pivko Posted August 16, 2017 Report Share Posted August 16, 2017 Hello, I have the European sister of Journey, the Freemont, 3.6 V6 petrol, AWD. Recently, when braking from freeway speeds, or in when going steeply downhill I sometimes notice vibration in the steering wheel, sometime even the whole car. The dealer says (probably quite correctly) that the rotors are warped and should be replaced. My question is: Is this normal? The car has 25k miles (40k kms) on the odometer to me it is still relatively low mileage for rotor exchange. I have not used the car in any extraordinary manner (everyday city traffic to and from work and occasionally longer freeway trips). Any ideas / experiance. Kind regards Michal from Prague Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkeaton Posted August 16, 2017 Report Share Posted August 16, 2017 Pre 2012 models had undersized brakes. Don't know what year yours is, but those models were known for premature brake issues. Things do happen though. Save yourself a bunch of money and replace them yourself with quality aftermarket parts. It's extremely easy to replace the rotors on these cars. OhareFred 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OhareFred Posted August 16, 2017 Report Share Posted August 16, 2017 I had to replace the pads and rotors at 11,000 miles on my 09. If you have an earlier model go with ceramic brake pads, you will get way better performance from them and the rotors also last longer. jkeaton 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Armando G Posted August 17, 2017 Report Share Posted August 17, 2017 To be fair, warped rotors seemed to have been an issue with many car brands in the early 2000-2010. I had the same issue with my Ford Windstar, neighbor had the issue with his Caravan, and my sister's Explorer. All along, my Ford Explorer (Eddie Bauer) had huge rotors and pads that lasted forever with no issues. Only one rotor replacement in over 15 years. I guess the car makers weren't expecting these utility style vehicles to be used for that purpose. If you are getting that shaking, get it fixed ASAP. It can be a really dangerous situation. Rotors are not hard to replace on the DJ if you have basic mechanical knowledge. And from what I see, parts are not that expensive. Good luck. jkeaton 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
probak118 Posted August 18, 2017 Report Share Posted August 18, 2017 As mentioned, buy good quality rotors ( after market / maybe MOPAR has better ones now ? ). My 2012 ( smaller sized brakes) is on its 3rd set of fronts, changed in March 2014 before extended warranty ran out and last change was 55 , 000 kms year and a half back. Now at 68,000 kms and no issues at all with rotor shakes bought MOPAR parts too...maybe they as mentioned now are using better quality materials. jkeaton 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnnyh Posted September 20, 2017 Report Share Posted September 20, 2017 I have a 2016 Journey just turned 20,000 and the rotors are warped. Dealer admits the junk Jap steel used for the rotors and I should replace them. Not paying a dealer to put the same junk on again. Going with EBC's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkeaton Posted September 20, 2017 Report Share Posted September 20, 2017 11 minutes ago, Johnnyh said: I have a 2016 Journey just turned 20,000 and the rotors are warped. Dealer admits the junk Jap steel used for the rotors and I should replace them. Not paying a dealer to put the same junk on again. Going with EBC's. Best thing to do. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
redtomatoman Posted September 20, 2017 Report Share Posted September 20, 2017 40 minutes ago, Johnnyh said: I have a 2016 Journey just turned 20,000 and the rotors are warped. Dealer admits the junk Jap steel used for the rotors and I should replace them. Not paying a dealer to put the same junk on again. Going with EBC's. That's what I did on my 2011. EBC rotors and greenstuff pads. They have worked great over the last 3 years. Peace. jkeaton 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SylvainB Posted January 9, 2018 Report Share Posted January 9, 2018 I agree Journey's brakes from 2009 to early 2012 suck, they eat pads like hot butter. But please stop using the term "warped". A warped rotor is when the rotor exceeded maximal operating temperature and did not come back to orignal form. Usually vibration when braking is due to an unbalanced rotor caused by uneven wear of the rotor surface. It is called thickness variation. To prevent that when you change rotors perform brake pads bed-in. It is usually written on the manufacturer website and be sure that your calipers are functionning properly and that the pads are moving freely. I've learn from my mistakes ..... LOL. Oh and yeah original rotor aren't good I went with the drilled one from PowerStop but didn't perfrom brake pads bed-in and had to replace front rotors again 6 months later. I went with wagner rotors and wagners pads since september and still good to go. Will see if it will be a good replacement if they aren't vibrating till the summer. PowerStop begin vibrating only 3 months and half on the highway after installation but I had right pad stuck in the shoe so I had dragging and before I found out I think damage was already done to the rotor. So might not be the brand itself. So the problem with the journey's are pads and caliper's design. I'll be performing brake cleaning after winter. Never had to do brake maintenance that often to prelong their life. Armando G 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jkeaton Posted January 9, 2018 Report Share Posted January 9, 2018 I know, In know.....like people who use "rims" when talking about wheels....one of those things you just get over. Its easier to say "My rotors are warped" than it is to say "my rotors suffer from thickness variation".... OhareFred, N87 and Armando G 1 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Armando G Posted January 16, 2018 Report Share Posted January 16, 2018 I love all the input from all the members, other than the original poster...just saying. <<<One post wonder???>>> OhareFred and jkeaton 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SylvainB Posted January 22, 2018 Report Share Posted January 22, 2018 Ya he probably just changed his brakes what else can we say, he knows the rotors are "warped" :P and that YEAH iit s normal ...... just need to live with it and be prepared to replace rotors more often than other cars or just buy a new car. I decided to live with it and practice my mecanic on this car :D OhareFred 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.