Replace '05 Brakes Already??

[halfcent]

I have a 2005 Elantra GT with 29000 miles; at the 22,500 mile service (which was done at 25000 miles) the dealer said the rear brakes had only about 10% left. I haven't done anything about that yet, and anyway it seemed much too early to need to do brake work. Last week I had the oil changed and was told the front brake pads are starting to chip. That mechanic thought they should be covered under the warranty. Is this wear normal?? I've put on a lot of mileage in ~16 months, mostly of the "highway with traffic lights" variety. There are no symptoms of brake wear i.e. noise or uneven stopping.

[nippjas]

Originally Posted by halfcent

I have a 2005 Elantra GT with 29000 miles; at the 22,500 mile service (which was done at 25000 miles) the dealer said the rear brakes had only about 10% left. I haven't done anything about that yet, and anyway it seemed much too early to need to do brake work. Last week I had the oil changed and was told the front brake pads are starting to chip. That mechanic thought they should be covered under the warranty. Is this wear normal?? I've put on a lot of mileage in ~16 months, mostly of the "highway with traffic lights" variety. There are no symptoms of brake wear i.e. noise or uneven stopping.

My 04 EGT is my daily driver. In a year and a half I put 58,000 miles on it and the brakes are just now starting to squeak a bit. Upon my own inspection of the pads and rotors they look good.

I would pull the wheel yourself and inspect for signs of excessive wear. Since driving habits are unique to each driver, I can not say if this is normal wear for your driving style.

[peachferrari]

If the pads are falling apart, that should be covered by the manufacturer (if they are "lifetime" pads, which they probably are).

And yes, driving styles will dictate to some extent your need for maintenance, but it still sounds a little sketchy. Especially the rear ones, since you usually go through at least 2 sets of front ones before you need new rear ones (at least with drums, although I think with discs it is similar).

For example, my '99 Elantra got new pads (front) at about 50,000 miles, maybe a little sooner. I had them inspected at about 70,000 and they still had good material left. The back shoes (drums) have never been replaced and should last until at least when I need new front ones again.

[nippjas]

In any event since the 04-05 EGT has 4 wheel disc's it should be easy enough to inspect it yourself to see if it is really as bad as the tech explained it.

Yes the fronts typically wear faster than the rears. I've had frozen calipers in the past with other cars, I recommend inspecting to see what's going on for yourself.