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Sedans Volkswagen Jetta Volkswagen Jetta Brakes and Rotors
177 messages, Last post on Nov 29, 2009 at 2:45 AM
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Replying to: lupusdoll (Mar 10, 2009 6:36 pm) |
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Replying to: lilsillyducky (Jan 15, 2009 12:39 pm) For a while, I thought it might be normal, but the brake dust keeps piling up. I'm going to take it into the dealer for service next week and see what they say. I know that I'm going to have to replace the disk brake pads regularly, but if this keeps up, I'll be replacing them at every oil change! I'll let you know what they tell me.
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Replying to: nwjeffor (Apr 25, 2009 1:27 pm) |
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| We have a 04 Jetta TDI. Just recently the brakes would occasionally not work when we pressed on the petal. If we pressed hard enough, it would barely stop the car. Took it to the mechanic and they seem to be working fine now, but we noticed when we pumped the brakes fast, each time after the last pump the pressure would build up until about the fifth pump we could hardly push down at all. If we pumped slower the build up of the pressure wasn't noticeable, but when we pump rapidly the brakes definitely appear to not be working. Our mechanic didn't have an answer and we're not sure if we should take it in again, since the brakes work if they are not pumped. Any ideas on the pressure build up? | |
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Replying to: nwjeffor (Apr 25, 2009 1:27 pm) Oh well ... car seems to be running just fine now! |
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I've sent the below to VW corp, and also followed up with a verbal complaint. I also filed a compliant with the HHTSA regarding this matter ODI Number: 10267962. The below is wordy, but the truth is pretty basic. VW is applying a conventional braking system in an unconventional way, and the result is a predictable and unannounced premature wear of the rear components. The front brakes are bigger, and have the wear sensors. Pretty obvious where they thought the wear would be. Too bad the reality is different. In 20k miles I am now on my third set of rear pads. The original front pads are still at 13 mm. Its clear there is too much rear bias, given the small components and lack or wear sensor. This is for my "safety" I am told. Funny how no one at VW can tell me how my safety is benefited when I have to make an emergency stop with an unknown and unanticipated (by a reasonable person) rear pad failure. The physical design (larger front components, wear sensor on front), and lack of user manual cautions/warning result in a reasonable person assuming front wear occurs first, and therein lies the danger of this system. VW does not seem willing to predict how safe my rear biased braking will be when metal hits metal at speed, and they explicitly refused my request for an extended warranty on the new pads. Pretty clear VW does not expect the rear pads to last much more than 12K, else why not agree to a written extension in the vein of customer satisfaction? FWIW, I was told by the service manager that the pads are a new, harder material. That is OK if they combined it with new, thicker rotors. As my originals rotors were left in place I feel that VW is attempting to extend rear pad wear at the expense of rear rotors, such that I may get to 13K miles, which means no warranty on the pads, and now I also get the good news that I also need new rotors. After arriving home from freeway driving on the new pads I found the rear rims where hot enough to boil away water. That’s the rims, not the rotor. And this after being assured that all is well with my fine German, engineered braking systems that is designed with my safety in mind. [begin official complaint] To whom it may concern. This letter is to express my dissatisfaction with rear brake performance on my 2007 Jetta. The summary is extremely rapid rear pad wear, while then front, which have the wear sensor, remain unscathed. This is a known issue and the dealer admits its part of a “safe braking” design that tries to make the car squat rather than dive. The problem is, this is an unconventional method of brake application (rear biased when physics has the fronts normally doing more work), combined with a conventional brake design that has smaller parts and no wear sensors in the rear. The result of this “safety feature” is that I can expect to wear out rear pads faster than front, in as little as 9-10K miles. The problem is a reasonably minded person would not come to this conclusion, and the lack of a rear pad wear warning system creates a potential safety issue. The user manual does not warn that rear pads may wear faster, and in fact indicates they should be inspected each 10 k, or when the front wear sensor illuminates. Both of these cases may be too late, leading at best to expensive repairs when the rotors are damaged, or worse, to