2004 Subaru Outback Rotor wear

MAGGIECAT

MEMBER
2004 SUBARU OUTBACK

Brakes problem
2004 Subaru Outback All Wheel Drive Automatic 59064 miles

I have started to hear a squealy noise when my car starts from a stop or rolls slowly. There is no noise if you apply the brakes.

I had new brakes and rotors installed at 49000 miles. I was told by a by the part time mechanic that the issue appears to be rusted rotors that are thin and have already been "shaved". The brakes were last worked on at 49000 miles and I was told the rotor were replaced with new.

How can this damage be possible after only 10,000 miles? The pads are in good condition and do not need to be replaced and the rotors are bad.

Is there a chance that I was "ripped off" and told that I received new rotors and did not?

Is there any other explanation?

1 Reply

CARADIODOC

MECHANIC
33,871 POSTS

Hi MAGGIECAT. Welcome to the forum. Can't say about your rotor question, but a lot of cars use very thin rotors to save weight. Some are so thin they can't even be machined and stay above the legal thickness limit, but the good news is those rotors are usually very inexpensive.

As for the squeal, some pads have wear indicators and many of those STOP squealing when you apply the brakes, and the pads shift position and squeal when you are not applying the brakes. Just the opposite of what you would expect. A new problem that has shown up in the last 10 - 15 years is a light high-pitched squeal while driving slowly. The cause is the metal particles in the brake pads' friction material. Those particles are there to help dissipate heat. Since the pads are in good shape, I suspect this is what you're hearing. If it is, the squealing normally goes away when the brakes are hot, and it gets worse in humid weather. It is actually much more common in higher quality brake pads. Older asbestos pads were softer so they didn't squeal, but they didn't last as long either.

Caradiodoc