Brake issues on 2015 535 xdrive

BKraft · 09-01-2020, 06:43 AM

I’m new here - both to the forum and to BMW, so bear with me. I did do a search, but didn’t find anything exactly like I’m looking for.

I have a 2015 535 xdrive. When it was time to get brakes, I ended up going to the shop because I was slightly intimidated by the car (probably shouldn’t have been, but... )

So the car was great before the shop had it. Since it’s come back, there is a terrible vibration at one point in the pedal travel. If you stop harder, or lighter, it’s fine. To me, it feels like a warped rotor.

It’s my wife’s car, I didn’t drive it when it first came back so didn’t know. Then Covid hit and it’s been awhile since we’ve been anywhere. With the time that’s past, I don’t feel like I can take it back to the shop and complain and I don’t want to give them any more money, so I decided to look at it myself.

The shop charged me just over $600 and when I asked what that was for, they said “everything, all the way around”. I guess their definition of everything and mine are slightly different because when I looked at the bill, they had replaced pads all the way around and 2 sensors. No rotors.

So my first stupid question.... all of the Full brake kits I’ve been seeing Come with 4 rotors, 4 sets of pads and 4 sensors. Do not all cars have 4 sensors? I only have 2. When I pulled the wheels, I have one on the driver side front and one on the passenger rear. The passenger rear is definitely new. The drivers front... I will assume it’s new, I can’t really tell as the pads they put on throw an ungodly amount of brake dust. It’s really terrible. Anyway, 2 sensors... is that normal? I don’t need one on each wheel?

Second problem - Potential warped rotor. When I pulled the wheels, I also examined sway bar links and stuff which all looked fine. Of course, rotors *look* fine, but you can’t always see warping or shallow points by eye. I didn’t have a dial gauge with me. When I spin the rotor, there is a noticeable place where there is drag. It spins free... spins free... spins free... definite resistance spinning... spins free... spins free... spins free... definite resistance spinning... Is that normal? I was expecting ordinary resistance spinning the rotor all the way around. I wasn’t expecting one area that was harder to turn through. I was thinking I may have found the issue (drivers front), but when I checked the passenger front, it does the same thing. So I’m not sure if that’s normal or not.

Looking for any ideas or suggestions on things to look for or try to identify the issue. Thanks.

Surly73 · 09-01-2020, 07:06 AM

Welcome!

There are only two sensors on opposite corners. Going OE they're only about $15

You could have bad bushing or similar amplifying a brake vibration issue but with the way it started suddenly that might not be it.

Nothing is perfectly "round" or "flat". You will probably ALWAYS find that there's a spot in the rotation with more drag. The question is whether it's within tolerance to feel or not. Sounds like yours is not. Sometimes stuff like this is made worse by lug nuts being grossly unevenly torqued, or the rotor set screw being way too tight, or other things.

Generally - I always replace rotors at my brake jobs. If for no other reason it's the road salt corrosion on the edges (including the inside of the hats) in my area. By the time I've worn down a set of pads there's enough of a wear groove and edge corrosion that I just want to replace the rotors even if by strict specification I don't need to.

Did they attempt to machine ("turn") the rotors or just install new pads? Do you see any visible evidence of uneven pad deposits on the rotor? It might look like a ghost image of the pad stamped on the rotor. Most occurrences of "warped rotor" vibration are actually deposits causing uneven friction.

Does it look like both front caliper retaining springs/clips are properly installed? Those are a bear to get installed DIY working solo. The only other intimidating part is retracting the rear parking brake actuator - the proper procedure involves a scantool or laptop with the proper software to issue the retract instruction. Shadetree workarounds include screwing it in by hand, running the actuator in reverse with a car battery etc...

For the driving pleasure of your German car - I would recommend changing out the rotors. Then comes the decision of what kind of rotors. The factory parts are two piece (aluminum hat, cast iron braking surface). Many "OE" replacement parts, even from top notch manufacturers like Zimmerman, are single piece cast. There's inconclusive debate out there about whether BMW revised the spec to one-piece because of issues, but the new cars continue to come with two piece. Personally, I paid the extra to stick with two-piece. Mine were premium high carbon rotors from Pagid. If you can find someone who sells them, I believe Zimmerman and maybe Brembo offer both one and two piece designs you just need to be careful about the part#. You don't need to get "genuine BMW" to still get quality.

