I've got 37K kms in 27 months (includes two winters) and complete replacement is required. I can't gear down as this is AT but all previous experience says I'm a very light user of braking systems. I'm asking for a mtg. with Mazda Rep. where we can examine parts being removed today.
Any other suggestions?

 

Complete replacement of what? All 4 rotors? Brake pads? Rotors and pads in the front only?

 

The quote was about $950 Cdn for for discs and matching calibers. Labour about $200 then taxes (Ontario 8%;Ottawa 7%).

 

You need new calipers? or just pads?

 

Maybe just pads. I'll know at 4:00PM.

 

what do you mean you can't gear down?

48k on my original pads. I do very little breaking also.

 

Four Rotors and all brake pads replaced--close to $1400.00 Cdn
after full scheduled maintenance by same Mazda dealer (and covered under HP issue) from Day one. There was obviously some noise from rear sometime this summer that is gone now,
but I'm not that sensitive to it and it was my wife who commented.
The brake pads has seized inside and were not operational for some time.
Thus the front rotors wore down to replacement rqt.
I'm told annual servicing a major geographical rqt. here and not in service manual.

 

I'm awaiting response from Mazda Canada.

 

This sounds real bad...brake pads for all 4 wheels alone is unusual but all 4 rotors need replacing too?? IF that's the case, and I'm not entirely convinced it is at this point because that indicates a seriously malfunctioning brake system which you would have certainly been able to tell, then the dealer has some explaining to do as to why after every service, they never noticed anything in their safety checks. A brake system problem that bad would have been immediately noticable to any decent mechanic; just from driving it, much less from a visual inspection which they're required to do before releasing the car.

Front brakes alone is unusual to have to have everything replaced...but the rear brakes....rear rotors should last WAY longer; well over 100k miles.

Something is seriously off here; either the dealer is BSing you in order to take advantage of you or Mazda for profit, or he failed miserably to catch this during the times you had it in for service. If the problem really is that bad, call Mazda and talk to them; they might want to check this out for themselves before authorizing the repair. There's no way you should pay for anything here; either Mazda or the dealer should cover it.

 

Just got 36,500 Km service done. When I came to pick-up a car, service adviser told me that front rotors were worn beyond factory specs and they had replaced both front rotors and pads NO CHARGE it's covered by warranty. I use Marin Mazda in San Rafael CA. Needless to say, I'm very pleased. I think that the great stopping power comes at the price of softer pads/rotors.

 

For those who have trouble believing this, keep in mind that here in Canada over winter, brakes can seize quite easily. On my Celica, after one winter the rear brakes developped a rust groove right in the middle of the friction surface on the inside of the rotor. The inner pad was no longer pushing hard enough, and so the rust was never "wiped away" by the pad, which led to an accumulation of rust over a (surprisingly short) period of time.

I agree with the dealer that extra maintenance is required. It's really too bad Mazda doesn't see fit to mention this in the owner's manual. I really hope you convince the dealer or Mazda Canada to pay for part of this.

 

They seized or he drives with 2 feet.

 

Any brake mechanic will try to sell you four rotars. Sounds like it's time for you to learn about brakes and check them yourself. 99% chance the rears are fine.

80% chance the fronts are fine and you just need them resurfaced.

Of course if your car was shaking very badly and you drove it like that way for sometime then you may have warped the fronts beyond repair.

 

some manufacturers don't condone resurfacing anymore, or have such a low cut spec that they will want you to replace them with new pads because removing mass increases the chances of the rotors warping/cracking. A lot of current rotors have minimal mass to reduce cost and reduce gas mileage robbing inertia.

I don't have my service manual handy to check the RX-8 specs, but as mentioned some dealer swill always try to sell you as much as possible too. You can probably get the job done for less somewhere else, you may want to shop around.

 

I have 17,000 miles on my brakes. I checked them last week, I must say they are holding up well. The front are less then 50% worn. If I get 30,000+ miles on the front brakes, it'd be a record for me because I'm hell on brakes. Since you have the AT, you may have smaller brakes, in which case they would not last as long.

 

I highly doubt you need new rotors. When driving fast and braking, does the car shake left and right? If not, then your rotors are most likely fine.

All new pads should not cost over 150 bucks. You can get better aftermarket rotors for about $350 for all four.

I had my brakes off when I painted the calipers, It is very easy to change the pads/rotors on this car. You might want to do the work yourself and save some money.

 

I always get nervous when suggesting people do work on their own brakes if they don't know the basics on how the system works.........

Brakes are not rocket science.............but if you screw up the consequences can be severe

There are very few things that would cause all 4 rotor and calipers to go on a 2 year old car with that type of mileage. Saw it once ........on a car that the person dragged there foot on the brake all the time.

Find a good shop that you trust for an opinion. It should save you a lot of money

 

Do you think it is coincidence that AT version has 323 mm wide front 302 in rear?
Are Mazda recognizing a problem in durability?

 

Specs I have on current brakes are 320mm front, 300 rear (with sport package).

 

I realize this is an old post. The story I heard Gord, was that you declined to have your brakes serviced even though the dealership recommended this. As a result, the pistons in the calipers where seizing and not retracting all the way. This resulted in excessive and premature wear on the rotors.

Because you live in an area know for rugged winters and high salt content on the roads, this only exaserbated the problem. I heard that eventually, Mazda Canada paid for everything. I all fairness to the dealership, the service manager and Mazda Canada, these details should have been brought forward in my opinion.

 

Thanks for the update we all need to know the real story.