cssnms

Just thought I would share my displeasure with the Tire Rack and the quality of some of their braking products, but first let me say I have been a long time customer of the Tire Rack. I have purchased countless tires from them dating back to the late 80's/early 90's and generally I have been provided with good service over the years.

I initially purchased a set of rear slotted ATE rotors and pads from Tire Rack for my GX and after 1 week they were pulsing. I called Tire Rack and explained the problem. I subsequently inquired about the Power Slot Cryo treated rotors which Tire Rack offered as an exhange only, but I had to pay the difference even though it means I have to pay to have them reinstalled AGAIN! In any event, I accepted the offer, I mean what choice did I have since they would not refund my money and take the ATE rotors back...

Well, after a 2 weeks of owning the Power Slot rotors they were pulsing and had measurable "run-out." Took my GX to Lexus and the technician said the left rear rotor was well outside the tolerance which was creating the pulsing -so much for the lore surrounding the durability of Cryo treated rotors. Additionally, without applying the brakes the left rear rotor was making this aweful pulsing/screeching noise as we would drove. The issue with the Power Slot rotors really surprised me since I had a good exprience with these rotors in the past on my Grand Cherokee.

In any event, I contacted Tire Rack and they just passed it off on the manufacturer's warranty and said they could not do anything. I contacted Power Slot, but they simply ignored me - great customer service, speaks volumes about a company!

The pitfalls of purchasing anything from Tire Rack is that they just defer you to the fine print manufacturer's warranty and take zero responsibility for the products they sell. As a customer, this means you are stuck holding the bag at the end of the day. It was not like I had purchased these rotors and drove 30k miles and I was expecting to have them replaced - it was 2 weeks! I mean I had to pay to have rotors installed twice due what was clearly poor product quality. I've been putting up with the power slots pulsing for a year and now I am going to have to pay a 3rd time to have new OEM rotors installed by Toyota!!! At least Toyota/Lexus will warranty the parts and labor for 1yr so if there are any problems they will take responsibility.

Lessoned learned, it will be the last time I purchase anything but tires from Tire Rack.

DoktorYes

Thanks for the information on your problems with parts order.I will keep this in mind when I order from Tire Rack again.You should have gotten more help from them.

GoCatGo11

That's why I do not order from Tire Rack any more because of the service.... Sorry to hear the crap you had to go through to.

raytseng

I think the blame should fall more on ATE and the Power Slot rotors rather then tirerack, but that's just my $.02.

This is really the pitfall of buying your own parts versus parts from the shop that installs it.

Every shop I've gone to, they say if you bring in your own parts, you are responsible for them. Parts sellers aren't going to cover your install either.

Even if you bought a genuine Lexus/Toyota OEM part from a authorized Toyota dealer and it turned out to be defective, you'd still have to pay labor 2x and cost to ship the replacement.

Seems like they offered you an exchange? Maybe you can elaborate on what more you expected them to do?

KoSC300

No offense, but i'd agree with this guy. I havent shopped Tirerack yet, but it looks like they tried to right the wrong with another product and you still recieved the same problem. Perhaps you should be looking towards the manufacturer of the rotors, the vehicle, or the install.

mitsuguy

iTrader: (2)

Cha ching!

I would almost guarantee if you go through two different sets of rotors trying to fix a pulsation problem, that the problem isn't with the rotor, but maybe the seating surfaces weren't completely clean, or there is just a slight amount of hub runout that translates into rotor runout...

How to fix it... Have the rotors turned while on the vehicle...

Quick story...

2005 Dodge Ram 1500 pickup truck... Replaced front rotors and pads, test drove, slight wobble from the front... weird... pulled wheels off, everything looked ok, checked runout of rotors... left front was on the line of go/no go on the spec sheet... changed rotor to another brand new one - same thing (pulsation and runout both present)... checked tolerances on hub, all was good, mating surfaces were clean, etc...

turned the rotor using an on the car brake lathe (was able to turn .007 off each side) and pulsation was gone for good, never to return... sucks, but it happens...

One HoT

iTrader: (5)

+1, I have to agree with above posts.

Been a customer of tirerack for many years, service has never been a problem. Orders ship same day, I get it usually the following day. Its nice of them to offer a exchange after the product has already been used and driven on. If is not the 3rd party seller's fault that the product did not live up to expectations. It could have been a faulty installation or a error by the manufacturer itself, as mentioned before. I think they were more than fair to over an exchange without markup cost.

Problem lies with the manufacturer, not tirerack

bonnsha

try R1 Concepts for their premium rotors. They seem t be pretty good. So far I've had good luck with them for my LS430

krava

I live like 5 miles from there so I deal directly with them

cssnms

First of all, I am all to familiar with brake systems, run-out and its' root causes etc. Secondly, as I pointed out in the OP the rotors are slotted so they cannot be turned and more to the point I should not have to turn rotors after a few weeks of use. Furthermore, turning rotors is NOT a good answer nor does it solve the root cause of a problem. Turning rotors only reduces the mass of the rotor negatively impacting the thermal dynamics of the brake system. Additionally, it's not the hub, bub, or the caliper or the pad, they have all been checked, it's the rotor, more specifically the back left rotor!

Lastly, for those that believe my complaint should be directed at the manufacturer, well, you are right in some respects and as I posted I went that route too, but was just flat out ignored. HOWEVER, whether you agree or disagree the dealer (TIRE RACK) shares in the responsibility given the short time period - this generally holds true across the retail industry. If a customer were to buy a stereo and it stops working within the first week, the customer will likely take it back to Best Buy, since clearly there is a defect - you don't call Pionoeer unless of course Best Buy fails to address the problem appropriately.

In any event, take it for what's its worth, lesson learned... Tire Rack is good for one thing IMO and that is Tires, that's it! Selling tires is the root of their business and it's what they know.

mitsuguy

iTrader: (2)

Actually, you can turn slotted rotors without an issue - they have a discard thickness just like every other rotor... How much runout are we talking about here? Also, I guess I should have read your OP better, because then I would have realized that the pulsation didn't come up until 2 weeks (and originally 1 week) after the install, which clearly shows that there were no problems with the original product when it was originally installed...

Also, there are many places that do not accept returns of defective or even damaged merchandise... You can't tell me you have never seen one of those pieces of bright orange paper that is right on top of something (like a printer) inside the box that says something along the lines of "DO NOT RETURN TO STORE, CONTACT MANUFACTURER WITH ANY PROBLEMS"

cssnms

Yes, but the problem is finding a shop that is willing to do it. They chew up the bits. In any event, I don't care what the discard thickness is, anytime you resurface the rotor you are diminishing the mass of the rotor. If you know as much as you think you do, you would understand how this negatively impacts the thermal dynamic of the brake system. As much as I would LOVE to get into the science/engineering behind brake systems with you, I neither have the time or desire. Simply put reducing the mass of the rotor is NOT a good thing. Less mass means an increase in operating temperture, increasing operating temperatures adversely impacts braking performance. Additionally, runout is more likely to occur sooner and as such you will never get the same useful life out of the rotor. Hey it's your money, turn your rotors it makes no difference to me.


WELL GUESS WHAT smartazz?! My rotors didn't come with that orange piece of paper, so take your nonsensical comments elsewhere. Like I said, take my experience for what it's worth, do with it what you will. Order your brakes from TireRack I don't give a shet, but then again you seem like a smart guy so you probably will.

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

With the onset of cursing and name calling, this thread is closed.