I'd almost be willing to bet if you went to your average indy garage, you'd get single-piece cast rotors. Maybe they'd be fine, maybe not, but definitely heavier.

BKraft · 09-01-2020, 07:57 AM

Thanks for that. It mimics my thinking... One thing I didn’t mention is that on both the front driver and front passenger there was one lug that was grossly over-torqued. I have no idea what they torqued it to, but holy crap was it a bear getting it off. Luckily, nothing snapped and I got them Tu on with correct pressure when I put back together.

They did not replace any rotors, only pads. The rotors really do look terrific, though. But had I done it myself, I would have replaced them anyway.

I’m seriously leaning toward buying a front brake kit from a reputable source (not going to AutoZone or the like) and replacing the front brakes myself. Then see what happens...

Surly73 · 09-01-2020, 12:02 PM

When was the lug super-tight? Before the brake job or after? Did you find it like that when experiencing vibration?

That one overtightened lug can cause vibration for sure, the rotor will wobble a little.

If you're handy enough (sounds like you are) and know how to do it safely feel free to put the car up, remove wheels, look around, check and inspect, and properly reinstall and retorque the wheels (final torque on the ground) by the book. See if there's any improvement. Check the major bushings in the front end for cracks while you're looking.

lsturbointeg · 09-01-2020, 01:30 PM

did i read that correctly $600 just to replace pads?

BKraft · 09-01-2020, 03:37 PM

Haha. You read it correctly. I was thinking $600 included rotors... at $600 for just pads I’d have walked. But yeah.

So the lug was tight after they replaced the pads. I never had any reason to remove the tires before the pads were replaced, so I can only assume they were torqued down correctly. When I went to pull the wheels after the brake job to investigate this vibration, that’s when I found the overtightened lugs.... which didn’t impress me about the brake service, either.

I pulled the wheels and examined bushings and everything while I was under there. Nothing looked worn or cracked. I couldn’t discern anything loose by pulling on stuff, but I’m not as strong as the car is heavy... so that’s not always the best check. That said, everything looked ok. I put the wheels back on and torqued the lugs properly.

I’m still thinking of just replacing the rotors (I had been looking at Zimmerman before your post and most likely will go that route) and pads and seeing where it puts me. Like I said, the brake dust coming out of these pads is unreal. I’d rather buy some stuff that I know is decent quality, replace what’s on there and see if teh issue doesn’t go away. I mean, at this point, I’ve already wasted $600 on a crap brake replacement... what’s another couple hundred?

Surly73 · 09-02-2020, 07:04 AM

So you're saying that retorquing the wheels after you found the one bolt overtorqued hasn't helped the vibration in any way? Just confirming.

European brake pads dust like crazy - that's not an indication of poor quality. The F10 was the first Euro car I ever had where the factory pads were switched to a ceramic and were "low dust". I also found them to be "low bite" and purposely went out of my way to find a more traditional pad which would stop the car more like I liked at the expense of dust.

To be fair, they aren't "low bite", they are there when you initially apply the pedal, but I did not find that brake torque increased with pedal pressure in a way that inspires confidence in your ability to stop, or drive "spirited". My 535 has probably the largest dimension brakes I've had on a Euro car, but felt the weakest.

Of course determining all of this was hours/days/weeks of online putzing around, asking questions online, and trying to figure out what's going on. BMW doesn't tell you they changed the factory pad compound, enthusiasts are left guessing, investigating etc... The lack of dust was a telltale sign for me.

If your brake job was done with a good Euro OE compound, your dusty brakes might be stopping better than a ceramic dealer replacement pad. My dustier fronts are more confidence inspiring. I'll likely be installing dustier rears before the snow flies.

BKraft · 09-02-2020, 08:41 AM

Thanks again. I don’t drive it a lot these days - still working at home from Covid situation. I pulled them and looked Saturday. I actually took it out this morning to go get some breakfast and was thinking that the issue was much less pronounced. So retourqing may have helped somewhat. To be honest, for me, it’s so negligible now, I might just let it go a bit and see what happens.... but my wife is fairly sensitive to it and it bothers her (it’s her car), so I still may go ahead and spend the money to replace the fronts to try and bring things back to normal.

