# Chevy rear disc brakes and salt corrosion



## Midwest (Oct 16, 2004)

Hey Guys,

Just wanted to let you know what I had found about 2 months ago when I was checking brakes on my truck. First off, its a 2001 dually 3500 Chevy, and I run a vbox spreader. In August, I was checking over things on my truck and got to the rear brakes. I had taken off the wheels and what I found was crazy, My rotors were totally wasted :angry: . Come to find out, I could peel off the shiny area on the rotors and rust had eaten its way under the surface. I was lucky to even get one turn out of them and next time it will need new rotors. Brakes didn't look all that good either. Anyway, hope this might help someone in the future. I'm planning on having a bottle of TSP(trisodium Phosphate) that I can spray on my equipment after each run.


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## The Boss (Oct 22, 2003)

After each snowfall, I take my truck to the carwash and wash everything from the plow to tailgate and then run it through the automatic to wash the undercarriage. This has helped dramatically.  
And I could care less about the temp.


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## Midwest (Oct 16, 2004)

I usually do that as well, at least wash it. However, taking through the auto is an incredible idea, and surprised i've never thought of that :crying: Thanks for the tip BOSS


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## The Boss (Oct 22, 2003)

I can't fit mine in most automatics but my buddy owns a carwash so he just turns on the undercarriage wash and lets me drive through as slow as I want.


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## Tarkus (Nov 19, 2004)

The Boss said:


> After each snowfall, I take my truck to the carwash and wash everything from the plow to tailgate and then run it through the automatic to wash the undercarriage. This has helped dramatically.
> And I could care less about the temp.


You know what helps even more (if you can stand the odor) it a mixure of gear oil (it attack rust better than regular oil) and kerosene to thin it a bit and spray it on with a paint spray gun (save old oil for this when you change axle lubes and such) and I do it in spring and just before plowing starts too. It helps big time.


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## Frozen001 (Oct 20, 2004)

Wait till you "dust covers" rust out... Had to replace them on my 00' sierra... real fun had to pull the axles... all for a $20 x 2 POS piece of sheet metal....

Dealer said "You live in Upstate NY, the salt just eats through them"


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## Tarkus (Nov 19, 2004)

Frozen001 said:


> Wait till you "dust covers" rust out... Had to replace them on my 00' sierra... real fun had to pull the axles... all for a $20 x 2 POS piece of sheet metal....
> 
> Dealer said "You live in Upstate NY, the salt just eats through them"


Yes you live in the "rust belt", The real "crime" is that for 10 more bucks or so on a 30 grand truck they could put stainless steel sheilds on it from factory.


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## Frozen001 (Oct 20, 2004)

Tarkus,

I totally agree... Sometimes I think truck manufactures forget that it is a truck. I would have been happy with something just a little heavier, The older truck had heavy gage backer plates... Sometimes I think truck manufactures are too concerned with weight... I mean it is a truck, and should be built like a truck. If I wanted a car I would have bought a car.


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## Tarkus (Nov 19, 2004)

Frozen001 said:


> Tarkus,
> 
> I totally agree... Sometimes I think truck manufactures forget that it is a truck. I would have been happy with something just a little heavier, The older truck had heavy gage backer plates... Sometimes I think truck manufactures are too concerned with weight... I mean it is a truck, and should be built like a truck. If I wanted a car I would have bought a car.


This is very true but you must also rember that Detroit is pushing every one to car trucks to avoid emission, MPG and crash standards for cars and gov is letting them and the "work" P/U truck as we knew it 15 or 20 or more years ago is mostly gone and is really a endangered speices these days.


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## uglytruk (Oct 7, 2003)

Frozen001 said:


> Tarkus,
> 
> I totally agree... Sometimes I think truck manufactures forget that it is a truck. I would have been happy with something just a little heavier, The older truck had heavy gage backer plates... Sometimes I think truck manufactures are too concerned with weight... I mean it is a truck, and should be built like a truck. .


 I like the backing plates on my "83's front axle, 3/8" solid steel! Last week I bought a '77 chevy C82. It's a 25k lb bucket truck w/utility body. You wanna' talk about steel! I bought it off of ebay in San Francisco. The Title said 16080, scale said 24700! :realmad:


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## Bad Luck (Sep 30, 2004)

Just an FYI I think for 2005 GM went back to drums in the rear.


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## Tarkus (Nov 19, 2004)

uglytruk said:


> I like the backing plates on my "83's front axle, 3/8" solid steel! Last week I bought a '77 chevy C82. It's a 25k lb bucket truck w/utility body. You wanna' talk about steel! I bought it off of ebay in San Francisco. The Title said 16080, scale said 24700! :realmad:


It does not need to be thick, just stainless steel thats all.


