Warped Rotors- Warrenty

Hi all,
I've had my Tacoma since 2020, got it brand new.
Around 7k miles on it I started experiencing shakings while braking(mostly while driving down hill) that got worsen with time.

After checking my alignment, tires, balance and such I was able to figure out the issue at 25k miles, the rotors got warped.
Toyota warranty denied fixing it as they include it under wear and tear which i find to be ridiculous. I have owned many vehicles, and never had this issue and never had to change rotors with so little miles on them.
Does anyone else have experience anything similar?

(wheel nuts were torqued according to specs)

 

Yes u have experienced this but on a different platform. Weight distribution and brake bias play a large part normally. Honest question, how hard are you on the fat peddle?

 

Had same issue on a Lexus ES350 with about same mileage but Lexus replaced both rotors. I was actually surprised they did that. I can see it being done with under 10K, but 25K is a bit of mileage. You can get them resurfaced - I got about 70K on oem rotors, then another 60K after resurfacing.

 

Brake rotors and pads are absolutely a wear item and rarely covered under warranty, for good reason... Toyota couldn't be expected to cover the cost of replacing brakes (or clutches) if they've been over worked.
Are you certain the rotors are actually warped? Because that's hard to do on a modern vehicle unless they're abused or something was over-torqued. The shaking when braking is most likely from uneven distribution of pad material on the rotor.
Anyway, rotors are relatively cheap these days and they're an easy DIY so I would just replace them and move on.

 

During rotation be sure to use the proper torque spec, or at a minimum, a torque stick at Joe blows.. improper torque values can easily warp new rotors with just a few braking heat cycles..

 

No dealer covers rotors after 1 year. Rotors don't warp per se.

Pulsations are from rust, pad material embedding (hot stops), or hot spots. All driver.

 

https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/brake-upgrade-stoptech-rotors-trd-performance-pads.523829/

 

That is no shock at all that they won’t cover it. Brake rotors don’t “warp” except for the really crappy composite rotors like which came on the first 10 years of the Jeep Wrangler, or similar. Normal cast rotors don’t warp like that.

Since you have nothing to lose, I’d do a few hard 60-5 mph stops to burn off any potential pad buildup on the rotor. My brother just got a used ‘14 Tundra and the pedal pulsed pretty bad on light braking at highway speed. A few hard stops and it is good to go - we no longer have any plans to touch the brakes after that.

 

Welcome To TW…I think all manufacturers are 1 year or 12,000 on brakes

 

If you’re willing and able, I spent $40 to get my rotors turned at Napa and took about 2 hrs total to DIY install.

 

I had a warped rotor on my bmw K1200s. Using a dial indicator i had over .100” runout on it. Not sure what it would be considered other than warping.

 

A lot of rotors are out of spec brand new out of the box. Many brake shops will turn new rotors before installing them.

 

Unfortunately you are going to have a hard time warrantying them after the first year of ownership. During the first year unofficially anything goes.

Not what you want to hear but my guess is you are a bit hard on the pedal. This plus a heavy truck warps rotors.

The solution I have found is cryo rotors. A bit more money and you need to factor in lead time, but I have used them with success on other heavy vehicles that warped rotors (big American SUVs) repeatedly. With the Frozen Rotors this never happens. Pads last longer and you can slap pads without machining them. They definitely ended up paying for themselves. Not a sales pitch but just a guy who has owned many cars and brakes over the years driven by members of the family who are hard on equipment.

https://frozenrotors.com/

 

Thanks for everyone's replies and knowledge. I ended up changing them with OEM rotors which I hope will last longer. Should have probably got something of better quality but I just can't bring myself to understand what caused it, I race motorcycles for decades, did a bunch of advanced driving schools in my life and I would like to think I know how to brake properly, have to say the Taco is the heaviest car I owned in a while and driving down the mountain does include heavier braking , but nothing I would imagine can do that to a modern vehicle .
And though this is my first post, I've been going through this forum for years, great community we got here

 

Cast iron rotors do warp and can be as simple as having a heavy heat load and hitting some standing water. All this rotors don’t warp stuff gives me a society of automotive engineers convention style headache. Buy a dial indicator and a dial micrometer and check yourself and you will understand.

 

^^^^^^^
THIS!

I've warped rotors a couple of times in my life. My '07 Dodge (years ago) and my wife's Boobaroo (fairly recently). Get them turned or upgrade if you replace.

And BTW...welcome to TW!

 

It's stupid rare. Runout doesn't mean warp. Engineers don't jump to conclusions either.

 

At 23k the rotors of my 2015 Tacoma were warped. I spoke to the lead guy or manager in the service department and they offered to resurface my rotors for free.

 

It's so stupid to have front disc brakes on a mid size truck in this day and age. Toyota NEEDS to start putting drums on all 4 wheels of their vehicles!

 

You want to hear the horror stories I had with my 98 GMC. Seven sets of pads, two new sets of rotors, 75,000. Miles. Check the oil and change the brakes . Been driving Toyota’s ever since. But yeah, your situation sucks.