Resurfacing of Rotors

[Guest friskyfrisker]

Ok...I have another issue with my 2003 Pathfinder. I wrote about the 'mildew' smell which was coming out of the air conditioner. Well, my rotors have been resurfaced 4 times. 3 times starting then the car was a week old (back in Sept. 2003), 2 times up until Nov. 2003 & one more time today (5-19-2004). Does anyone else have a problem like this or did I just get a lemon? The dealership was supposed to give me a new car and Nissan Corp. denied it. Can someone help me? Thanks.

[NissanPerson]

What are the symptoms and/or reason you have needed them resurfaced? That would help in determining what your problem is.

[squam1]

my rotors are super warped on my 02 - I'm replacing them with cross-drilled rotors...

[Mr. Pickles]

Um, why would they need resurfaced right after you bought it, let alone 4 times?! After once or twice, I'd think you'd be in fine standing to DEMAND all new parts at the very least.

[97SE]

Um, why would they need resurfaced right after you bought it, let alone 4 times?! After once or twice, I'd think you'd be in fine standing to DEMAND all new parts at the very least.

Yep...after 3 I'd say the lemon law applies.

[Grumpy]

You might want to check with an attorney or with the department of consumer protection. They may be able to muscle Nissan for you. The repair isn't getting to the cause, and they're wasting a lot of your time, not to mention the large inconvenience associated with bringing the vehicle in for repair so often.

 

Be sure to get & keep copies of all service orders and all correspondence, including the denial from Nissan. Take notes on who you talked to & when.

 

CT has a three strikes and the dealer is out lemon law, but I have no clue how it works where you are.

[revgolem]

Not only that, but all the resurfacing has GREATLY reduced the life of the rotors. I woulnd't be surprised if they were way under min. thinckness and needed to be replaced anyway.

 

I'd also love to hear what they said the reasoning was.

[skibum]

I don't know what vehicle you owned before but if it is smaller and lighter then maybe there's a bit of operator contributed error and a learning curve thing going on?

 

at 60,000kms i needed a front brake job, resurfaced the rotors, i think if you are used to driving a smaller car then you need to rethink how you drive the Pathfinder. City driving, constant hard braking may warp your rotors very quick. I remember getting a warp in my rotors because of an incident where at highway speed i had to brake very hard and fast. and in general my experience has been the fade on the brakes is bad compared to smaller lighter vehicles. I've experienced the "oh crap" sinking feeling in my stomach when trying to slow down for a hooker or an off ramp in a hurry and the truck keeps going and the braking is less and less effective. It's a learning curve, I've always owned Honda Civics and one RWD'96Mazda MPV minivan.

 

I drive knowing that my stopping distance is not great and i know fading will kick in after 2.5+ seconds of hard braking. I think i know the limits and i know how much a brake job costs and so I'm a little wiser and i don't push it... too often. Depends on how big her boots are.

 

With the newer big horsepower pathfinders you'd instinctivley think you can drive it harder than the old ones but you can't really. It's not a sports car. Maybe the infiniti version has better brakes? But..

 

I'd say just buy some new rotors, have them cross drilled, and try not to brake so hard.

 

Maybe go for some suspension modifications if you have the cash, getting rid of the factory squishiness will help a bit.

 

Hope that was a bit of help.

[Guest friskyfrisker]

I don't know what vehicle you owned before but if it is smaller and lighter then maybe there's a bit of operator contributed error and a learning curve thing going on?

 

at 60,000kms i needed a front brake job, resurfaced the rotors, i think if you are used to driving a smaller car then you need to rethink how you drive the Pathfinder. City driving, constant hard braking may warp your rotors very quick. I remember getting a warp in my rotors because of an incident where at highway speed i had to brake very hard and fast. and in general my  experience has been the fade on the brakes is bad compared to smaller lighter vehicles. I've experienced the "oh crap" sinking feeling in my stomach when trying to slow down for a hooker or an off ramp in a hurry and the truck keeps going and the braking is less and less effective. It's a learning curve, I've always owned Honda Civics and one RWD'96Mazda MPV minivan.

 

I  drive knowing that my stopping distance is not great and i know fading will kick in after 2.5+ seconds of hard braking. I think i know the limits and i know how much a brake job costs and so I'm a little wiser and i don't push it... too often. Depends on how big her boots are.

 

With the newer big horsepower pathfinders you'd instinctivley think you can drive it harder than the old ones but you can't really. It's not a sports car. Maybe the infiniti version has better brakes? But..

 

I'd say just buy some new rotors, have them cross drilled, and try not to brake so hard.

 

Maybe go for some suspension modifications if you have the cash, getting rid of the factory squishiness will help a bit.

 

Hope that was a bit of help.

Ok...1st of all, I am a very good driver. The 1st time the rotors were resurfaced, the car had less then 80 miles on it. My mother has a Pathfinder & father has Frontier...I know how the car drives & know how to drive it. Before my Pathfinder I owned a GMC Jimmy. So, again, my driving is not an issue. I am not buying anything for my car because it is less then a year old & under warranty. The fact of the matter is that it is a lemon. Not just cause of the brake problem but because of the a/c issue also (I posted another topic about that one). But thanks & I will take the advice of some of the other posters. I will be going back to the dealership this week to discuss my options (whether or not to get a new Pathfinder or something similar from them). I do love Nissans & have had no prior issues with them. So, I'll let you all know what happens. By the way, I am located in NJ.