not sure if i have warped rotors so if some one could post some symptoms that would be great. here's what my problem is...

i have a '98 4runner 3.4 v6 4x4. in july i upgraded the front brakes with 199mm tundra calipers, got some brembo rotors, and some bendix pads on a suggestion from a "parts pro" of which i will never trust again. so, besides the pads spewing brake dust like crazy, it stops fairly well. didn't notice a big difference. however, shortly after installing (about a week or two) i noticed that when hard braking it the vehicle would track a little to the left, slightly nothing major. it is a little annoying but i've dealt with it just by grasping the steering wheel a little bit better. i consulted with a tech at the dealership i work at and he said that one side might just be working harder than the other but never mentioned warped rotors. is this really a possibility? it seems a bit weird to me that brakes would be considered "fine and working properly" but still pull to one side more than the other. if this is really what's happening, is there a fix for this or am i stuck with it? i did bed the pads just like everyone has told me after i did the brakes. so, i'm down to thinking the rotors are warped, one or both. the only reason i say that is that i have changed everything up front and that seems like the only thing that could be wrong to produce my problem, or am i mistaken?

one last thing i'll mention. i just installed the SS 7.1 suspension lift, i replaced the rear line and my tech buddy bled the rear brakes and not the fronts. after driving for a couple days with a very spongy pedal that i had to press down twice as far to engage the brakes, i bled them and this is gone. but, before that, when the brakes engaged it would pull really hard to the left. so much that i could change lanes and make a half left turn just by applying the brakes. would the lift, plus air in the lines amplify the original problem this bad? now with the brakes bled, it still pulls ever so slightly to the left, and another weird thing... the steering wheel turns to the right by a couple inches at hard braking. i'm lost on this one, any suggestions? oh yeah, i did have it aligned yesterday too after the lift so i'm not sure what else to look for.

thanks for reading my long dissertation on my problem and thanks in advance for suggestions.

patrick

 

Warped rotors produce a shaking steering wheel, or a shaking front end when braking. If the truck is pulling when braking you have one side working more than the other, maybe caused by some air in one side. I would try bleeding the entire system again.

 

yup, after talking some more with some tech gurus i understand that warped rotors gives it a pulsating feeling in the wheel, not the pulling to one side. i'll probably live with it til spring and then replace the pads with OEM which is what i should've done in the first place.

thanks
patrick

 

Could be either a sticking caliper on one side, or a caliper that isnt working very well on one side.

 

thanks adam,
i think i can live with it until things thaw out in spring since it would be murder doing any work on it in a freezing and miserable winter garage situation. it's not that big of a deal right now. but, next spring i was going to change out the pads for OEM anyway so i'll check the driver's side caliper while i'm in there and make sure it's not something else. although i did do the rebuild kit on my tundra calipers when i got them, but that could also be the reason why they aren't working correctly , but i hope not.
thanks again,
patrick

 

usually when you go to stop you can have a shaking from that rotor. so check calibers

 

Can you feel a vibration while driving (meaning not braking) from warped rotors? I did new pads about a month ago and the rotors looked good so I left them alone. All was good for a couple weeks but now recently when I'm driving there is a humming wooooo noise and I can feel it in my feet on the floorboard. It is worst around 45mph, and gets slightly quieter and less vibration as I go faster. Does this sound like warped rotors? Or something else?

Rob

 

Anybody? I drive 60 miles round trip to work each and can't take this woooo lol.

Rob