Excessive wear on the front right side brake rotor

[adrian17]

Hello all!

I've got an issue and it bothers me a bit... if someone can shed a light on the matter would be great.

The Micra I daily drive has now 43000 kms and I had in mind to change the brake pads at 45000 service to something better like the EBC Ultimax or Green Stuff.

Prior ordering anything I just had a look between the wheels spokes to the situation of the current brake pads and these looked all right (still original since I bought the car new 3 years ago). The situation of the brake pads is ok probably because the last 25000 kms were mostly highway without much braking involved.

What intrigued me was that the right side rotor (driver's side) was wear a bit more than the left side. The wear is not substantial but enough to annoy me. Another issue that I've encountered was that on braking the right side front brake makes a squeal sound which is pretty predominant.

Can it be the case where the right brake pad was made of a different material then the left one or not mixed properly at the factory therefore causing this issue? Also will this excessive wear on one side will affect braking performance in future? Will it be better to order new brake rotors and pads in order to avoid any issues?

Looking forward for your thoughts,
Adrian

 

[Phil Wilcock]

Hello all!

I've got an issue and it bothers me a bit... if someone can shed a light on the matter would be great.

The Micra I daily drive has now 43000 kms and I had in mind to change the brake pads at 45000 service to something better like the EBC Ultimax or Green Stuff.

Prior ordering anything I just had a look between the wheels spokes to the situation of the current brake pads and these looked all right (still original since I bought the car new 3 years ago). The situation of the brake pads is ok probably because the last 25000 kms were mostly highway without much braking involved.

What intrigued me was that the right side rotor (driver's side) was wear a bit more than the left side. The wear is not substantial but enough to annoy me. Another issue that I've encountered was that on braking the right side front brake makes a squeal sound which is pretty predominant.

Can it be the case where the right brake pad was made of a different material then the left one or not mixed properly at the factory therefore causing this issue? Also will this excessive wear on one side will affect braking performance in future? Will it be better to order new brake rotors and pads in order to avoid any issues?

Looking forward for your thoughts,
Adrian

Hi Adrian, it may be a lubrication issue causing the rhs pads not to move away from the disc when you release the brake pedal (left hand caliper floats better).
Also I agree it's possible the friction material on the rhs pads were a little more abrasive than the lhs. Modern non-asbestos pads are abrasive as you know.
Thirdly, the castings used may have varied slightly in either chemical composition or in heat treated condition. The rhs rotor might have been a bit softer.
It's a bit annoying when the wear limit is reached on one rotor and the other still has a lot of useful life.
As for the squeal, have you tried a bit of copper grease between the anti-squeal shim and the steel backing on the pad?

Cheers,

Phil

 

[adrian17]

Tk you Phil,

I haven't tried anything yet, I'm still in the market for the stuff required for the 45000 kms service (looking for a decent brake pads set and filters).
It went out of warranty last week and from now on I will do whatever maintenance will be required myself. I've done so in all my previous cars and they last me many years and miles.
When I took the cars to various mechanics problems started to develop and I was unsure why but now that I work near several garages I see how they treat them and is no wonder good parts fail even in the garage at the expense of the owners.
I'll get a set of decent brake pads and some grease and hopefully will solve the issue.

Tks again,
Adrian

 

[1275]

I'd fit standard pads again, unless you found the original pads wanting (lacking in performance) in any area.

 

[adrian17]

The standard pads were decent and saved me from several situations without any issues (except the fact that the engine would stall due to the fact that probably the CVT could not keep up with the speed decrease and would not disengage fast enough). I've just had some read on other forums about the Mintex and EBC that would not dust so much. In the 45000 kms I've done the front rims were always covered in black dust. No matter how much I would clean them the dust was there in the next day. Other than that all ok.

 

[Phil Wilcock]

In general, softer pads dust more and give more braking effort for a given pedal pressure. They also tend to give less wear on the rotor since there's usually less metallic in the friction material. Depends on taste. Do you like cleaning your mags? Or do you have strong legs, dislike changing pads and drive hard?