About once a year, my brakes start pulsating (slowly at first and then increasing in pulsation the longer I put off getting it fixed) and I have to take it in to have the rotors sanded. Why does this happen so frequently and is there anything I can do to prevent this from happening? My Suburban is a 1992
instead of getting the rotors sanded, get new ones. The ones you have are warped, and this is due to heat and possibly thin or low quality metal in the rotors.
The last time I took it in for pulsating brakes, they replaced the rotors and one year later they are pulsating again. Do you highly recommend a particular rotor?
There is no particular brand - just not the bargain basement no matter who makes them.
But there are a host of other things to worry about, and it takes very little to produce pulsation - like you can’t even see or feel the amount of unevenness it takes:
- cheaper brake pads especially are prone to leave residue/uneven buildup on the rotors
- improper lug not torque can create problems with rotors.
- uneven mating surface of rotor to hub from rust or other kinds of debris
- sticking caliper pistons or caliper slides create too much heat and associated havoc
- worn front end parts - bearings, tie rod ends, ball joints can exacerbate it all.
So maybe its time you tried a new shop - an independent, local shop and best if they specialize in front ends/brakes.
cigroller said this and I will repeat it. Use a torque wrench on your lug nuts. It may not eliminate the pulsing but may help. It did help for my car.
Pulsating brakes can be caused by frictional differences along the rotor surface, warping is not always at fault. Here is a site that offers an explanation of this and says to not keep your brakes applied while stopped when they are very hot.
http://www.powerstop.com/content.wws?fname=technicalfaq.html