Warped Rotors at less than 12,000 miles

2462 Views 25 Replies 15 Participants Last post by RDouglas, 6 d ago

KevinRJ

Discussion Starter · 10 mo ago

Hi. Has any one had problems with warped rotors at low mileage on their 2022 Pathfinder?
Ours are pulsating and noisy and the vehicle has 16,000 miles. Dealer is telling me that is not covered under warranty. I have never had problems with Nissan brakes (Sentra, Maxima, Frontier, Xterra). Please let me know your experience. I am now worried that this will be a reoccurring event. Happy to part of the group!

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jman

· #2 · 10 mo ago

My rotors and pads were covered under warranty at 48k km as those were expected to last longer than that. I did have to pay for "brake maintenance" somewhere the 30k km mark to keep the warranty but at the end, it payed off.

There are infinite discussions on the web about warped rotors, many say that rotors don't warp and that the pulsation you are experiencing is due to uneven accumulation of brake pad material on them (I'm not saying its true or not). To fix it, you need to do at least 3 really hard braking events when cruising at about 60mph, hard enough that you smell burnt material. Then, let the brakes cool down without having the brakes applied. This is called "bedding" and should be done whenever you get new brakes, some say it also fixes vibration.
Might be worth trying.

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PoManzPathy

· #3 · 10 mo ago

Yes, unfortunately at 16K miles, these things can happen with any make/model.

Rear pads and rotors will typically be gone by 36K miles on Nissan products.

I've had raybestos element 3 pads and rotors on the front of our 2019 Pathfinder for about 17K miles now and so far so good, where these same make pads/rotors started pulsating on my 2019 Ram 1500 in 15K miles. Imma ride them out until they need to be replaced.

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DRK-PTHFNDR

· #4 · 10 mo ago

Yikes! No signs of rotors warping (yet) on my R53 (about 3400 miles). 🤞Have you tried contacting Nissan directly? They might be willing to help if the dealer won't.

jman

· #5 · 10 mo ago

PoManzPathy said:
Yes, unfortunately at 16K miles, these things can happen with any make/model.

Rear pads and rotors will typically be gone by 36K miles on Nissan products.

Looking at Rockauto, it seems that the 2022+ uses different rear brake pads than the R52. Wonder if they finally replaced the rear brakes for a set more suitable for the size of this vehicle.

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Tutti57

· #6 · 10 mo ago

It could be that a pad got stuck and just wrecked the rotor. Could also be driving style, who knows?

I've heard those debates about them not warping too. I don't know what it is, but the surface isn't flat, so who cares what you call it, ha.

It's possible to warrant parts like this, but it's hard to say that it was a manufacturing defect, since for all they know, you could be towing a 60' boat through the mountains with it.

I will say not to skip brake services. Once something gets stuck, the life of something is going down. You've got a ton of force pushing on one side of the pad, but not much of anything to help go back the other way, so when thing stick, they tend to do so in the "on" position. The basy majority of brakes that I take apart have something stuck and are wearing unevenly. I guess you'll have to do the math on servicing vs replacing to see if it makes sense for you.

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Sean man

· #7 · 10 mo ago

Did you ever go in for service and received multipoint inspection reports?

KevinRJ

Discussion Starter · #8 · 10 mo ago

After much back and forth with the dealer, they are changing the front brakes for about half of the original quote. Fingers crossed that the next set lasts longer. Thank you all for the replies.

Reactions: 1

DRK-PTHFNDR

· #9 · 10 mo ago

Glad to hear they're helping you out. Thanks for the update!

Reactions: 1

RetiredGuy

· #10 · 9 mo ago

KevinRJ said:
Hi. Has any one had problems with warped rotors at low mileage on their 2022 Pathfinder?
Ours are pulsating and noisy and the vehicle has 16,000 miles. Dealer is telling me that is not covered under warranty. I have never had problems with Nissan brakes (Sentra, Maxima, Frontier, Xterra). Please let me know your experience. I am now worried that this will be a reoccurring event. Happy to part of the group!

As a shade tree mechanic. Over torquing the lug nuts will warp rotors. Hard braking on very long downhills will over heat rotors and possibly warp them. JMO.

Reactions: 1

RobotAZ

· #11 · 6 mo ago

There’s no such thing as warped rotors unless you race your car on a track until the rotors are shot.

You have material from the non-asbestos pads on the rotor and can simply sand it off.

lapmercer

· #12 · 3 mo ago

Yes, mine were covered under warranty at 9,000 miles and it is in the shop again today for replacement at 22,000 miles, however they started pulsating again at about 20,000 miles.

kenstn

· #13 · 1 mo ago

FYI, our 22PF has 27K miles and has been pulsating during braking. I checked both rear brakes and rotors and the pads were nearly gone. 3 of the 4 pins were stuck, which could explain some of this. They came free fairly easily but it's definitely something that should be checked periodically. Has anyone else noticed stuck pins?

