# Pulsing brakes



## Cavere (Sep 11, 2011)

So this isn't the first time this has happened. I was driving down a long hill and my brakes started pulsing. I should note I do not ride my brakes. I use smooth occasional brakes. The further I got down the hill the worse the pulsing got and the less effective they were. It got to the point where I was concerned I would not be able to stop. At the bottom of the hill I pulled into a gas station and let the car sit for a little bit. I didn't drive much after that but as someone that drives a lot of hills I'm concern. 

Could this just be overheating of the brake pads/rotors/drums? Or is this a sign of a warped rotor although there isn't a noticeable issue through normal driving?


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## cmackvr6 (Mar 5, 2012)

Mine was doing this when slowing from highway speeds starting at around 10k miles. Can you say SAFETY ISSUE!!!!

After 3 trips to the service department and getting GM involved. All they did was turn the rotors. Yeah, it stopped the problem (temporarily) but it also took life off of my rotors.

I've had many other problems with this crappy car too. All GM did was offer me free oil changes and tire rotations. Its a joke. 

The first chance I get I'm getting out of this car and never going back to Chevy.


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

cmackvr6 - have you tried a different dealership service department? Service department quality is all over the map. Dealerships are independently owned and it shows.


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## cmackvr6 (Mar 5, 2012)

obermd said:


> cmackvr6 - have you tried a different dealership service department? Service department quality is all over the map. Dealerships are independently owned and it shows.


I've tried two. The problem is I work full time and I'm a student. Frankly, I don't have time to run around begging for loaner cars and arguing with these service departments/GM "district specialists". They are all a waste of time. It would be more cost effective for me to take a loss on the car and get back into a car that will not give me any further problems. Even Stacy from GM that lurks these forums, who was helping me initially, has gone strangely silent now.

I'm done with GM. I'm getting rid of this car and moving on. I have never had so much trouble and lack of support with a brand new car or even a used car for that matter. Very disappointed. 

Any time I see these threads, I always contribute. So maybe someone from GM will figure out there are batches of cars that came off the line with major defects that should be addressed.


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## Cavere (Sep 11, 2011)

Honestly I love my cruze and tomorrow is the one year anniversary of picking it up and I will be hitting 25k miles! Besides soft paint this is the only issue I've had and I will bring my cruze into the dealership on Friday. I'm just a little worried since I have a 400 miles trip back home tomorrow.


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## cmackvr6 (Mar 5, 2012)

Cavere said:


> Honestly I love my cruze and tomorrow is the one year anniversary of picking it up and I will be hitting 25k miles! Besides soft paint this is the only issue I've had and I will bring my cruze into the dealership on Friday. I'm just a little worried since I have a 400 miles trip back home tomorrow.



I hope you make it there safely and they take care of you. Happy yours is working out for you. I wish I could say the same.


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## Starks8 (Jul 20, 2011)

might not be related to your problem but... I just yesterday watched a goss's garage segment on motor week yesterday and he addressed 2 different possibilities for brake and pedal pulsation. The first was possible reason being, 1) a stubburn layer of rust being on the brake disks from sitting outside or on the dealer's lot for extended periods of time. However the rust doesnt get where the brake pad was, causing a pulsation because of the thin layer of rust being uniform across the brake disk except where the brake pad was. He said you have to sand the rust off the disk breaks and it should fix it. The other possible reason is a twisted brake caliper hose when the caliper is put on wrong. Solution being to take off the caliper and put it on the correct way, so that the break hose isnt twisted and so that the hose is straight and runs parallel.

Brake Issues | MotorWeek


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

I have warped rotors at 8000 miles. Usually only noticeable at highway speeds.


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## blk88verde (Apr 30, 2011)

My brakes give a little pulsing from highway speeds - car stops fine just not super smooth. At this point not worth a dealer visit.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

blk88verde said:


> My brakes give a little pulsing from highway speeds - car stops fine just not super smooth. At this point not worth a dealer visit.


I visited the dealer and they said "we took it out on the highway and braked hard; didn't feel anything". I had non-car savvy people 3 people in my car that noticed it and asked why my brand-new car was pulling already.










At this point, I've got to schedule a time to go drive it (probably on the weekend) with a flipping service advisor.


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## cmackvr6 (Mar 5, 2012)

jblackburn said:


> I visited the dealer and they said "we took it out on the highway and braked hard; didn't feel anything". I had non-car savvy people 3 people in my car that noticed it and asked why my brand-new car was pulling already.
> 
> 
> 
> ...



Go talk to Mike Seed at Pohanka Chevrolet in Chantilly. I had to take my car in twice, but eventually they ended up turning the rotors per GM's guidlines. The problem is gone..........for now.


