Hello all!

I'm a newbie to the forum. I have an 02 Dodge dakota 2wd. Approx 86k on it. Through the years, I've recut and or replaced the rotors many times b/c they have got glazed over and dark. Keep in mind I carry no loads in the back and do not do any heavy braking. 65-70% of my mileage is highway. I've had this problem since acquiring the truck new from the factory.

The first time the rotors got dark occurred around 13k. Changed out the rotors and new brake pads. I'd replace/recut every 10k b/c they got very bad. Keep in mind the rear brakes were always adjusted periodically.

Someone suggested I try ceramic pads. Worked well b/c they wouldn't overheat the rotor as badly...but one night the caliper siezed up and the pads went on fire due to the rotor overheating so badly. Needless to say I replaced both rotors, calipers, and went back to semi-metallic pads.

I've noticed that the brake pads sit on the caliper bolt plate. I know that this plate should be greased so that the pads can retract with ease. Unfortunately, the pads seem to have made a slight indentation in the caliper bolt plate metal causing the pads to sit in this area. I'm assuming that the pads don't fully retract causing the rotor to overheat.

I've went to Dodge with this problem. They do not make any clips to go between the caliper plate and brake pads. They mentioned that I try welding the indentation and file it down so that the plate becomes smooth and even. Anybody have this recurring problem?

-Charles

 

Had the same problem with my 98. Even caught fire on the drivers side. It's a bad design in my opinion...they really should have replaceable metal "pads" to go over the spindle where the caliper/pads ride. Just about every other vehicle I have worked on has had something there to keep that from happening. I had a friend weld over the grooves and grind them smooth and it has been okay so far. In theory the weld should be stronger than the cast metal that the spindle is made of and should outlast the original surface...or so I'm told. Your only choice is to replace the spinldes which are over $600 each or weld the ones you have. I replaced one spindle on mine with a junkyad one because the grooves were so deep but I even ended up welding that one too because it had slight grooves as well. I would just weld them up...it should cure the problem...at least it did with mine. Also make sure the caliper mounting bolts are lubed with brake grease or anti sieze also so the caliper can move freely.

 

I'd go back to ceramics. Hawks Ceramic (not HPS) or Akebono are good. I don't know what you mean by caliper bolt plate. Do you mean the caliper bracket? Did you lube the caliper pins?

 

I had my flex lines swell up soo bad that they wouldnt let fluid back through and would constantly put pressure on the brakes and they would smoke and be really hot. I replaced both calipers thinking it was them and went through 2 seats of rotors and pads. and it turned out to be a $20 flex line

 

I had that happen on my old Camaro (an 89, was my first car). Took me a little while to figure it out, too, especially because it was only an intermittent problem.

 

It is pretty well known that stock Dodge/Jeep rotors are not high quality. On our Dodge Dakota and JGC, when the brakes go - both will end up with Brembo or similiar quality rotors. Also, i never use semi-metallic brake pads. Just think about it: by definition the semi-metallic pads have metal in them. The metal in the pads cuts down the rotor. True the cheaper non semi-metallic pads will need changed sooner, but that is better than turning a rotor or replacing it, for sure.

 

My brother has a welder so I asked him to make spot welds on the worn locations of the brake slider. I then took a Makita circular grinder to them. They are smooth as I could get them. Popped the rotor and caliper back on. Drove it for 20 miles last night. No problems to report. I'll have to recut the rotors and see how long they last before getting dark and overheat. Hopefully, this was the issue. I've also included pics of how bad the metal was worn (both sides equally; just didn't include all the pics).

http://www.charlesgrimm.net/dakota/dakota1.jpg
http://www.charlesgrimm.net/dakota/dakota2.jpg
http://www.charlesgrimm.net/dakota/dakota3.jpg

 

I have found that overtighting lugs will cause a warped rotor. I had this information pasted onto me many years ago. I have since used a torque wrench to properly torque the wheel lugs. Since then, I've never had a warped rotor on my Daktota, or my '99 Grand Am GT. I had 94k miles on the original Pontiac rotors before I sold it. My Dodge has 46k with no issues. Tires are off every 5-6k miles for rotation too.
All I can say is try it. You're out nothing.