Surly73 · 09-02-2020, 12:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BKraft

Thanks again. I don’t drive it a lot these days - still working at home from Covid situation. I pulled them and looked Saturday. I actually took it out this morning to go get some breakfast and was thinking that the issue was much less pronounced. So retourqing may have helped somewhat. To be honest, for me, it’s so negligible now, I might just let it go a bit and see what happens.... but my wife is fairly sensitive to it and it bothers her (it’s her car), so I still may go ahead and spend the money to replace the fronts to try and bring things back to normal.

OK got it - I would definitely put a few miles on it to test it out after retorquing. If nothing more is required you might be all good. If the vibration is fairly mild, but now you're hypersensitive looking for it, you may be down to a base level of vibration which was there before but you didn't notice.

My factory fronts developed a little vibration which I lived with. With new rotors last Dec I really noticed the improvement and loved it. Some vibration is creeping back in though. Some say the two piece rotors promote the problem, but I don't see a great deal of hard evidence for that.

TZ · 09-02-2020, 07:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BKraft

Thanks again. I don’t drive it a lot these days - still working at home from Covid situation. I pulled them and looked Saturday. I actually took it out this morning to go get some breakfast and was thinking that the issue was much less pronounced. So retourqing may have helped somewhat. To be honest, for me, it’s so negligible now, I might just let it go a bit and see what happens.... but my wife is fairly sensitive to it and it bothers her (it’s her car), so I still may go ahead and spend the money to replace the fronts to try and bring things back to normal.

Replacing the front rotors actually is not a hard DIY job. I just did it recently. You don't even need to remove the pads. You can just simply remove the whole caliber with the pads on. The only challenge part is the caliber nuts which you need a breaker bar. Also turn the wheel to allow more room for the breaker bar.

I had a pulsated brake on highway which is typical caused by warp rotors.

dzz · 09-02-2020, 08:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TZ

Replacing the front rotors actually is not a hard DIY job. I just did it recently. You don't even need to remove the pads. You can just simply remove the whole caliber with the pads on. The only challenge part is the caliber nuts which you need a breaker bar. Also turn the wheel to allow more room for the breaker bar.

I had a pulsated brake on highway which is typical caused by warp rotors.

I just did front and rear rotors and brake pads. It is fairly simple process, just need to be able to retract rear brake actuators either manually or using some sort of OBD tool or ISTA. If you are replacing rotors, I would replace brake pads too to minimize chance of vibration and also you then don't need to do worry about brakes for a few years

Surly73 · 09-03-2020, 07:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TZ

Replacing the front rotors actually is not a hard DIY job.

Correct. The hardest part of the front brake job is the

spring clip

GrabacrOne · 09-05-2020, 06:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Surly73

So you're saying that retorquing the wheels after you found the one bolt overtorqued hasn't helped the vibration in any way? Just confirming.

European brake pads dust like crazy - that's not an indication of poor quality. The F10 was the first Euro car I ever had where the factory pads were switched to a ceramic and were "low dust". I also found them to be "low bite" and purposely went out of my way to find a more traditional pad which would stop the car more like I liked at the expense of dust.

To be fair, they aren't "low bite", they are there when you initially apply the pedal, but I did not find that brake torque increased with pedal pressure in a way that inspires confidence in your ability to stop, or drive "spirited". My 535 has probably the largest dimension brakes I've had on a Euro car, but felt the weakest.

Of course determining all of this was hours/days/weeks of online putzing around, asking questions online, and trying to figure out what's going on. BMW doesn't tell you they changed the factory pad compound, enthusiasts are left guessing, investigating etc... The lack of dust was a telltale sign for me.

If your brake job was done with a good Euro OE compound, your dusty brakes might be stopping better than a ceramic dealer replacement pad. My dustier fronts are more confidence inspiring. I'll likely be installing dustier rears before the snow flies.

I want to switch to a set of pads with more bite and better confidence. I agree that the F10 has some of the weakest-feeling brakes of BMWs I've driven. Do you have the brand/part no. for the dustier pads you switched to? Are these semi-metallic pads (assuming the BMW part is a ceramic)? I'm willing to trade off brake dust for better feeling brakes.

Surly73 · 09-05-2020, 07:14 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GrabacrOne

I want to switch to a set of pads with more bite and better confidence. I agree that the F10 has some of the weakest-feeling brakes of BMWs I've driven. Do you have the brand/part no. for the dustier pads you switched to? Are these semi-metallic pads (assuming the BMW part is a ceramic)? I'm willing to trade off brake dust for better feeling brakes.