unpredictable braking in an emergency. If I have my car inspected at 10K, and the rears are still serviceable, I do not believe they would make it to 20K. With the stated inspection schedule and lack of explicit warning sensor the brakes should be expected to last at least 20K miles. The service manager at NCV tells me this level or wear is normal and to be expected on this car. Because my brakes are “working as designed” there is to fix. This is the problem and root of my complaint. The design is flawed. If they chose to design a vehicle that brakes from the rear they can reasonably expect more rear wear. A reasonable design would then increase the size of those parts, and ensure that wear sensors are positioned at the point of wear. In this design the front brakes are bigger and are equipped with the wear indicator. Ironically the fronts do not leave any appreciable brake dust, which combined with their current 13 mm thickness clearly shows there not doing much. In contrast, the rear brakes are smaller, have no wear indicator, and within days both rear wheels are blanketed in a thick layer of soot. And I am to believe this is normal, and for my safety. I bought this car for my daughter, who does not care much of things brakes and such. I cannot expect to her to diligently visually inspect the rear brakes before each drive. And despite being within warranty both the dealer and manufacture state rear biased brake application is an intentional aspect of the design, again for my safety, and that there is nothing that can be done, except stay on top of it and get a free set of pads within the 12k warranty on a on-going basis. That is not a fix, it’s a work around. If the window sticker indicated the vehicle needed brakes approximately every 9 months, for my safety of course, I would have walked away laughing. Now, it’s not so funny. Details: The car was bought as certified used with some 18K miles, and we immediately noticed the rear wheels were always covered in brake dust. The front wheels have never shown any appreciable pad materials. I have no idea if new brakes were fitted as part of the certified new car. I was not concerned with the rear brakes at the time. While getting warranty service for an airbag warning light at New Century Volkswagen (NCV), we pointed out the rear wheel dust and we were told it was normal. At 27,075 (9K later) the car needed tires; the mechanic told us the rear brakes were worn, and that the fronts were still at 90%. At the time of the repair it was confirmed that OEM specified replacement brake pads would be used. The returned pads are Textar, 2391401, and are confirmed to be of OEM quality (http://www.tmd-friction.com/). VW refused warranty consideration on the pads because they were not bought through VW, even though VW buys there pads from other sources; they refused to make any attempt to see if they were “officially supported”, which I believe they are and which they should be able to easily confirm. We immediately noticed the same abundance of dust on the rear wheels. I confirmed neither wheel was locked (both spun with out excessive drag), and brought the car back to the mechanic on 09/23/08. They too inspected the brakes and said nothing was dragging and to monitor. If continued they would put new pads on for 50% off. Approximately 10,000 miles later and the rear pads are almost worn to metal while the front pads show no additional wear. It was obvious that something was not right so we scheduled emergency service with NCV. As noted the outcome was the determination the brakes are working as desi
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I have a 2009 Jetta S Auto w/about 600 miles on it and my brakes are already letting out a loud squealing sound about 25% of the time that I brake to a full stop. According to the dealership, "the brakes on a vw are vented rotors, no squeak or rust prevention can be used on them or it wont vent the heat of the brakes properly. The noise you hear is surface rust being removed from the rotor." Does this sound like a legit explanation?
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Replying to: drdata (May 07, 2009 12:24 pm) |
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Replying to: dvsgelatin (May 19, 2009 7:53 am) |
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I checked this forum because my wife's 2003 Jetta wagon started emanating uggly noises from the rear recently, which I found rather odd, based on my nearly 40yrs of driving (rear brakes wearing out before fronts, that is). Having spent the past 30 mins reading the various complaints/rants, however, I guess I should consider myself incredibly fortunate, as this 5-speed car has over 151,000 less-than-gentle miles on the original brake pads. Granted well over half are highway miles, but my wife doesn't baby the brakes and we always use the parking brake. I know this doesn't make the people who are having problems feel any better, but I felt it was important to share our positive experience. Mark, in NC
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