# '02 Altima SE brake rotor problems



## sbaxter (Feb 18, 2004)

Hello folks.

I have an '02 Altima SE with 35K miles, and my front brake rotors are worn and grooved to the point they'll have to be replaced (my brake warning light is on). I took it to two different (non-dealer) shops. The first said all four rotors had to be replaced. The second told me the rear rotors could probably be turned, but the front couldn't. They were mystified as to why the rotors would be in such bad shape. They said the pads weren't so worn that they'd be responsible for the damage. They also said they couldn't find replacement rotors anywhere except Nissan (beyond the more expensive performance-oriented ones).

Yesterday I realized the brakes were still (barely) under warranty. I took the car to the local dealer this morning. The first guy out the door said Nissan wouldn't consider this outside normal wear. When I argued, he got the service manager, who (rather condescendingly, in my opinion) said the wear was due to "lack of maintenance." He added that "the average person changes the pads every 25,000 miles; I'm surprised yours have lasted this long." I _think_ this is a load of crap; I say the "average person" replaces the pads when he hears the squealers, which I haven't heard on this car. I didn't even mention that I'd been told the pads weren't worn all that badly. I just said, "Well, I can see I'm not going to get anywhere here, so I'll just go elsewhere -- and I won't be back."

Now, I'm not really a gearhead. I knew you folks here would know more about this than I do. Am I off-base in thinking these rotors shouldn't be worn so badly at this point, and this isn't "normal wear"? There's another dealer I could visit 60 miles west and try tomorrow (or should I try the same place and talk to someone else?). And if I _do_ wind up having to buy new rotors, are there alternatives to the Nissan brand (money's a bit tight right now)? As you can see, I'm very close to exceeding the warranty mileage, so I have to do something ASAP.

Thanks,

SSB


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## Coco (Apr 30, 2002)

I'm close to 40,000 miles and I've had the front rotors turned once. I have yet to replace the brake pads. Do you use a lot of hard braking?


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## sbaxter (Feb 18, 2004)

>Do you use a lot of hard braking?

Not to my mind. I don't think I've ever had the ABS engage, if that's helpful. I certainly don't brake hard as a matter of course.

SSB


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## Coco (Apr 30, 2002)

I believe normal wear and tear of the brake pads are not covered under warranty, however you may want to dispute it with a different dealer seeing how you're still under warranty. If the first dealer didn't budge, try another dealer. How many miles do you have on the car? When did you first notice the grooves on the rotors? Or when did the brake warning light come on?


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## sbaxter (Feb 18, 2004)

>I believe normal wear and tear of the brake pads are not covered under warranty

Not really all that worried about the pads -- rotors are the big problem. 

>How many miles do you have on the car? 

35K. I don't have much room to visit other dealers! 

>When did you first notice the grooves on the rotors? Or when did the brake warning light come on?

Honestly, it was about a month or so ago when the brake warning light came on. I had it checked the first time then. Until the last few days, it was only on intermittently. I wanted to have things fixed right away, but I thought it was out of warranty until yesterday.

SSB


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## Coco (Apr 30, 2002)

If you don't have the miles to be running around town, I would call them first and explain your situation and see if they'll work with you. I don't believe rotors are covered either, but you may want to check with the dealer. I would personally go with OEM (factory) rotors, but you may want to search the net for cheaper rotors.


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## sbaxter (Feb 18, 2004)

Hmmm ... when I was here yesterday, I did a search and read that brakes were covered for 36K miles _except_ for "normal wear and tear." Does this sound like normal wear and tear to you? The guys in the other shop I took it to didn't think so. They said they usually only saw rotors that looked that bad on cars with 80K miles or so.

SSB


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## wild willy (Oct 16, 2002)

Mine warped in the first few thousand miles and had to be cut.


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## Ruben (Oct 15, 2002)

Willy, you're alive?


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## MakoMeat (Dec 4, 2002)

Wow 35k on a set of rotors!  
Did these guys actually measure the disk thickness? base it on a visual check? I think 35k is a reasonable service life for front brake pads but not for rotors. You said the brake warning light came on, that tells me that its time for the pads to be replaced for sure.
Aftermarket OEM rotors are available at most auto parts store, so I’m not sure what the guys at the garage were feeding you. Also factory rotors can be had for around $85.00-$90 (about $20-$25 more than aftermarket OEM), just need to look around.

Most dealerships will not replace pads/rotors with that much mileage because they are considered “wear items”, however if you take the car back to the dealer where you bought the car from, they will work with you most of the time.

Good luck, hope thing work out


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## wild willy (Oct 16, 2002)

Ruben said:


> Willy, you're alive?


Sort of....Just got back from the Acura dealer looking towards a new TL


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## adiccion (Jan 26, 2004)

*brakes*



sbaxter said:


> Hello folks.
> 
> I have an '02 Altima SE with 35K miles, and my front brake rotors are worn and grooved to the point they'll have to be replaced (my brake warning light is on). I took it to two different (non-dealer) shops. The first said all four rotors had to be replaced. The second told me the rear rotors could probably be turned, but the front couldn't. They were mystified as to why the rotors would be in such bad shape. They said the pads weren't so worn that they'd be responsible for the damage. They also said they couldn't find replacement rotors anywhere except Nissan (beyond the more expensive performance-oriented ones).
> 
> ...


sbaxter,
I had to replace my brakes and rotors around 40k last July. I could have just turned the rotors, but I chose a full replacement since I drove really hard the first year of the car (I'm driving about 25k/year). I did have a brake vibration from the front, but no cosmetic damage to the rotors.

Since brakes are "wear" items, they most likely won't be covered under warranty. But, the 02 Maxima is a notorious brake eater and I have seen warranty work done on those brakes. I've seen cars with just 10k miles on them and had their brakes turned three times.

The best place to buy Nissan OEM parts is nissan-parts-dealer.com. For two front rotors and front pads I spent less than $250.00.

Amory


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