I was in the same boat and having a heck of a time figuring out how to order "inferior" dusty OEM pads on purpose. I'll get back to you with what I ended up with. I believe it was one of the PAGID pads from ECS (although they have, like, 3 which all seem to fit but are different "somehow" which they themselves cannot advise you on. Gotta love it).

GrabacrOne · 09-05-2020, 07:45 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Surly73

I was in the same boat and having a heck of a time figuring out how to order "inferior" dusty OEM pads on purpose. I'll get back to you with what I ended up with. I believe it was one of the PAGID pads from ECS (although they have, like, 3 which all seem to fit but are different "somehow" which they themselves cannot advise you on. Gotta love it).

I see what you mean. I am seeing at least 2 PAGID pads for 535i without high speed brakes (for those of us in the US/NA): ECS #3191255 for BMW part no. 34116850885 and ECS #3023981 for BMW part no. 34116850886. Both seem to have a GG friction rating based on pictures (but so do the Textars ECS #3191254 with BMW part no. 34116850885). These ones all physically look different to the Genuine BMW part ECS #2210473 (which says Jurid on the back) so perhaps these are all semi-metallics. Any idea what the difference between BMW 885 and 886 part nos. are?

Please let me know. I've always heard go OEM for best brake feel but no one usually specifies which OEM part they go with and there is variation even in the OE supplier parts.

Sorry to hijack the thread OP!

Surly73 · 09-07-2020, 05:06 AM

I purchased:

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-pagid-parts/front-brake-pad-set/34116850886~hla/

Mfg Part #: 34116850886
ECS Part #: ES#3023981
Brand: Pagid

They are definitely dustier, like I remember every other European car I've had before the F10. It's not a miracle cure but I do believe that the stopping power increases more with pedal pressure than with the factory pads.

Things which I later (post purchase) found to be significant (take a look at the picture showing all the text on the rear of the pads):

1/ The marking 90R is a Euro-required standards compliance. It means the pads are tested and rated for high demand European stopping. However you'll see the marking on all of the pad options available (a good thing)

2/ The marking "GG" - the "DOT Pad Code"
http://faculty.ccbcmd.edu/~smacadof/DOTPadCodes.htm

These markings identify coefficient of friction ratings at 250F and 600F. They should indicate how well the pads will stop when "warm" and "hot". That website says "GG" (the markings on those pads) is "very rare".

Searching on these parameters yields some interesting discussions (example). I'd like to do more reading on this kind of thing prior to my next purchase.

Unfortunately I have no idea what came off the car, but I did notice that my rears are FF or FE I think, installed as replacements by the dealer under extended service plan.

Beware of anything like FG, having noticeably more friction at 600F, which may indicate that it is too performance oriented.

GrabacrOne · 09-09-2020, 01:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Surly73

I purchased:

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-pagid-parts/front-brake-pad-set/34116850886~hla/

Mfg Part #: 34116850886
ECS Part #: ES#3023981
Brand: Pagid

They are definitely dustier, like I remember every other European car I've had before the F10. It's not a miracle cure but I do believe that the stopping power increases more with pedal pressure than with the factory pads.

Things which I later (post purchase) found to be significant (take a look at the picture showing all the text on the rear of the pads):

1/ The marking 90R is a Euro-required standards compliance. It means the pads are tested and rated for high demand European stopping. However you'll see the marking on all of the pad options available (a good thing)

2/ The marking "GG" - the "DOT Pad Code"
http://faculty.ccbcmd.edu/~smacadof/DOTPadCodes.htm

These markings identify coefficient of friction ratings at 250F and 600F. They should indicate how well the pads will stop when "warm" and "hot". That website says "GG" (the markings on those pads) is "very rare".

Searching on these parameters yields some interesting discussions (example). I'd like to do more reading on this kind of thing prior to my next purchase.

Unfortunately I have no idea what came off the car, but I did notice that my rears are FF or FE I think, installed as replacements by the dealer under extended service plan.

Beware of anything like FG, having noticeably more friction at 600F, which may indicate that it is too performance oriented.

Thanks for the info. I will look into this when doing the brakes in a few months. I'm thinking of just going with the OEM 2-piece rotors (BMW, Pagid, or Pilenga). Did you pair these with the Pagid rear pads (ECS #3032826) as well, which are GF-rated?

