I was washing my 2004 Screw sunday and noticed the rotors looked like an old record, grooves all over. I have less than 24000 mile on this truck and I have not heard any squealing at all, tons of brake dust but I figured that was normal. It's recently been to the dealer also, and they have not said anything about needing pads replaced and rotors turned. Is it time to do a preemptive brake job?
Thanks in advance.

Steaks

 

great timing, i noticed the same thing on my 2004 scab 4x4 that has 27,000 miles and i just had it in the shop as well so any advice would be much appreciated

 

not unless the brake pads are near the wear indicator. the grooves are "normal"...just make sure you re-machine the rotors after you change pads. don't fix it unless it's broken

 

I agree with tylus,
Dont throw good money away replacing parts that still have wear left in them.

 

It is time to do a brake inspection. If the rotors are cut you would want to make sure they are within the safe thickness limits

 

Thanks,

I have to agree with the "if it aint broke" theory. The grooves aren't that bad but noticable to the touch and pads aren't near the wear indicators. Just another thing to keep on my watch list.

Steaks

 

My rotors have been like that since day one. 04 with 20k

 

If the rotors are not warped I wouldn't machine them even if you put on new pads. Groves are not anything to worry about. I am on a new set of pads both back and front, left the rotors alone, yes there were some groves. No problem with anything!
If you machine them out you are cutting away good metal, and could possibly get to the low end of the spec.

 

they do build a pretty good tolerance into the rotors to allow for machining. the grooves won't hurt anything if they're shallow, but you'll get your best braking results with a nice flat smooth surface.

 

I have the same problem with my 04' 4x4 Screw 27,000 miles. Front rotor's have alot of uneven groves and the rear rotor's have a few small groves.
I took my truck into the dealership a week ago and talked with the salesman that sold me the truck 2 years ago. I have bought all of my vehicles through this piticular salesman so we have a very good relationship.
He did some checking and pulled up a TSB addressing this issue. According to this TSB the rotors are defective and need to be replaced with a thicker rotor. Everything is covered under the factory 3yr/36000 mile warranty. I am also gonna have the acceleration issue taken care of at the same time. Another TSB states my piticular 04' Screw 5.4L needs the computer flashed to reset the factory spec's, that should improve my accelleration problems. TSB's are not recalls, so they will not contact you. They are bulletins sent to the sevice dept's advising them of chronic problems. It's up to you to bring these issues up to them.
If you are still under your factory warranty I think you should have your Ford dealership fix it. Uneven groved rotors are not normal and are not safe. Your rotors are supposed to be smooth. If it looks bad get it fixed, ignoring it will only cost you alot of money out of your own pocket.
The "if it's not broke don't fix it" attitude is crazy. You have a factory warranty use it.
If you need the exact TSB REFERENCE NUMBER send me a email. Good Luck.

 

I had mine replaced under warranty along with the calipers. While it was there I had them install ceramic pads. No more squeel and no more dust!

 

AZSANDMAN good information, thanks for your post... taking into another dealer tomorrow morning.

 

I think the TSB really addresses vibration while stopping, not grooves in the rotors. I don't think you are going to get new rotors if all you are complaining about is grooves in the rotor. The TSB only addresses the fronts not the rear.
BTW the brake dust is normal, the only way to rid the truck of the brake dust is replace the pads with ceramic pads.

 

Thats a different TSB. The one I have clearly states the rotors are defective if they have groves in them. It then states the groves will commonly cause a vibration when braking. It then shows a picture of the defective rotors and a picture of the replacement rotor that is a thicker rotor. I'll let you know how it goes when I take mine in next week.
As far as I'm concerned it is not normal to have groves in the rotors regardless of size.

 

the grooves will happen on all vehicles...they will vary in size, but they will be there. the F-150 weighs so much that this is the cause. I have a buddy who drag races his 02 Firebird and his rotors groove out from braking at 130+ to 0 mph.

if Ford is willing to replace the rotors, go for it. I consider the rotors to be a "wear" item like a clutch and brake pads are. that is why I don't consider light grooving to be a problem. I also always resurface my rotors with each brake change until the minimum thickness is reached