2006 G35 Brake Saga Continues

[Magnet 2112]

I had posted about my 2006 G35's second set of brakes starting to fail at 25,000 miles. I'm am now noticing that after highway driving is when the pulsing is the worst. I was told by a friend that knows more about cars than I do that the pulsing is caused by warped rotors, If so, why would this not be covered under warranty?

[Slider4105]

I would believe that rotors would fall under the disposable maintenance item of a car like tires and such. You could get the rotors turned to help with it?

[Magnet 2112]

They were already turned the first time the brakes were replaced at 11,000 miles so I do not know if they have enough to get turned again. my problem is that if the rotors are warped will they need to be turned every 11-12000 miles?

[C-Kwik]

It might not be warped, but have a thickness variance from having pad material getting baked on heavily on one part of the rotor. In bad cases, the deposits left by the pad can become cementite, a very hard material, that will wear at a much slower rate than the rest of the rotor. Turning the rotor will even out the surface, but if the cementite is still there, the thickness variance will return. You might consider starting with a fresh set of rotors and seeing if the problem returns...

[Magnet 2112]

Your killing me c-wink. Or should I say my wife will be killing me. I understand the cemenite problem but how does this occur over 11,000 then 12'000 miles without some sort of underlying defect. I mean I drive fast but I did not trounce on the brakes, I use the shifter to downshift to slow down, I mean I babied them as much as I could. Anyone else have this type of problem?

[TeflonG35]

Nope.

[Magnet 2112]

Ah Teflon, man of few words! So, I wonder if that when I bought the car with 11,000 miles on it and they did the brakes because I complained, that they did a crappy job either turning them or a bad job installing them if this is not an inherent problem.

[Sentientbydesign]

My 05 pulses a little, but it's on original front brakes at 56k lol. Stupid original owner He thought the clutch was the brake

[TeflonG35]

Lol. I'm sorry. I need new rotors too though. They aren't pulsing and my brakes are still going strong. But when I changed my brakes my rotors just didn't seem smooth. Also they have a lip on them. I Don't think they should have a lip.

But damn....Rotors are expensive.

[Sentientbydesign]

Powerslots from Sportstrailerz (eBay). I think they quoted me like $250-$300 for the fronts shipped. They LAST!

[smockers83]

There's a guy wanting to get rid of OEM G35/350Z rotors for very cheap in the Classifieds forum. He'll throw in the pads too for like $10. Check it out. I considered it because I was thinking about buying a 2nd set for the track, but other issues came up with the G that need the money more, so no track for me this year.

[C-Kwik]

Your killing me c-wink. Or should I say my wife will be killing me. I understand the cemenite problem but how does this occur over 11,000 then 12'000 miles without some sort of underlying defect. I mean I drive fast but I did not trounce on the brakes, I use the shifter to downshift to slow down, I mean I babied them as much as I could. Anyone else have this type of problem?

If the problem occurred on the original rotors and you're still using the original rotors (even if turned), the problem may not have gone away. Only masked.

Braking hard isn't necessarily the issue either. It can occur in one long downhill stop with a long rest at the bottom (holding the pad to the rotor) for excess pad material transfer to propagate.

[Magnet 2112]

All good points guys. Thanks

[RBC3]

I just bought a 06 Coupe, and the rotors feel horrible on it too.I didn't notice it that much when I was test driving it, but then again I drove 6.5 hours and bought it.I don't think that at 19K miles the rotors should be bad this soon!I'm interested to see what they tell you.

[Sentientbydesign]

RBC3,

Go do some reading on the G35 brakes. My experience with Infiniti rotors are that they, like many other luxury/sports makes, are very soft (there are reasons for this).

Powerslots lasted much better than the factory rotors. I'm sure there are other companies whose rotors provide better longevity and better performance than the factory brakes too.

C-kwik brought up a great point regarding the soft brake a while back. It had to do with how quickly the factory brakes bite versus aftermarket. Especially applicable in emergency stop situations.

[RBC3]

Sentientbydesign,

Thanks, I am planning on doing more research, and that helps narrow the search more.My problem is that the rotors seem like they grind.They definetly don't feel like they are working properly.I doubt they would feel much different than what my S2000 felt like.I will update when I come to a conclusion.

[Sentientbydesign]

No Problemo.

With the brakes cool, run your finger across the grooves, then your fingernail to see how smooth or rough the rotor surface is.

NOTE: If you are a typical guy, ie one whos' fingernails are so short that scratching anything would require lopping off the end of your finger, use your wife, gf, neighbor, or local crack addict's fingernail