Brake Caliper, or rotor problem?

[ARNIE R]

Since day one, my Spyder has always had a very brief tendency to pull left upon a fast stop, but always straightens out immediately.

About two months ago, upon stopping slowly, the left front pads began to emit a slight pulsing squeal, as if the rotor was not perfectly true. Quicker stopping did not cause the same sound.

Today, however, everything was working as usual. I had been out about 2 hours. Upon going down a long winding road on a hill, I gently tapped the brakes and the left front wheel began shuddering and bouncing rapidly up and down. This happened over and over. So I pulled over to the roadside and turned everything off. I shook and pulled on the wheel to make sure all was tight. I then touched the left rotor and found it to be extremely hot while the right rotor was only moderately warm. I ran about 5 more miles without braking and coasted into a vacant lot. The right rotor was almost cool while the left one was still hot.

I am thinking that the left caliper may be sticking, causing the pad to drag slightly, producing heat, or the caliper is warped and rubbing against the pad, or a combination of both issues. Very slow stops don't cause it to happen, but fast stops, it happens for a half second then smooths out.

Has anyone had any issues with the Brembo calipers or rotor warping problems? I am only at 7800 miles.

 

[pauly1]

On one of our F3-Ss, I've got what I thought were warped rotors give the same symptoms as your description. I put a dial indicator on them and measured 0.006" - 0.007" on one and 0.007" - 0.008" on the other; spec is <0.0039". After some experimenting, I believe the rotors to be nearly flat and the run out is the driven by the flange on the hub not perpendicular with the spin axis with nearly 0.003" runout. Taking it to the dealer next week to check closer. If it is the hub, it must have been that way since day one and could be more noticeable due to fatigue of the A-arm bushings, allowing the chatter in the A-arms.

P.s.: the other F3-S measured well within spec at <0.001" for each rotor.

Wayne

 

[Stumpy6Guns]

I had a similar problem with my 2012 RT Ltd. I pulled the rotors and checked them on a surface plate; the left was reasonably flat, but the right had about .030" of runout. I replaced both rotors with EBC rotors, and did the pads as well. Problem solved.

 

[2dogs]

This may help but it won't hurt

I've done this with cars and its worked but I've never done it with a spyder. It's the heat'm up cool'm down process that brings the rotors back into specs. First pressure was your calipers/pads get all the gunk and brake dust out of them. Get out on a lonely flat stretch of highway and start heating up your rotors. Start out slow and then brake to a stop. Release your brakes as soon as you stop. Increase your speed gradually and brake hard to a stop doing that several times. Then at about 50 mph and hard braking to a stop a couple more times and you should have them well heated up. Now cool them down by driving without using the brakes or go home and park it if you can do it without braking. That process may bring your rotors back into specs if they've been warped. Good luck.

 

[JayBros]

Is it still under warranty? If so, tell the dealer to fix the problem.

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

ROTOR ISSUE

Arnie, this is easy if want to check for a Warped rotor yourself ( so the dealer can't BS you ) .... it's simple to remove the Rotor .... then put it on a glass table top ( they usually thick enough to be perfectly flat ) ...if it looks ago to the eye, try sliding a piece of paper around various parts of the Rotor .... if the paper won't slide under ANYWHERE yours is 99.999 % flat ........... so depend on how thick the paper is will tell you haw warped the rotor is ........ not scientific , but a cheap way to learn info ....... Mike :thumbup:

 

[Lew L]

Material transfer

Could also be material transfer from the brake pads. A through sanding and cleaning will fix M/T. It will cause pulsation even on a flat disk.

Kaos

 

[ARNIE R]

I'll try that tomorrow, BLUEKNIGHT, good idea.

I did pull the wheel off today and tried to measure any runout on the rotor with a make-shift "gauge" and found about a .005 variation on one third of it. Then pulled off the caliper and shot compressed air into every little crack and corner. Re-assembled everything and spun the wheel. You can hear the dragging sound, but then again, I think every type of vehicle I have ever worked on does that to some degree.

