H[COLOR=Navy]ey: I am bringing my '04 RX-8 in for warranty work on the rusted rotors and squeaky brakes. The dealer said they have spray painted other RX-8's. Does anybody else have this problem? Thanks

 

Spray painted what, the rotors? I always thought rusty rotors are common, if you're talking about the surface. It is made of cast iron after all. Also, the wheel design allows lots of moisture to surround the brake surfaces. Does your car's brakes squeal all the time, or only when you take it out? When I take my car out in the mornings, my brakes squeal from the moisture (I live in Houston, the humid hell).

 

Rust on the brake wheel portion is common (esp in humid weather). Squeal when first using the car in the morning or after a rain is also common (and expected with ABS)

You can sand them down and paint them. I have a friend who painted his on a GTO (GTO is silver) with fire engine red paint. Makes them look pretty cool.

Esp if you have a two red/black interior, have the dealership match the red up and paint it that color. That would kick @$$.

James

 

Does anybody else have this problem?

Sixpack: There's been lots of discussion of the "rusty rotor" issue on this forum. Do the search. Basically, Mazdas seem to have more problem with the hub (not the friction surface) rusting than most, and the RX-8 shows the hub more. My dealer did not hesitate to repaint them under warranty when I had it in for other work. I have no idea how they did the job. That was four months ago, and the new paint seems to be holding up.

This is in Houston and the Mississippi Coast. You couldn't find more challenging climate for things rusting.

 

I had rust on my rotors and painted with black caliper paint. Shortly after that I had the car in for brake squeal and told of a TSB. They replaced the front rotors and pads. The squeal and rust is gone on the front, and the painted rear rotors are holding up after 3 mos.

 

My rotors are rusted just outside the area where the pads contact the rotor. It looks like **** and Mazda should at least paint or varnish this area. Only seems to happen on the back wheels. If it can be fixed by removing the rear wheels cleaning the area and painting it, why should I have to do this? It looks like Mazda's problem to me.

 

Told by the dealer (don't believe the hype) that this happens to all RX-8s. Maybe if I am nice and say that if I had known about this when the car was new, I would have had it painted myself. But since the dealership knew but forgot to tell, they should be able to do it for me (at dealer cost, not retail cost... there is a big difference in labor) during my next oil change, or better yet for free.

Otherwise, I will have it done myself and paint it red to match the interior two tone in my RX-8. It should look sweet (better than rust anyway).

Hey if have the two tone orange and black, it would eventually match wouldn't it...

 

The dealer replaced my rotors when they replaced the brake pade per the TSB. The rotor hubs & calipers were painted by the dealer and they didn't last the winter. I will be buying after market rotors with the zinc coat applied. I will also be power coating the calipers and the backplates to finally get rid of the rust.

 

Okay you were talking about painting the rotor hub. :o

 

I just went out and checked my painted rear rotors(black). There is a good amount of brake dust on them that won't wipe of easily. You could paint them to match the interior, but keep in mind that they will get dirty so they may not stay red. Good luck.

 

Just passed 4500 miles.
Brakes just started squealing like mad. Front right more than any other.
Rotors are rusting near the hub, and yeah, it looks lousy.
CD changer gobbled up all my CDs and won't play them OR give them back.
Center console is sliding pretty wobbly now and occasionally pops off.
Yet, I DO still love the car. But I wonder where I can find a GOOD dealer on Long Island. It's been pretty difficult to get work done. I expect to bring my usual dealer the TSB on the brakes and be met by the biggest "Duh" imaginable.

Jer

 

Any dealer should replace the pads per the service bulletin, I had mine replaced about 2 months ago and the squeal is gone, Rotors are rusty I painted them when I got the car, but rust is still there.

 

Can anyone tell me if they had to replace rotors because of warping. And what is TSB

 

it happens to virtually every car with disc brakes... do a google image search if you fail to believe that

 

THANK YOU ALL! Thanks to this great forum I brought my car in regarding a bunch of little things that had been driving me nuts - left tailight replaced due to condensation (actually looked more like a fishbowl after all the rain we have had here in CT), Oil pan cover replaced with new one due to oil light coming on at high rpms, showed them the rotors and how rusted they were - with the help of the printout from here they found the EIS and are replacing them because they said they are to pitted to grin and paint, obviously had the fuel tank recall done and had the ball joint recalled perform too - did not need replacing. phew.. Thanks again.

 

I have the same problem. My dealership couldn't "duplicate" the problem. What a shocker...

 

The rotors on my Rx8 are rusted and I'd like sand and paint my rotors, were do I go to for guidance? Do I unmount the wheels? What will I need as far as tools.
Suggestions much appreciated thanks!

 

Rotors aren't something you sand or paint.

 

Just tape up the area the pads touch and paint with high temperature paint.

 

I thought It was possible by covering the outer part and painting the center only...

 

Masking tape and paint. Not sure you need much more than that. Just take the wheel off, put a large box around the wheel hub if you're spraying instead of brushing (to not spray on the bodywork), mask off the brake caliper and the contact surface on the rotor, and the wheel studs, then do a couple of light coats of paint followed by a wet layer.

It might be more proper to do this with the rotors off the car, but if yours have never been changed, you'll have to battle the bolts that hold the rotor on, and those usually take an impact screwdriver to loosen.

You can also get new rotors with pre-painted centers to save yourself the trouble. If I remember right, Centric's cryo-treated rotors come that way and they're not expensive. There are other brands that do this also. It might make sense to do this on new rotors anyway if yours are nearing the end of useful life (based on thickness).