PoManzPathy

· #14 · 1 mo ago

kenstn said:
FYI, our 22PF has 27K miles and has been pulsating during braking. I checked both rear brakes and rotors and the pads were nearly gone. 3 of the 4 pins were stuck, which could explain some of this. They came free fairly easily but it's definitely something that should be checked periodically. Has anyone else noticed stuck pins?

I've found lack of pin lube or dried up pin lube to be very much an issue on all of the make/models I've owned in the past 20yrs or so. Honda, Hyundai, Subaru, Dodge, Ram, Nissan, etc. I don't know if it's the vehicle or the rust belt climate I live in. I believe it's a combo of the two.

Rust on the rotors and rust jacking between the abutment clips and pad ears is the biggest problem for me in the rust belt, with the pin lube problem being #2.

I use a special file to hog off as much corrosion as I can on the caliper brackets, where the abutment clips seat, and I apply lube to the caliper brackets in that area before I snap the abutment clips in place as an attempt to slow corrosion. A wire wheel alone will not remove enough corrosion. It basically just polishes the rust. A good rust-belt shop will use a sand blaster on them. Not taking any precautions here cause the pads to seat too tightly and seize into place.

Some makes/models have better brake designs IMO. Toyota for example. IMO, the rear rotors and pads are just too small for the size of the vehicle on all 2013+ Pathfinders.

FWIW, here is file I use: https://mueller-kueps.com/product-catalog/brake-suspension-tools/brake-caliper-file/

See less See more

jman

· #15 · 1 mo ago

PoManzPathy said:
I've found lack of pin lube or dried up pin lube to be very much an issue on all of the make/models I've owned in the past 20yrs or so. Honda, Hyundai, Subaru, Dodge, Ram, Nissan, etc. I don't know if it's the vehicle or the rust belt climate I live in. I believe it's a combo of the two.

Rust on the rotors and rust jacking between the abutment clips and pad ears is the biggest problem for me in the rust belt, with the pin lube problem being #2.

I use a special file to hog off as much corrosion as I can on the caliper brackets, where the abutment clips seat, and I apply lube to the caliper brackets in that area before I snap the abutment clips in place as an attempt to slow corrosion.

I had to replace calipers on a Mazda 6 and a Toyota Sienna due to seized caliper pins.
Started lubricating the pins, shims and the section of the pad in contact with it and also apply grease to the caliper piston(s) dust boot twice a year, every time I switch Winter/Summer tires. Never had that issue again.

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PoManzPathy

· #16 · 1 mo ago

You'll typically double the life of your brakes in the rust belt if you disassemble, remove corrosion, clean and re-grease everything right after winter. Problem is, it's a lot of work for the average DIYer. I try to on my vehicles, but don't always get at it like I should. Shops used to offer this service for around $100 for all 4 corners. It's got to be 2.5x that now.

MinnesotaNissanGuy

· #17 · 1 mo ago

Our 22 Pathfinder just hit 11k and the front rotors are warped. Not covered under warranty and to top it off the front break pads are on a nationwide back order. The dealer won’t resurface or just replace the rotors.
With the amount of issues that we have had with our Pathfinder in the 9 months we have owned it’s beyond ridiculous.

Reactions: 1

KevinRJ

Discussion Starter · #18 · 1 mo ago

Update... the brakes went again at 32k miles. I reached out to Nissan via social media and email. They replied by phone and were very polite... but they basically gave me the big middle finger. They said "we do not do anything for brakes. They are a wear item." So apparently I will need to change my brakes every 12-15k miles. The problem is that I cannot find any good aftermarket rotors for the Pathfinder. Help would be appreciated.

MinnesotaNissanGuy

· #19 · 1 mo ago

KevinRJ said:
Update... the brakes went again at 32k miles. I reached out to Nissan via social media and email. They replied by phone and were very polite... but they basically gave me the big middle finger. They said "we do not do anything for brakes. They are a wear item." So apparently I will need to change my brakes every 12-15k miles. The problem is that I cannot find any good aftermarket rotors for the Pathfinder. Help would be appreciated.

If you look at the 2022 Nissan Warranty Booklet on page 47 there is actually a part’s warranty for brakes, but it excludes “normal ware and tear” with breaks needing replacement ever 12-15k to me is a manufacturer defect.

jman

· #20 · 1 mo ago

My rear brake pads and rotors were replaced under warranty when they wore off.
The service manager once offered "brake maintenance" and when I asked what I would get out of that he said, "your brakes will be covered under warranty".
Already knowing (thanks to this forum) that hey wore fast, I did the math and the cost of what he was offering was less than the cost to replace the rear brakes, so I did it. I bet he didn't know what I knew.

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