges that can be felt, but i promise you there are valleys that you cant even feel w/ your fingers, but you would see if you got a micrometer on them. this drastically affects braking performance and should be addressed ASAP. both the pads and rotors should be corrected. new pads w/ existing rotors is a stupid move and just a waste of $$$. you need new pads and get the rotors turned. cutting rotors cost all of $50 and about the same for pads. another hundred for labor, thats $200.....chump change.

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CanadaStang said:

Have you ever let the pads get worn down so far that the rivets in the pads were grinding on the rotors? I don't think I'd bother getting the rotors cut, just get new ones. If you can feel ridges they won't be able the cut them down far enough any way and still have them within spec. You can buy new rotors for not much more than having them cut anyway. If you just put on new pads they will wear into the grooves again in no time.

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DerekStangGT said:

sorry, but i gotta speak up again. he would have no problem turning the rotors and still having them within spec if this is the firt time theyve been turned. ford has some pretty lenient tolerances. if its the second or third, then go ahead and spend the extra money for new rotors to be on the safe side. however, it would be cheaper to just get the rotors turned rather than buy new rotors. unless of course you bought the cheap Autozone or O'Reillys brand rotors, which i wouldnt recommend for a performance car. maybe a beater, but not a stang.

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