leaving the forum

 

Kinda like I said in the other guy's thread, brakes can be done by any mechanic. There's nothing special. Rotors should never be replaced as a whole due to rust. At worst, they get turned (machined) just enough to get a flat surface. Getting rotors turned at a local auto parts store here in the states costs $25.

What part of the world are you in that would have that much rust? I thought there was a warranty on rust preventative??? I live almost right in the middle of the US and in winter time, they do use salt to clear road ice. However, my underside is still pretty good in terms of rust.

Can you list the parts off the invoice that they charged??

Edit: Page 35A-10 of the service manual shows a good exploded diagram of the parking brake system. They use the same design as the older parking brakes based on drum brakes, where they use the rear disc as a mini drum. Since they've done that, I'd have to ask if you use your parking brake a lot or hardly at all? If the parking brake got stuck due to infrequent use, allowing some rust to build up, that could cause brake sticking which then causes excessive heat on the parking brake rotor and parking brake hardware. I've always been told, either use your parking brake all the time, or not at all. I never use mine unless on a hill. (I've also replaced all of my brake hardware in the back of my truck...so I know it is good) We very rarely use our parking brake in the Outlander either.

 

wow, that's robbery!

check out RockAuto.com for our car. For less than a hundred, you can get all the pins and springs, new parking brake shoes for both sides of the rear! New rotors run $40 to $70 each. (USD)

check out the sticky about the outlander service manual, look to the end and I've put a link to the electronic copy of the service manual, will show you exploded view on the page referenced. There isn't much there to break.

My wife just tipped 57k miles (mostly highway), and still running on the OEM rotors & pads all around. Hopefully the replacements last a little longer than your first ones.

If it isn't under warranty, the dealer doesn't touch it!!

 

I'd like to hear about your experiences with the other systems in the vehicle.

Accelerated rust is normal in the salt belt where they put salt on the roads to manage ice. Not much you can do about it other than buy better quality parts than the OEM next time.

I've yet to do brakes on my '09 but for my other vehicles I put some anti-seize between the hub and then install the rotor. This will only work with the fronts as the rears have parking drums. This helps limit them from fusing as they rust. They still stick a bit but it is a little easier to get the rotor off next time. I do the same when I install my wheels on the hat of the rotors. This limits the dissimilar metals of the aluminum wheels from bonding to the iron rotors. Painted steelies also stick a bit as they rust for your winter wheels. Never paint the lug studs with anti-sieze.

Rotors and pads are consumables.
From your description of how rusted the rotors are and the refusal of another shop to machine them it sounds like they should have been replaced. The parking drums may have been sacrificial since the rotors were so bad but it would all have to be serviced anyways with new rotors/drums going on. The components of parking drums/shoes are much cheaper than the disc break components. Drum components just look more impressive on an invoice because there are so many.

Your labour costs are pretty standard for 1 hour work. Your parts costs do seem high.

The problem with brakes is when you find out in the shop they need to be replaced you don't have time to go around and purchase parts online or at your local NAPA who may have to order them in locally. The dealer has you if you want your car back any time soon. You should be able to negotiate a lower parts price for significant purchases like 10% off since there is usually a shop markup. Most shops will let you bring in your own parts for the mechanic to install - I've yet to run into one that won't but they probably exist.

That's not quite true. There is a minimum thickness stamped on the rotor. You will not be able to turn them if they are near the minimum. The rear rotors have two tolerances - one for the disc thickness and one for the inner drum width for the parking brake.

Rust could also cause fractures and weaknesses in the rotor depending on the amount of material that oxidizes and if there is any deep pitting. That's why tolerances are stamped on them.

You may also find the veins in your front ventilated rotors could rust inside the air veins and not allow the rotor to dissipate heat as quickly. You might be able to sandblast them lightly to clean them up but in reality it's easier to replace the part. This is really only an issue for people who live in areas with a lot of hills/mountains where brake fade is an issue. For the average driver ccernst has it right.

Be sure to chip away at the old rusted rim around where the pads don't make contact. A ridge of corrosion buildup can collect there that could eventually start to contact your caliper.

I feel your frustrations though. 3 years and having to replace the rotors seems excessive.

 

nesser, but that wouldn't be a replacement due to rust, that'd be a replacement due to minimum thickness.

 

Wow, that is quite the laundry list of items. Sorry you have had such a bad experience.