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## rcpd34 (Jan 16, 2004)

*Rust is a problem on most late model rotors!*

GM is aware of it, but as usual, fails to address it. My '02 Avalance 2500 got a pulsation in the brakes. I brought it in under warranty and they had to turn ALL FOUR ROTORS! This was at about 12K miles! I had a fit. If the rotors needed to be turned this soon, this means when the brakes wear out I _may_ only get one more "turn" out of them and then they must be replaced on MY DIME. Chevy didn't care. Then my '04 2500HD did the same thing. It got so bad the entire truck shook dramatically when braking. The truck has *2300* miles on it!! Again, the dealer turned ALL FOUR ROTORS on MY DIME. Finally, my '01 2500HD did it at about 12,500 miles. This was not covered as it's out of the 3/36 warranty and my extended GMPP warranty won't cover it. Chevy wanted $150 to turn, just the front rotors and then go from there. I told 'em to forget it and went to my own mechanic elsewhere who had to turn all four to get the pulsation out. The Chevy mechanic told me they're seeing this all the time ever since they went to the huge heavy duty rotors on '01. Anyone else having this problem?? BTW, I pressure wash all trucks top to bottom after every event.


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## TLS (Jan 31, 2000)

Bad Luck said:


> Just an FYI I think for 2005 GM went back to drums in the rear.


Only on the 1/2 tons.


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## rcpd34 (Jan 16, 2004)

*Why in the world..*

Would they go back to drums??


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## Frozen001 (Oct 20, 2004)

rcpd34 said:


> Would they go back to drums??


I think it is because th 1/2 ton were known for eating through rear breaks...(I replaced my 1500 rears 4 times... got about 20k for each set of pads) Although this does seem odd...I would look into this further before saying they are drums...


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## Tarkus (Nov 19, 2004)

Rear disc brakes on a P/U was one of those things that looked good on paper or in commercails but it has not panned out as planned because of the harsh environment the rear brakes can work in. More proof that they just do not build them like they used too when it comes to work trucks.


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## sonjaab (Jul 29, 2001)

Any of you guys remember the late 80s early 90s Beretta/Corsica cars and their rear disc brake problems up here in snow and ice land?
GM had a heck of a time with them and went back to rear drums in them.
They also retrofitted they early ones with drums.

My cousin has a 89 and had many problems when new. GM finally retrofitted
his with drums under warranty.

Ya figure GM would of known better....................  ............geo


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## Tarkus (Nov 19, 2004)

Kinda like some of this new 4x4 SUVs they make with big tires and no clearance in wheel wells for snow build up either.


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## Boondox (Sep 4, 2004)

rcpd34 said:


> Would they go back to drums??


Rear disks worked fine for folks living in cities and driving on pavement, but for countryfolk like me living on dirt roads the grit getting kicked up into the rear brakes was causing a lot of premature wear problems. I have 33k miles on my '02 Silverado, and have replaced pads twice already. For some reason the right rear wears the fastest, so every other 3k oil change I swap the rear pads from right to left to even things out. Sure is a pain in winter at minus 30, though! 

Pete in northern Brrrmont


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## Tarkus (Nov 19, 2004)

Boondox said:


> Rear disks worked fine for folks living in cities and driving on pavement, but for countryfolk like me living on dirt roads the grit getting kicked up into the rear brakes was causing a lot of premature wear problems. I have 33k miles on my '02 Silverado, and have replaced pads twice already. For some reason the right rear wears the fastest, so every other 3k oil change I swap the rear pads from right to left to even things out. Sure is a pain in winter at minus 30, though!
> 
> Pete in northern Brrrmont


Buy you some lifetime brake pads that some car parts places offer and just get them replaced free as needed. On the right rear wearing quicker I would look for a possible problem with E brake adjustment or a sticky caliper on that wheel causing premature wear of shoes.


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## uglytruk (Oct 7, 2003)

Pete in northern Brrrmont[/QUOTE said:


> I like it! BRRRRMMMONT. I live just accross the frozen lake. My sister in law had an early '90's Regal, and the rear brakes rotted out real fast. I cleaned them up, saved hundreds of dollars, and the car was stolen the next day! They've been driving Honda's ever since. Rear disc brakes on all, heated garage every night. You'd think that GM, being in the rust belt, would figure it out. Anyways, they'll be making them in a Chinese prison camp province soon . And maybe they'll have a better idea.


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## BigRedBarn (Jan 4, 2003)

2003 Trailblazer LTZ (discs all around) with 14K had to have all new brake pads and all the rotors turned. I noticed grooves in the rotors (through the wheel spokes) and asked the service dept about it right away. They said all the GM's are having this problems in the Rust Belt areas. So, they did all the work under warranty, without any cost. I was able to have the work done right away as I was picking up another vehicle when I talked to the service manager, so I left the TB there and they did the work the next day. The sales guy said that if you're nice to the service writer/manager that they will get approval for free pads. 

Our old 1997 Blazer (drums in back) went though front pads every 10K, and the rotors didn't do too well, either. 

I guess GM has a real problem with brakes in areas that use road salt. 

I wonder if ceramic pads would help. I've heard a lot of good things about them, and I guess the cost isn't all that much over standard pads.

If only we could still use asbestos, eh?


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## Frozen001 (Oct 20, 2004)

BigRedBarn said:


> I wonder if ceramic pads would help. I've heard a lot of good things about them, and I guess the cost isn't all that much over standard pads.
> 
> If only we could still use asbestos, eh?


I tried ceramic pads on my 2000 Sierra 1/2 ton, lasted the same as the stock pads, but I believe the stock were already ceramic.


