Fun with brakes... (new front rotors/pads)

Almost 62k miles. The brake judder we've had on and off since we got it with 32k miles has annoyed me to action.

Retaining screws. Hate 'em. Borrowed my neighbor's impact drill and after a little WD-40 I attacked them. Destroyed my phillips head bit. A second bit stripped the screw completely.




Next came the drill. What worked for me was using a smaller bit to drill through the head. Then I used a larger bit on the head of the bolt and spun it right off. (Probably could have pried it off or used a screwdriver/punch to knock it off.) Also did not realize there were TWO of those screws on each rotor! Was hitting the darn thing with a iron mallet and would not come off! Oh... there's why. Tried to get the rotors resurfaced but O'reilly said they were something like .2" too thin.



I've had good results with Advance Auto Wearever Premium Rotors and Ceramic pads. $160 after $50 off online code and convenient in-store pickup. Used lots of anti-seize; but hope not to deal with it for another 60k+ miles. Still breaking them in.

We're right at 60k and brakes are still as smooth as day one. It was in abut 5,000 miles ago for oil change and they said the pads looked good. I'll be checking them soon.

I really hate those retaining screws. Luckily here we don't get near the rust so they aren't as much a pain. Hope I didn't just jinx myself!

my front pads had quite a bit of life left in them. i did notice the inner pads were wearing a little faster than the outer. also, i noticed on one of the rotors the inside had a couple of "ripples". the outside appeared relatively smooth to me.

another interesting thing was that there must be a bit of rear bias in the brake system because my rear brake pads were noticeably more worn than the fronts. will be swapping those out sooner than later.

Retaining screws are the worst. A recent addition due to the automated assembly processes that serve ZERO purpose once the car is assembled. Once they're off I leave them off.

I love when people freak out thinking your rotor is going to fall off because you leave a single light duty screw like the retaining screw off. First, all the lug nuts would have to fall off, then your wheel would have to fall off. Even then, before the rotor fell off the brake caliper and caliper bracket would also have to fall off. If all this happens while you're driving the rotor coming off is the least of your problems.

The whole point of the retaining screw is to keep the brake rotor from falling off on the assembly line when they put it on well before the brake caliper. That's it. It has no purpose once the car leaves the factory.

I put new R1 slotted and drilled rotors on all 4 wheels - Not much issue with screws a couple blows with impact driver was all it took. I also upgraded to Ankebono pads all around. Virtually dustless and breaking was not diminished. Kind of expensive all in ~$450, but look great and not brake worries for this crossover for a long time.

$450 for rotors and pads doesn't sound too bad for performance. OEM style stuff is a little over $330 plus tax.

Thought I would post an update on this. I would NOT recommend the Advance Auto Wearever Premium Rotors and Ceramic pads to CX-9 owner.

Performance wise, they are great.

Appearance wise... they are terrible. Lots of brake dust for a a ceramic pad. Also, the rotors are not painted so they quickly developed surface rust on them. With an open wheel design like the 20" wheels have it is rather unattractive to someone who notices things like that.

I realized that this was the first time I had used this brand on one of my own vehicles. Have used them on my family members' cars but they don't care/notice this stuff like I do.