I am convinced that it is possibly due to rotor warpage, as I often have had this issue with my Ford truck, which is currently having the problem now. In this case, I call it "progressive warpage", as it only gets more severe as the heat continues to build up over time. As soon as everything cools down, it subsides.

Today, I rode slower and avoided situations where I would have to use the brakes hard or very rapidly. It started off ok, but slowly started to show up, just not as bad as yesterday. The left rotor was still always hotter than the right when I stopped to check them a couple of times. So, something is causing more heat build-up. I am just somewhat surprised that it started so suddenly yesterday, as going down one long grade after another caused no issues, then suddenly the next downhill grade, there it was. I frequently do 4-6 hours rides and brake under all kinds of conditions and never experienced this before yesterday.

I will tinker with it again tomorrow and then off it goes to the dealer on Tuesday.

 

[Stumpy6Guns]

EBC Brakes has a lot of very informative articles on their website. I suggest reading them (especially about bedding in new pads); your frustration level will go way down.

https://ebcbrakes.com/ebc-technical-brake-articles/

 

[trikermutha]

Could also be a caliper problem. I would include that in you list of checks along with what others have said.

 

[ARNIE R]

Boy, I am kinda frosted right now. The bike was taken in two days ago for the brake / rotor issue. Today, the dealer calls back and tells me that the left front rotor IS warped (as I thought....) and it will be replaced along with the brake pads. Next he says that both sides will be done because they should be done in pairs. OK.

The bike is only 5 months old and has 7600+ miles on it.

Then he says, that none of it will be covered by BRP. Cost about almost $900. I told him to re-check with BRP and his manager, because, this is ridiculous for this to have occurred this soon.


My Ford truck went thru 3 sets of rotors due to warpage during its warranty time and all 3 occasions were covered each time.

So, he will call me back when he hears something..........:sour:

 

[Bob Denman]

The sticking caliper is what caused the problem: NOT the brake pads wearing out... :gaah:
Good luck; let us know what happens next! :thumbup:

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

BRAKE PARTS + LABOR

Boy, I am kinda frosted right now. The bike was taken in two days ago for the brake / rotor issue. Today, the dealer calls back and tells me that the left front rotor IS warped (as I thought....) and it will be replaced along with the brake pads. Next he says that both sides will be done because they should be done in pairs. OK.

The bike is only 5 months old and has 7600+ miles on it.

Then he says, that none of it will be covered by BRP. Cost about almost $900. I told him to re-check with BRP and his manager, because, this is ridiculous for this to have occurred this soon.


My Ford truck went thru 3 sets of rotors due to warpage during its warranty time and all 3 occasions were covered each time.

So, he will call me back when he hears something..........:sour:

$ 900.00 :gaah:for two rotors and two sets of pads and labor to do them..... If I was closer ..WE could do this with Much BETTER parts for about $450.00 , I'm not kidding ...... Mike :thumbup:

 

[BajaRon]

Boy, I am kinda frosted right now. The bike was taken in two days ago for the brake / rotor issue. Today, the dealer calls back and tells me that the left front rotor IS warped (as I thought....) and it will be replaced along with the brake pads. Next he says that both sides will be done because they should be done in pairs. OK.

The bike is only 5 months old and has 7600+ miles on it.

Then he says, that none of it will be covered by BRP. Cost about almost $900. I told him to re-check with BRP and his manager, because, this is ridiculous for this to have occurred this soon.


My Ford truck went thru 3 sets of rotors due to warpage during its warranty time and all 3 occasions were covered each time.

So, he will call me back when he hears something..........:sour:

Wow! That's pretty heartless (and unnecessarily expensive). Like Blueknight911 says, this can be done for less than 1/2 the price (parts) and you get a higher quality product that will stop better and the rotors will not warp as easily as the BRP rotors do.

 

[SpyderAnn01]

Another example of all dealers not being created equal. Some are much better, or more successful, at getting things covered under warranty. I'd tell them to try again.

 

[pegasus1300]

They don't really HAVE to be replaced in pairs. This is a warranty situation and at low milage at that. They should be able to warranty the sticky caliper, the warped rotor, and a new set of pads without so much hassle and leave the other side alone. I have had that situation on a car and a truck and that's what happened. Does the dealer acknowledge the sticking caliper as the cause of the initial problem?