My vehicle and I are still in the honeymoon period you mentioned as we are just over a year in from pickup. No real issues *knock on wood*. Just fluids, gas and winter tires so far.

You'd have to talk to other 2007 owners but I would think/hope your experience isn't normal. Try to keep a good relationship with your dealer to get these things resolved before the warranty runs out. I'd keep documentation on what you've reported as issues during the life of the car so that at your final visit before the warranty expires you can bring them all up to be resolved.

FYI: Over or uneven tightening of lug nuts will warp your rotors - I haven't seen this issue on my vehicles. My old cavalier used to chew through rotors and pads but that was because they were undersized and heated up way too much as I drove.

I do really enjoy driving my vehicle. Only time will tell how she ages.

If you're not happy with yours it may be time to move on after the warranty expires and you run into a new problem.

 

I am having similar problems.

Car pulls left when braking.

Feels like front rotors are warped, still have to take to dealer.

Chattering noise from front (right?) when accelerating in 4WD Auto or lock. Not resolved, after dealer replaced front right axle, lubed left boot.

Now new issue with gearbox. Have had it stick in 3rd gear even in D. FLick over to manual celction and indicator shows 3.
Also when selecting N to D when going downhill, the gearbox sometimes does not engage and even though the instruments will show D, you are still in neutral.

Crappy service from 2 dealers so far. Wrote letter to Mitsu USA and the one dealer, no reply. Not happy with service.

Love the car though.

 

Just had my 2008 Outie serviced at Capital Mitsubishi, cost me nearly $1000, rear rotors had to be replaced, front rotors skimmed, all pads replaced at front were down to 3 mm and rear ones 2mm. I challenged why rotors should need changed on the 1st set of pad replacements, I was told that this is a common issue, blamed on the sea air blah blah blah. What a load of crap.

Spoke to the service manager, got no joy on warranty claim, I was told that rotors and pads are not covered. I completely agree with pads, but rotors should be built to last more than 24000 kms, especially when the pads still had at least 5k left on them. This is even taking into account the "harsh" climate in NL and additional brake wear from urban driving on salty/wet roads.

This will be the last time I get my Outie serviced at Capital. If the weather was better I would have bought quality parts and fitted them myself, but like most folk I like to use the dealership and give them the business and go away with peace of mind. Not at these exorbitant prices, $279 just for labor. Not happy at all with the service.

Can anyone recommend the best rotor and pad combination for urban driving in NL? From the web I like the look of Cquence Ultimate Cross (link below)

http://www.cquence.net/mitsubishi-ou...s-p-51532.html


To top it all, heard a rattle as I started to reverse out of the dealership, went straight back to the service desk. End result, exhaust heat shield removed as it was apparently badly rusted and loose. Wasn't when I drove into the garage at 0730 hrs this morning. At least they never charged me for taking that part off...

Here's hoping others don't suffer the same fate with their Outies up here on the Rock...

Cheers

Max

 

Just over 72.000 km on my 2007 LS AWD in Toronto, Canada where they use a lot of salt on the roads and nothing else but salt. I don't notice unusual rust, but I'm due for a brake job too. I would replace the rotors by default as I hear from more than one source the rotors on modern cars are made at low tolerance and machining is no longer a viable option. I used the same approach with my other relatively new car (Mazda) so no surprise here.

I'll do the rear first and the front in spring. The estimated cost for the rear parts (rotors and pads) and labour is about $500 including tax. It's not cheap, but in-line with other import manufacturer costs for OEM parts and dealership rates (Mazda comes to mind).

I was surprised that the labour cost wasn't much more expensive than an indy shop: $250+tax versus $200 cash for all 4 corners.

For the front, provided I still have about 20% left, I plan to wait until spring and save few bucks by buying the parts from the US and having my neighbour change them for a 6 pack. I have to do the rear now as I only have about 10% left apparently.

I had the exhaust shield issue as well - it fell off due to rust (I have the piece as I noticed when it fell off and picked it up). The dealer said it's not replaceable and I called Mitsu to double check. They confirmed so I left it at that. Mitsu said that the new cars don't have the shield at all. I'm yet to check on that.

No other issues although I noticed occasional suspension/steering clunk when making a sharp turn, under acceleration, in very low temperatures (-15 Celsius or below) but they seem to go away once the car warms up. I'll check it out with the dealership at the next visit since it seems like it's not only me.