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## dzd9fy (Sep 25, 2004)

Just a question...... you really change your oil ever 3,000 miles?


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## rcpd34 (Jan 16, 2004)

*I know I do...*



dzd9fy said:


> Just a question...... you really change your oil ever 3,000 miles?


Actually it's usually more often than that. AND I use Mobile 1.


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## uglytruk (Oct 7, 2003)

blackstone-labs.com _MOBIL 1_ , hmmmm. I was talking to an employee at Blackstone, and the word was Mobil 1 was the bottom of the barrel, so to speak. Nevertheless, using even cheap oil would be OK, as long as it's changed often. You just have a crush on the oil change clerk...  As far as oil filters,  _FRAM_ belong in the garbage. Try Wix, NAPA, Delco or ironically, Mobil1. K&N is also good. Fram just has name recognition and shelf space.


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## hickslawns (Dec 18, 2004)

Thanks guys. I don't feel so bad about having to replace the wife's rotors on her 01 Blazer at 40k. The fronts were changed at 30k and then we did the rears. She doesn't plow snow, the vehicle is kept clean and garaged. The rotors just plain rusted beyond turning. I had to do this on a 78 chevy plowtruck of ours, but expected it. Had to do the same on her 99 Cutlass she drives most of the year also (she is on the road in sales). My 2000 Dodge 3500 rotors did the same thing. They just don't put good metal in rotors anymore.


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## uglytruk (Oct 7, 2003)

I have noticed less foil wrapper from cigarettes on the ground. I quess that's were it's all gone... :realmad: It's funny, I always drive $100 junkers, and because I use them everyday, the rotors _never_ warped or rusted. The cars that were parked for some time, (this is not scientific) seem to have the above described problem. I do recall my mothers new '79 Grand Prix losing its metallic pad material. It just fell off the pad! Maybe heated garage???  I wonder what Condemer Reports has to say about this. Think back to Fords recall of Taurus rotors...


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## PackRat (Dec 14, 2004)

rcpd34 said:


> GM is aware of it, but as usual, fails to address it. My '02 Avalance 2500 got a pulsation in the brakes. I brought it in under warranty and they had to turn ALL FOUR ROTORS! This was at about 12K miles! I had a fit. If the rotors needed to be turned this soon, this means when the brakes wear out I _may_ only get one more "turn" out of them and then they must be replaced on MY DIME. Chevy didn't care. Then my '04 2500HD did the same thing. It got so bad the entire truck shook dramatically when braking. The truck has *2300* miles on it!! Again, the dealer turned ALL FOUR ROTORS on MY DIME. Finally, my '01 2500HD did it at about 12,500 miles. This was not covered as it's out of the 3/36 warranty and my extended GMPP warranty won't cover it. Chevy wanted $150 to turn, just the front rotors and then go from there. I told 'em to forget it and went to my own mechanic elsewhere who had to turn all four to get the pulsation out. The Chevy mechanic told me they're seeing this all the time ever since they went to the huge heavy duty rotors on '01. Anyone else having this problem?? BTW, I pressure wash all trucks top to bottom after every event.


Normally, around here that is, brake pulsation, is caused by not torquing the lug nuts properly. We turned a bunch of them at the dealership, and a bunch more, at the parts store. Rear discs were always trouble on cars from outside of town. Between rock dust, and ice, it was never good.

Your troubles make me glad to live out in the sticks.


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## crashz (Jan 12, 2004)

I'm a big believer in the quality issues here. Not to start a brand war, but my F150 had gone 90K miles on original rotors and rear pads. I changed the pads purely because I already had it apart. Recently I did the ball joints (poor quality) and wheel bearings in the front and was forced into buying new rotors. My mistake for buying cheap "Made in China" rotors. Now I have a horrible pulsation in the brake pedal. Never had any trouble with the brakes until this. 

I think the foreign made parts are made out of steel that is not refined as it should be. Cheap metal means better bottom line, and future repair money too. Maybe GM is outsourcing their brake components from China?


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## uglytruk (Oct 7, 2003)

Maybe GM is outsourcing their brake components from China?[/QUOTE] A vendor of mine recently had the rear tailgate straps replaced on his 02 Chev 1500. This is a warranty issue, they corrode under the vinyl. Dodge has the exact same problem. Guess were the replacements are made? Bowl of rice-a-day China. The same sweatshops that are grand parents worked in to put coal in the fire. I know, my grandfather ran one. If you guys wouldn't't be so bored listening to NPR, you'd hear about the competition in the far east between Vietnam, Egypt, Indonesia and the like. The factories are huge, just like the million square foot, multi story, monstrous brick piles that line are decaying canals, coasts and downtowns. Sorry, I'll get off my soapbox. This doesn't belong here...


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## drplow (Nov 7, 2004)

the best thing to do is wash your truck soon after every event. it makes a big difference. my parents drive all over and they never washed there car ever. everything would rust and it would be such a pain to work on.
one problem with brakes on my 2002 gmc 2500hd is that the snow and ice build up on under the drivers side of the truck and it hangs from the emergency brake cable. 
that cant be good


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