 

[ARNIE R]

I was called this morning with their answer. NO warranty coverage from BRP since, in BRP's words, "even tho the unit is only 5 months old, we do consider the mileage of over 7,000 miles to be too much to consider warranty coverage. Furthermore, since we do not know any of the circumstances under with the operator rides the unit, we cannot justify a claim."
So, I asked the service rep why everything must be replaced in pairs. His response was that they could not "guarantee" that everything would be "safe" due to the mileage on one side vs the mileage on the other side. I asked, what if come back in a week or two months with the same problem? Well, then, we might suspect that there is something else wrong, such a bad caliper. I then asked, if that was determined to be the case, and calipers are covered by warranties, then the resulting damage of a warped rotor and "ruined" pads would be casualties of the defective caliper - so, would I be compensated the cost I am being charged now? He wasn't sure about that one either. He also says they have totally checked out the caliper and bled the lines for air and found no issues, but have no way of checking whether the pistons are seizing up when they get hot.
I had sent BRP a rather lengthy e-mail last night describing the situation and was assigned a case nbr, but they basically told me that the dealer must contact the warranty and tech depts for details of coverage or not. Since the service rep says that step was already done, the I guess I am screwed for now.
BRP was also stumped as "warped" rotors are "rare".
Believe me, if I knew where to get better aftermarket parts for less than OEM parts, I would do this in a heartbeat. Seems the prices he was quoting me on replacement OEM's are about the same as some of the online parts sites.
When I purchased my Ford truck years ago, I went thru warped rotors 3 times during its warranty period and every single bit of the costs were covered.
I am really bummed out.

 

[pegasus1300]

Do you have another dealer that you could go to for a second opinion?

 

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

PARTS COST

I was called this morning with their answer. NO warranty coverage from BRP since, in BRP's words, "even tho the unit is only 5 months old, we do consider the mileage of over 7,000 miles to be too much to consider warranty coverage. Furthermore, since we do not know any of the circumstances under with the operator rides the unit, we cannot justify a claim."
So, I asked the service rep why everything must be replaced in pairs. His response was that they could not "guarantee" that everything would be "safe" due to the mileage on one side vs the mileage on the other side. I asked, what if come back in a week or two months with the same problem? Well, then, we might suspect that there is something else wrong, such a bad caliper. I then asked, if that was determined to be the case, and calipers are covered by warranties, then the resulting damage of a warped rotor and "ruined" pads would be casualties of the defective caliper - so, would I be compensated the cost I am being charged now? He wasn't sure about that one either. He also says they have totally checked out the caliper and bled the lines for air and found no issues, but have no way of checking whether the pistons are seizing up when they get hot.
I had sent BRP a rather lengthy e-mail last night describing the situation and was assigned a case nbr, but they basically told me that the dealer must contact the warranty and tech depts for details of coverage or not. Since the service rep says that step was already done, the I guess I am screwed for now.
BRP was also stumped as "warped" rotors are "rare".
Believe me, if I knew where to get better aftermarket parts for less than OEM parts, I would do this in a heartbeat. Seems the prices he was quoting me on replacement OEM's are about the same as some of the online parts sites.
When I purchased my Ford truck years ago, I went thru warped rotors 3 times during its warranty period and every single bit of the costs were covered.
I am really bummed out.

............Sorry about your problems Arnie ...... but you also NEED to read ALL the posts on this Thread ....especially # 13 ..... and it would nice if you THANKED the people who took the time to try and HELP you ....... just some thoughts ..... Mike :thumbup:

 

[heyharris1]

WOW

I would be down right livid, 7,000 miles should be nothing if they use quality parts. Hell, my lcamaro has 68,000 miles on it and original brakes, and rotors, by daily commuter lancer that's all beat to hell has 170,000 and the original brakes and no problems. 7000 miles they should just be breaking in. I would look online for the procedure to change them and do it yourself, Cant be much more difficult than a car. I think BRP screwed up in the manufacturing and is now trying to flip the bill on you. Just my two cents.

Jim