Performance Brake Job @ 18,000mi

[metalcoat]

I live in upper NY (Like Canada) and I drive the car daily for commute about 60mi/day 5 days/wk. Winters aren't terribly bad however I noticed a loud scratching noise on all 4 wheels. Rotors and pads scored pretty good (sorry no pics). Get it to a Service station that is 3 hours away. They say I need all new rotors and pads and quote me 1605.69. (1165- parts, 321.75-labor, 118.94-tax)

They are stating this is not covered under warranty as it is a maintenance issue. I've had 3 vehicles since 2005 and I've never replaced brakes this early or have had an issue like this. 2 Volvo S40s AWD and 1 Cadillac ATS AWD. What are my options?

 

[metalcoat]

Forgot to mention I have ~28000 miles. I do use regen but am always braking as I tend to drive fast to work (2 lane highway, 55mph speed limit)

 

[lolder]

Drive slower, don't use brakes.

 

[Ravire]

Well pictures would be very helpful when you’re asking what your options are

 

[metalcoat]

I guess I should mention that the brakes aren't worn, they are claiming corrosion and rust. Basically they are rubbing when the car is in motion (accelerating), so the car is constantly making a sharp grinding noise.

 

[metalcoat]

Well pictures would be very helpful when you’re asking what your options are

Unfortunately I'm having a child on Friday and the car is 3 hours away. Things tend to slip my mind.

 

[Ravire]

Unfortunately I'm having a child on Friday and the car is 3 hours away. Things tend to slip my mind.

Ask the service center for them

 

[Ravire]

I guess I should mention that the brakes aren't worn, they are claiming corrosion and rust. Basically they are rubbing when the car is in motion (accelerating), so the car is constantly making a sharp grinding noise.

This is due to using too much regen to fix this you just have to do hard braking a couple of times this wouldn’t require new rotors

 

[Black306]

Sounds like it’s too late now. Going forward and if you’re handy, at a minimum I’d suggest taking the calipers off and try clean/lube the parts. Above that, have the rotors turned and install new pads. A brake shop that turns rotors will tell you if the rotors are below minimum spec and need replacing.

 

[XLR82XS]

Every couple weeks I use the brakes. Most of time it's due to a changing traffic light or moron driver cut off, brake jamb, pulling out of side street.
Whatever the case - my rotors get some friction/rust cleaning in them occasionally.

 

[TLLMRRJ]

All sounds fishy.

 

[M109Rider]

I live in upper NY (Like Canada) and I drive the car daily for commute about 60mi/day 5 days/wk. Winters aren't terribly bad however I noticed a loud scratching noise on all 4 wheels. Rotors and pads scored pretty good (sorry no pics). Get it to a Service station that is 3 hours away. They say I need all new rotors and pads and quote me 1605.69. (1165- parts, 321.75-labor, 118.94-tax)

They are stating this is not covered under warranty as it is a maintenance issue. I've had 3 vehicles since 2005 and I've never replaced brakes this early or have had an issue like this. 2 Volvo S40s AWD and 1 Cadillac ATS AWD. What are my options?

Electric cars are not like the gas cars you mentioned when it comes to brakes.
With Regen, COVID, etc, if brakes sit, they corrode.
If you take a little care with them, they’ll last a lot longer than your gas car brakes did.

Like others have suggested, brake hard once in a while, keep an eye on them, and be conscious of their condition.

Brakes are never a warranty thing, because you have the ability to prevent damage with a little care.

 

[jonquiljo]

All sounds fishy.

Agreed. On all 4 wheels?

 

[Dolemite]

Unfortunately I'm having a child on Friday and the car is 3 hours away. Things tend to slip my mind.

Quite unfortunate. Did you set an Outlook reminder?

 

[Sam1]

I live in upper NY (Like Canada) and I drive the car daily for commute about 60mi/day 5 days/wk. Winters aren't terribly bad however I noticed a loud scratching noise on all 4 wheels. Rotors and pads scored pretty good (sorry no pics). Get it to a Service station that is 3 hours away. They say I need all new rotors and pads and quote me 1605.69. (1165- parts, 321.75-labor, 118.94-tax)

They are stating this is not covered under warranty as it is a maintenance issue. I've had 3 vehicles since 2005 and I've never replaced brakes this early or have had an issue like this. 2 Volvo S40s AWD and 1 Cadillac ATS AWD. What are my options?

For about $2200 you can get lightweight RB 2 piece rotors. Be damned if I paid $2000 for stock rotors

 

[metalcoat]

I've asked the Service Center to send pics (pads & rotors) and they agreed, so I assume I'll get these later today. Again I want to stress that the pads/rotors are not warn, but are scored badly. Tesla is saying that is due to the rotors/pads being corroded from salt/road conditions. They/I already burnished them to a bit of success but the noise is still there. I also want to mention that the noise is constant, not when just braking or in regen. This is 100% of the time.

While I try to use regen, it is not something that happens all the time. If anything I would assume my wear and tear would be MORE than most (Tesla) vehicles. I'm not putting the blame on anyone at this point, I just was looking for an opinion on what others would do in my situation. I feel like all four in this condition seems sketchy, but this is the first Tesla I have owned. I've also owned a Nissan Leaf 16 (no regen) and now own a Nissan Leaf 19 (not as aggressive regen) with no issues.

I guess the thing that bothers me is that when I had the car brought there, they originally told me nothing was wrong. I had to mention that all four pads/rotors were scored. The first 2 calls did nothing until the service manager called me yesterday leading to this post. If I do go through with this I will definitely be turning off regen every 1-2 weeks. I appreciate the advice given already. I've snipped out the portion of the Service Estimate from Tesla for reference.

 

[TLLMRRJ]

Yep, need to see pics.

We had a family member living near the beach with her Rav4. It built up corrosion around the edges of where the pads contacted the rotors and made a rubbing noise as a result. We were able to "turn" the rotors to get the corrosion off. It's about $10/rotor to have them turned at the parts store.

Turning will also eliminate the grooving as long as it's not too deep of grooves that puts the rotor thickness below spec. But I would be very surprised if your rotors can't be turned and stay within spec with only 18K miles, especially since you are using the regen.

 

[mattack4000]

Wow you need to buy some lubricants for your wallet

 

[iamnid]

Title of the post says "At 18,000 miles" and the second entry says "at 28,000 miles" -- which is it?

 

[EmOne]

I live in e real brakes just before all upper NY (Like Canada) and I drive the car daily for commute about 60mi/day 5 days/wk. Winters aren't terribly bad however I noticed a loud scratching noise on all 4 wheels. Rotors and pads scored pretty good (sorry no pics). Get it to a Service station that is 3 hours away. They say I need all new rotors and pads and quote me 1605.69. (1165- parts, 321.75-labor, 118.94-tax)

They are stating this is not covered under warranty as it is a maintenance issue. I've had 3 vehicles since 2005 and I've never replaced brakes this early or have had an issue like this. 2 Volvo S40s AWD and 1 Cadillac ATS AWD. What are my options?

Not sure what to do about current status but going forward I would make sure to use real brakes just before arrivals to scrape off rust/salt/early corrosion. Might want rinse off with fresh water after big salt dose if feasible. Look at ‘em every week!