Surly73 · 09-09-2020, 01:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by GrabacrOne

Thanks for the info. I will look into this when doing the brakes in a few months. I'm thinking of just going with the OEM 2-piece rotors (BMW, Pagid, or Pilenga). Did you pair these with the Pagid rear pads (ECS #3032826) as well, which are GF-rated?

I haven't done the rears yet, but it's scheduled for "before snow" this fall.

I already have Textar pads on hand, and will likely be ordering Pagid or ATE 2 piece rotors (depending on the price breaks I can find in the next few weeks). I had adopted the habit of ordering within the US to a delivery/holding company near the bridge and saving lots of money on shipping and whatnot. With COVID that option isn't on the table and between suppliers who outright don't ship to Canada or shipping is $100+ I have to shop around a lot harder for this stuff.

Good chance it will be Pagid 2 piece from Rock Auto.

The Textar pads are from FCP and are actually FF (I learned about those markings after I purchased) https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/bmw...textar-2456101

For what it's worth, BMW original rears are FF too.

09-01-2020, 06:43 AM	#1
BKraft Registered 0 Rep 4 Posts Drives: 338i Join Date: Jul 2018 Location: Wake Forest, NC iTrader: (0)	Brake issues on 2015 535 xdrive I’m new here - both to the forum and to BMW, so bear with me. I did do a search, but didn’t find anything exactly like I’m looking for. I have a 2015 535 xdrive. When it was time to get brakes, I ended up going to the shop because I was slightly intimidated by the car (probably shouldn’t have been, but... ) So the car was great before the shop had it. Since it’s come back, there is a terrible vibration at one point in the pedal travel. If you stop harder, or lighter, it’s fine. To me, it feels like a warped rotor. It’s my wife’s car, I didn’t drive it when it first came back so didn’t know. Then Covid hit and it’s been awhile since we’ve been anywhere. With the time that’s past, I don’t feel like I can take it back to the shop and complain and I don’t want to give them any more money, so I decided to look at it myself. The shop charged me just over $600 and when I asked what that was for, they said “everything, all the way around”. I guess their definition of everything and mine are slightly different because when I looked at the bill, they had replaced pads all the way around and 2 sensors. No rotors. So my first stupid question.... all of the Full brake kits I’ve been seeing Come with 4 rotors, 4 sets of pads and 4 sensors. Do not all cars have 4 sensors? I only have 2. When I pulled the wheels, I have one on the driver side front and one on the passenger rear. The passenger rear is definitely new. The drivers front... I will assume it’s new, I can’t really tell as the pads they put on throw an ungodly amount of brake dust. It’s really terrible. Anyway, 2 sensors... is that normal? I don’t need one on each wheel? Second problem - Potential warped rotor. When I pulled the wheels, I also examined sway bar links and stuff which all looked fine. Of course, rotors look fine, but you can’t always see warping or shallow points by eye. I didn’t have a dial gauge with me. When I spin the rotor, there is a noticeable place where there is drag. It spins free... spins free... spins free... definite resistance spinning... spins free... spins free... spins free... definite resistance spinning... Is that normal? I was expecting ordinary resistance spinning the rotor all the way around. I wasn’t expecting one area that was harder to turn through. I was thinking I may have found the issue (drivers front), but when I checked the passenger front, it does the same thing. So I’m not sure if that’s normal or not. Looking for any ideas or suggestions on things to look for or try to identify the issue. Thanks.
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09-01-2020, 12:02 PM	#4
Surly73 Lieutenant Colonel 534 Rep 1,873 Posts Drives: '11 535xi 8AT KWv3 MPE MHD xHP Join Date: May 2012 Location: Oakville, Ontario iTrader: (1)	When was the lug super-tight? Before the brake job or after? Did you find it like that when experiencing vibration? That one overtightened lug can cause vibration for sure, the rotor will wobble a little. If you're handy enough (sounds like you are) and know how to do it safely feel free to put the car up, remove wheels, look around, check and inspect, and properly reinstall and retorque the wheels (final torque on the ground) by the book. See if there's any improvement. Check the major bushings in the front end for cracks while you're looking. Last edited by Surly73; 09-01-2020 at 12:07 PM..
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09-01-2020, 01:30 PM	#5