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## Cavere (Sep 11, 2011)

So I'm at the service department now. And I understand that brake pads are part of the one year 12k miles but the rotors? They don't wear nearly as quickly. It's a little disappointing that to have rotors done will have to be out of my pocket. Are there any aftermarket brake systems out there that may beef up the brake system?


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

Cavere said:


> Honestly I love my cruze and tomorrow is the one year anniversary of picking it up and I will be hitting 25k miles! Besides soft paint this is the only issue I've had and I will bring my cruze into the dealership on Friday. I'm just a little worried since I have a 400 miles trip back home tomorrow.


Congratulations on your one year anniversary! Wishing you many more happy miles!
Sarah (Assisting Stacy), Chevrolet Customer Service


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

jblackburn said:


> I visited the dealer and they said "we took it out on the highway and braked hard; didn't feel anything". I had non-car savvy people 3 people in my car that noticed it and asked why my brand-new car was pulling already. At this point, I've got to schedule a time to go drive it (probably on the weekend) with a flipping service advisor.


Have you had any luck getting this taken care of since this post? If we can check into anything further for you, please send us a private message with more information (including your name and contact information as well as the last 8 digits of your VIN). 

Sarah (Assisting Stacy), Chevrolet Customer Service


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

Sarah - are the rotors part of the warranty?


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## H3LLON3ARTH (Dec 16, 2011)

obermd said:


> Sarah - are the rotors part of the warranty?


No they are a normal wear item not covered under warranty 

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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

H3LLON3ARTH said:


> No they are a normal wear item not covered under warranty
> 
> Sent from my Droid using AutoGuide.Com Free App


UNLESS you have ridiculously low miles and they're warped. In my case, 8,000. Clearly a manufacturing defect, and finally the dealer agreed with me.


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## H3LLON3ARTH (Dec 16, 2011)

jblackburn said:


> UNLESS you have ridiculously low miles and they're warped. In my case, 8,000. Clearly a manufacturing defect, and finally the dealer agreed with me.


Wow that's a shocker but glad to hear that 

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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

obermd said:


> Sarah - are the rotors part of the warranty?



obermd,
Depending on the situation they can be covered but that is up to the dealer to decide. So if you, or anyone else, is experiencing issues with your rotors I would suggest that you speak to your dealer about this. If you have any other questions please feel free to contact me.
Thank you,
Stacy Chevrolet Customer Service


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

Thanks Stacy - I was looking for an answer for folks who are having problems. I do, however, fully expect that my Cruze will develop pulsing brakes eventually. All, and I mean all, my Pontiacs eventually did this.


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## jjackson082604 (Oct 1, 2012)

Well, I have the same problem on my 2013, I took it yesterday and they couldnt duplicate the problem. Therefore they didnt do anything. But I say they didnt even check. I took one of the mechanics with me in the car for his opinion and he noticed it as well. We went back to the dealership, he spoke with the shop foreman and came back with " He said that he drove it for a while and could not find anything wrong with the car". At that point I just took the car and left. Not a happy customer.


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## 70AARCUDA (Nov 14, 2010)

GM is _*notorious*_ for *warped disc rotors* caused by "glazed spots" on the rotors from pad dust.


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## obermd (Mar 3, 2012)

I just figure it's a backup ABS system.


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## gottaride68 (Jan 15, 2013)

you have warped rotors, prob from braking to long on desends. Learn to down shift to slow the car down. Also, when desending, gently apply brakes periodically, do not ride your brakes.


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## MIPS64 (Sep 10, 2012)

I just hit 12k miles with my car and I am also getting pulsing brakes. I am also getting a noise in the rear when coming to a complete stop. Sounds like you are wiping a window with windex and papertowel. Not sure if that is struts.


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## NBrehm (Jun 27, 2011)

OEM rotors = junk. I haven't had any luck with OEM GM rotors not warping since I bought my TA in 2001. Every new car we have had the rotors warp on. GM uses steel from south america that has a higher tin content (as do most OEM manufacturers and the better part of chain stores for their less expensive brakes). Plus side they are cheap, downside they don't like heat so one good stop from highway speed and they can warp. I swapped mine out for EBC rotors about 4500 miles ago, pulsing went away and ahs stayed away so far.


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## Chevy Customer Care (Oct 29, 2011)

MIPS64 said:


> I just hit 12k miles with my car and I am also getting pulsing brakes. I am also getting a noise in the rear when coming to a complete stop. Sounds like you are wiping a window with windex and papertowel. Not sure if that is struts.




