hi everyone, when doing your brakes, do you need to replace the rotor and pads everytime?? Or just when the pad is wore down?? And also, how do you know how much time you have left after the pad is wore down so do not have to replace the rotors.... thanks

 

Most people will suggest that you replace the rotors with the pads, but it is not necessary. At the very least, you should have them turned (some auto parts stores can do this). The auto parts store will only turn the rotors if they are still thick enough to use.

If the brake pad is "wore down" (I assume you mean down to the metal) and you've been braking (or rather attempting to brake) and you hear that horrid metal on metal sound, there is a chance you have damaged the rotor, in which case, you'll want to replace it.

You can find some rotors online for a very reasonable price. I got two front rotors for my car at about $20 a piece, which was slightly more than having them turned.

 

Visual inspection is the only way to tell how much pad life is left. If you're down to 1/8" or so, it's time !

Rotors don't *necessarily* have to be replaced at the same time but they DO wear and they're not very expensive ($50-60 or so each) so, if in doubt, replace them.

Or.....

Rotors can often be machined ("turned") to create a fresh wear surface....but only if they are not too badly worn. A local automotive machine shop (or, often, auto parts store) can check the wear for you.

Cheers
DD

 

Unless you have HIGH quality rotors.....which are very hard to find. I have almost always replaced both. Most of the time if I just replace pads the old rotors end up warping half way through the new pads.