lsturbointeg Lieutenant General 9153 Rep 14,522 Posts Drives: 2011 535i Jet Black Join Date: Aug 2014 Location: Asian lost in OH iTrader: (0)	did i read that correctly $600 just to replace pads? __________________ ~F90Conversion~21"3Piece Forged AvantGardeWheels~KWV1Coilovers~CQUENCE slotted/drilled rotors~GoodridgeStainlesslines~MeisterschaftQuadEx haust~Akrapovic 4"tips~VRSF DP~VRSF CP~TurboSmart BOV~K&N filter~CarbonFiberExteriorComponents~GladenAlphaCo mponents~MatchUp7BMW~Punch P300-12T~ Follow me on Instagram: lsturbointeg
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09-01-2020, 03:37 PM	#6
BKraft Registered 0 Rep 4 Posts Drives: 338i Join Date: Jul 2018 Location: Wake Forest, NC iTrader: (0)	Haha. You read it correctly. I was thinking $600 included rotors... at $600 for just pads I’d have walked. But yeah. So the lug was tight after they replaced the pads. I never had any reason to remove the tires before the pads were replaced, so I can only assume they were torqued down correctly. When I went to pull the wheels after the brake job to investigate this vibration, that’s when I found the overtightened lugs.... which didn’t impress me about the brake service, either. I pulled the wheels and examined bushings and everything while I was under there. Nothing looked worn or cracked. I couldn’t discern anything loose by pulling on stuff, but I’m not as strong as the car is heavy... so that’s not always the best check. That said, everything looked ok. I put the wheels back on and torqued the lugs properly. I’m still thinking of just replacing the rotors (I had been looking at Zimmerman before your post and most likely will go that route) and pads and seeing where it puts me. Like I said, the brake dust coming out of these pads is unreal. I’d rather buy some stuff that I know is decent quality, replace what’s on there and see if teh issue doesn’t go away. I mean, at this point, I’ve already wasted $600 on a crap brake replacement... what’s another couple hundred?
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09-02-2020, 07:04 AM	#7
Surly73 Lieutenant Colonel 534 Rep 1,873 Posts Drives: '11 535xi 8AT KWv3 MPE MHD xHP Join Date: May 2012 Location: Oakville, Ontario iTrader: (1)	So you're saying that retorquing the wheels after you found the one bolt overtorqued hasn't helped the vibration in any way? Just confirming. European brake pads dust like crazy - that's not an indication of poor quality. The F10 was the first Euro car I ever had where the factory pads were switched to a ceramic and were "low dust". I also found them to be "low bite" and purposely went out of my way to find a more traditional pad which would stop the car more like I liked at the expense of dust. To be fair, they aren't "low bite", they are there when you initially apply the pedal, but I did not find that brake torque increased with pedal pressure in a way that inspires confidence in your ability to stop, or drive "spirited". My 535 has probably the largest dimension brakes I've had on a Euro car, but felt the weakest. Of course determining all of this was hours/days/weeks of online putzing around, asking questions online, and trying to figure out what's going on. BMW doesn't tell you they changed the factory pad compound, enthusiasts are left guessing, investigating etc... The lack of dust was a telltale sign for me. If your brake job was done with a good Euro OE compound, your dusty brakes might be stopping better than a ceramic dealer replacement pad. My dustier fronts are more confidence inspiring. I'll likely be installing dustier rears before the snow flies.
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09-01-2020, 07:06 AM	#2
Surly73 Lieutenant Colonel 534 Rep 1,873 Posts Drives: '11 535xi 8AT KWv3 MPE MHD xHP Join Date: May 2012 Location: Oakville, Ontario iTrader: (1)	Welcome! There are only two sensors on opposite corners. Going OE they're only about $15 You could have bad bushing or similar amplifying a brake vibration issue but with the way it started suddenly that might not be it. Nothing is perfectly "round" or "flat". You will probably ALWAYS find that there's a spot in the rotation with more drag. The question is whether it's within tolerance to feel or not. Sounds like yours is not. Sometimes stuff like this is made worse by lug nuts being grossly unevenly torqued, or the rotor set screw being way too tight, or other things. Generally - I always replace rotors at my brake jobs. If for no other reason it's the road salt corrosion on the edges (including the inside of the hats) in my area. By the time I've worn down a set of pads there's enough of a wear groove and edge corrosion that I just want to replace the rotors even if by strict specification I don't need to. Did they attempt to machine ("turn") the rotors or just install new pads? Do you see any visible evidence of uneven pad deposits on the rotor? It might look like a ghost image of the pad stamped