MIPS64,
I would like to apologize for the issues that you are experiencing with your Cruze. I would suggest that you have your dealer look into this for you. Please keep me posted and if you have any questions please feel free to contact me anytime.
Thank you,
Stacy Chevrolet Customer Service


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## Blue Angel (Feb 18, 2011)

Anyone with technical "knowledge" into pulsing brakes should read the following white paper published by StopTech:

-Warped- Brake Disc and Other Myths

You will likely realize that you know little about pulsing brakes. As far as "bedding" your Cruze's brake system, Stacy and/or Sarah, is there a GM specified "bedding in" procedure for brakes? I'm not talking about "drive the car easy for the first XXX miles" type of thing, I'm refering to the type of bedding recommended for high performance cars like the Corvette. An extreme example would be the ZR1 with its carbon brakes, requiring up to 60 repeated hard stops to get them to temperature. You can look that up for reference.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

Good read. Never have liked the brake pads much on the Cruze. I'll definitely be getting some new pads in the summer.


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## Blue Angel (Feb 18, 2011)

NBrehm said:


> OEM rotors = junk... ...I swapped mine out for EBC rotors about 4500 miles ago, pulsing went away and ahs stayed away so far.


What pads are you using?

I put EBC Green Stuff pads and Power Slot rotors on my last Saturn after having good results with the same parts on my previous Saturn. I bedded them in properly, and took them off the car after a few months of easy street driving because they were pulsing so bad. Since I would soon be selling the car I replaced them with the cheapest pads/rotors, drove it that way for a few months and the brakes had NEVER felt better. In my experience there's been no rhyme or reason to why one set of brakes works/lasts better than another. Aftermarket parts are a total crapshoot, unless you're spending big bucks on a proven combination.

Good or bad, at least you know what you're getting with the oem parts. In my experience, OEM has had a higher success rate than aftermarket. I've never owned a big-buck brake upgrade so I can't comment there.

Having said all that, there's almost NOTHING worse than pulsing brakes... they remove all confidence you have in slowing the car, and it is extremely annoying to boot.

TOUCH WOOD, my Eco's brakes have been perfect so far, but I am really easy on brakes compared to most people (look at my Fuelly report). I doubt my brakes have ever been warm let alone hot. I purposely DID NOT do a "bed-in" procedure on these brakes as I've had mixed results with that also (though I do believe a performance car that will be used as such will defenitely benefit). The one common element of bedding in your brakes is that everything gets so hot that all protective plating and/or coatings on your rotors burns off, leaving bare unprotected iron exposed to the elements. It also tends to affect the caliper finish as well. Listening to myself, it's almost a bit embarassing to be thinking this way as I usually value performance over asthetics, but a wheel full of rusty brake parts just looks terrible.


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## H3LLON3ARTH (Dec 16, 2011)

NBrehm said:


> OEM rotors = junk. I haven't had any luck with OEM GM rotors not warping since I bought my TA in 2001. Every new car we have had the rotors warp on. GM uses steel from south america that has a higher tin content (as do most OEM manufacturers and the better part of chain stores for their less expensive brakes). Plus side they are cheap, downside they don't like heat so one good stop from highway speed and they can warp. I swapped mine out for EBC rotors about 4500 miles ago, pulsing went away and ahs stayed away so far.


Last time I check with ebc they didn't have anything can you give part numbers 

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## Blue Angel (Feb 18, 2011)

For anyone that's interested, StopTech has a whole bunch of good reading on their White Papers page:

Technical White Papers

Lots of good brake-related articles there, including the one I linked to above.


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## jblackburn (Apr 14, 2012)

Some brakes specifically tell you NOT to bed them in.

I used Akebono ceramic pads and Zimmerman rotors on my last car, and I liked them a lot - so much so that when they wore out at 90,000 miles, I went back for a 2nd set. Not a lot of dust, good stopping power when driven hard, but still good street stopping power. Occasionally there was a squeal when reversing in the rain, but that was it.


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## NBrehm (Jun 27, 2011)

Blue Angel said:


> What pads are you using?
> 
> I put EBC Green Stuff pads and Power Slot rotors on my last Saturn after having good results with the same parts on my previous Saturn. I bedded them in properly, and took them off the car after a few months of easy street driving because they were pulsing so bad. Since I would soon be selling the car I replaced them with the cheapest pads/rotors, drove it that way for a few months and the brakes had NEVER felt better. In my experience there's been no rhyme or reason to why one set of brakes works/lasts better than another. Aftermarket parts are a total crapshoot, unless you're spending big bucks on a proven combination.
> 
> ...


