Installed my new Brembo rotors a couple days ago, along with some performance friction pads. I just opened up the box, and put 'em on, but I do remember it seemed like there was some sort of grease or coating on the rotors. Sure enough, brakes really sucked when I went to test it out.

I pulled out the pads, blasted them w/ some brake parts cleaner, and now all is well.

Is this normal for new rotors, or am I just unlucky (and/or stupid )

 

it was probably just a light oil they put on them to keep the surface from rusting while shipping, ive never seen that done before, kind of weird

 

When I was an auto tech, I would always hit the new rotors with a sanding wheel to get a nice surface, then hit it with brake cleaner. I have heard that some come with a coating, and some don't.

 

Most do come with a light oil on them so you should always hit em with brake cleaner before assembly.

 

I think most have a anti-rust coating, something like cosmoline. Once you get oil or grease on your brake pads they are trash, you can't clean it off (or so I've been told). That's why it's so important to use brake cleaner on the rotor before you use them.

 

Well it won't ruin your pads, but it will make for a dangerous first few miles of driving before it wears off. Simple brake cleaner on the rotors will get rid of the oil and you will have no worries.

 

Thanks... You can clean them though - I blasted them with brake cleaner, and now I get the same tire-skidding brakes I had before.

 

That's good.

 

Exposed steel will rust in just days without something on it. Any unpainted part will have some oil or coating on it to keep off the corosion.

 

where did you get brembos for a 4runner? Do you think they are better than a stock 13 inch rotor? Thanks

 

when I did my brembos a year ago I noticed the same coating. Its the oil they use to keep the rotors in good shape while thier on the shelves and during shipping. Blast it with brake cleaner and your good to go.

 

Depends where you live.....AZ it took years to see any rust on things.

 

Often times it is just the machining fluid left over from turning the rotors in the first place. If not as mentioned above, to prevent rust, but really a light rusting will wear off faster and hinder performance/safety much less than oily pads. Always blast 'em with brake cleaner and scour with scotchbrite or steel wool before installing.

-Sean
http://trailslesstraveled.com

 

Got them at www.taylorautomotive.com. They're basically just OEM replacements made by brembo, so I doubt there's a huge perf. advantage to using them. I picked them up because mine were warped, they were $50 each w/ free shipping, and I trusted the brembo name....