uneven brake pad wear on an 06 DC

jmo · #1 (**permalink**) 05-21-2008, 10:46 AM

Hi All,

I have a 2006 DC Tundra with about 26k miles, and when I rotated my tires this Spring I noticed on the drivers side front the outer brake pad has worn significantly faster than the inner pad? I'd say the inner pad has twice as much left on it.

I saw the other post mentioning that build up of rust can cause one side to drag and hence uneven wear - but is that really applicable with a 2 year old truck?

Should this be covered under warranty? I was going to replace the pads myself given the outer pad is reaching the end of its life, but I don't want to end up in this situation again, especially since my previous 2 toyota trucks I had on average got 50k out of a set of pads based on my driving habits.

Thanks in advance,

jmo

MEvang · #2 (**permalink**) 05-22-2008, 06:36 AM

It is unlike that the pistons are sticking but if they are the calipers should be covered under warranty. You have nothing to loose by having the dealer take a look at it. If they don't believe there is a problem, make them document your concerns. I don't think they will cover the pads and if they don't tell them you will do them yourself. Just see if they will do anything with the caliper.
Mike

jmo · #3 (**permalink**) 05-23-2008, 09:13 AM

Thanks for the response MEvang.

I did take into the dealership yesterday and while they did acknowledge the uneven wear, they said the difference was within the acceptable tolerances Toyota publishes and that with the heavier vehicles like the Tundra its common that the outer pad wears out ahead of the inner pad. They checked the caliper and pistons and said they were all in working order.

jmo

MEvang · #4 (**permalink**) 05-23-2008, 08:16 PM

Well that sounds like a pretty tall tale.

Never knew there was an uneven pad tolerance. My factory manual doesn't have this specification. A fixed caliper should get pretty even pad wear.
Let's hope they even checked it. If the did, and the caliper pistons are not sticking, you could have a build up of rust on the edge of the pads causing them to stick in the caliper housing slightly. Or it could just be a compound problem with one pad. I would suggest you just keep an eye on that one pad. Replace the set if it get too close.
Mike