I just went with the standard Ulti-max stuff from EBC for pads and rotors. One of the "tricks" I have always used when breaking in HP pads is put them in the BBQ, you can heat/cool them evenly for specific times. I didn't bother with these since it is just my DD but heat cycling them off the car works great. I normally use centric stuff on all my DD cars, but as of now they didn't have anything in stock for the Cruze. Best cheap pads/rotors I have ever used


Edit: Here is the process http://www.team3s.org/FAQbrakeBBQ.htm


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## NBrehm (Jun 27, 2011)

Also if you use that procedure do not stand in the smoke, it can lead to health issues down the road. There is bad ju-ju in brake pads


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## Blue Angel (Feb 18, 2011)

NBrehm said:


> One of the "tricks" I have always used when breaking in HP pads is put them in the BBQ


Nice! That makes a lot of sense. When I last bedded pads in on my Corvette the pad material up to about 1/8" away from the rotor face turned almost white. I would imagine based on the quick heating nature of the procedure that the bads were baked from the rotor surface in, meaning they were unevenly heated. Doing this in the BBQ would heat them evenly through the thickness of the pad. I may have to try this out!

Have you noticed a reduction in pad deposits on the rotor using this method? One the pads are baked, I would assume a very easy low heat bedding process would suffice, just to get the pad surface worn to mate properly with the rotor? I may send the guys at Stoptech an email with these questions...


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## NBrehm (Jun 27, 2011)

After i bake them I sand lightly with 1000 grit to clean them up, put them on and drive. No additional bedding. Unless you plane them or something they will never be perfect but the biggest things is getting the gases out. All of my pads I have done this way wore very evenly. It virtually eliminated deposits on the rotors, i normally use HAWK HPS pads or SSBC Big Bites for hi-po vehicles and they are the only ones I have BBQ'd so I can't tell you how an EBC pad with that stupid break in coating would react or other makes. Works great on those 2 though. You may need to repaint the backing plate if you go too hot, that is the only problem I have seen. Also pretty much eliminates "glazing"


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## DevilsRule (Dec 23, 2012)

I had a 2000 Cavalier that I bought new. I had the car for 12 years. I had problems with warped rotors constantly. Started checking torque on wheel lug nuts when returning home from tire balance and rotation. I set torque on all wheels to 100 lb ft. Most shops just throw the wheels back on with air gun and the wheels are not properly torqued per the owners manual. I have had my 2012 Cruze Lt for 14000 miles so far and have had no problems. I believe that unevenly torqued wheels will lead to premature rotor warpage which will make your brakes pulse.


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## Blue Angel (Feb 18, 2011)

NBrehm said:


> Also if you use that procedure do not stand in the smoke, it can lead to health issues down the road. There is bad ju-ju in brake pads


Also the reason I told my buddy not to powder coat parts in his kitchen oven!


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## NBrehm (Jun 27, 2011)

DevilsRule said:


> I had a 2000 Cavalier that I bought new. I had the car for 12 years. I had problems with warped rotors constantly. Started checking torque on wheel lug nuts when returning home from tire balance and rotation. I set torque on all wheels to 100 lb ft. Most shops just throw the wheels back on with air gun and the wheels are not properly torqued per the owners manual. I have had my 2012 Cruze Lt for 14000 miles so far and have had no problems. I believe that unevenly torqued wheels will lead to premature rotor warpage which will make your brakes pulse.


Overtorqued could, can also damage the wheel hub/bearing. I hate places that do that. I use a gun to put my wheels on, but I use the lowest setting and just snug them, then go back and hand torque them. If the torque wrench clicks on any lug without tightening it I back it off a turn and re-torque it. I've seen those idiots just hammering on the lugs with a 1/2 impact. At the very least if you get a flat you will probably not be able to get the wheel off by hand unless (like me) you keep a breaker bar in the trunk


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## Blue Angel (Feb 18, 2011)

NBrehm said:


> After i bake them I sand lightly with 1000 grit to clean them up, put them on and drive. No additional bedding. Unless you plane them or something they will never be perfect but the biggest things is getting the gases out. All of my pads I have done this way wore very evenly. It virtually eliminated deposits on the rotors, i normally use HAWK HPS pads or SSBC Big Bites for hi-po vehicles and they are the only ones I have BBQ'd so I can't tell you how an EBC pad with that stupid break in coating would react or other makes. Works great on those 2 though. You may need to repaint the backing plate if you go too hot, that is the only problem I have seen. Also pretty much eliminates "glazing"


Interesting, I may try this the next time I swap pads/rotors. I guess the BBQing introduces enough heat that the pad surface becomes uneven? I guess using light sandpaper on a flat surface could get rid of most of the high spots, or using a slotted rotor.


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## NBrehm (Jun 27, 2011)

Pad surface is almost always uneven. I only sand them to make sure I have a clean surface since they were just sitting a BBQ. i also hit em with brake clean obviously


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