on the rotor. Most occurrences of "warped rotor" vibration are actually deposits causing uneven friction. Does it look like both front caliper retaining springs/clips are properly installed? Those are a bear to get installed DIY working solo. The only other intimidating part is retracting the rear parking brake actuator - the proper procedure involves a scantool or laptop with the proper software to issue the retract instruction. Shadetree workarounds include screwing it in by hand, running the actuator in reverse with a car battery etc... For the driving pleasure of your German car - I would recommend changing out the rotors. Then comes the decision of what kind of rotors. The factory parts are two piece (aluminum hat, cast iron braking surface). Many "OE" replacement parts, even from top notch manufacturers like Zimmerman, are single piece cast. There's inconclusive debate out there about whether BMW revised the spec to one-piece because of issues, but the new cars continue to come with two piece. Personally, I paid the extra to stick with two-piece. Mine were premium high carbon rotors from Pagid. If you can find someone who sells them, I believe Zimmerman and maybe Brembo offer both one and two piece designs you just need to be careful about the part#. You don't need to get "genuine BMW" to still get quality. I'd almost be willing to bet if you went to your average indy garage, you'd get single-piece cast rotors. Maybe they'd be fine, maybe not, but definitely heavier.
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09-01-2020, 07:57 AM	#3
BKraft Registered 0 Rep 4 Posts Drives: 338i Join Date: Jul 2018 Location: Wake Forest, NC iTrader: (0)	Thanks for that. It mimics my thinking... One thing I didn’t mention is that on both the front driver and front passenger there was one lug that was grossly over-torqued. I have no idea what they torqued it to, but holy crap was it a bear getting it off. Luckily, nothing snapped and I got them Tu on with correct pressure when I put back together. They did not replace any rotors, only pads. The rotors really do look terrific, though. But had I done it myself, I would have replaced them anyway. I’m seriously leaning toward buying a front brake kit from a reputable source (not going to AutoZone or the like) and replacing the front brakes myself. Then see what happens...
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09-02-2020, 08:41 AM	#8
BKraft Registered 0 Rep 4 Posts Drives: 338i Join Date: Jul 2018 Location: Wake Forest, NC iTrader: (0)	Thanks again. I don’t drive it a lot these days - still working at home from Covid situation. I pulled them and looked Saturday. I actually took it out this morning to go get some breakfast and was thinking that the issue was much less pronounced. So retourqing may have helped somewhat. To be honest, for me, it’s so negligible now, I might just let it go a bit and see what happens.... but my wife is fairly sensitive to it and it bothers her (it’s her car), so I still may go ahead and spend the money to replace the fronts to try and bring things back to normal.
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09-07-2020, 05:06 AM	#16
Surly73 Lieutenant Colonel 534 Rep 1,873 Posts Drives: '11 535xi 8AT KWv3 MPE MHD xHP Join Date: May 2012 Location: Oakville, Ontario iTrader: (1)	I purchased: https://www.ecstuning.com/b-pagid-parts/front-brake-pad-set/34116850886~hla/ Mfg Part #: 34116850886 ECS Part #: ES#3023981 Brand: Pagid They are definitely dustier, like I remember every other European car I've had before the F10. It's not a miracle cure but I do believe that the stopping power increases more with pedal pressure than with the factory pads. Things which I later (post purchase) found to be significant (take a look at the picture showing all the text on the rear of the pads): 1/ The marking 90R is a Euro-required standards compliance. It means the pads are tested and rated for high demand European stopping. However you'll see the marking on all of the pad options available (a good thing) 2/ The marking "GG" - the "DOT Pad Code" http://faculty.ccbcmd.edu/~smacadof/DOTPadCodes.htm These markings identify coefficient of friction ratings at 250F and 600F. They should indicate how well the pads will stop when "warm" and "hot". That website says "GG" (the markings on those pads) is "very rare". Searching on these parameters yields some interesting discussions (example). I'd like to do more reading on this kind of thing prior to my next purchase. Unfortunately I have no idea what came off the car, but I did notice that my rears are FF or FE I think, installed as replacements by the dealer under extended service plan. Beware of anything like FG, having noticeably more friction at 600F, which may indicate that it is too performance oriented.
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