Mine are groved to touch (slight) But they look an total mess. I have 11,000 on my car and no signs of improvement.

I`ve never eva done any type of auto-x.

SOA - Abusive driving.

yeah, no kidding. i have almost 9k on the clock and mine look like hell. subaru of america: don't worry, it's normal!

normal my a$$...is the way the wheel shakes when i step on the brake normal too? gee...must be.

It's not the rotors, it's the pads.

Are replacement pads' cost free under warranty?

Yes, most dealers should be aware of the problem. You might want to search either in this forum or in the WRX non-tech forum, as they have discussed this. When WRXs still on the lot show the problem, the dealers really can't claim they don't know anything about it.

In short, pads supplied to the factory (for a certain period of time) were defective. Some say these same pads are the chamfered ones. The WRX replacement pads via your dealer will have the same part number, but will be full-sized pads.

I had that problem till I fitted the 4pots. After that, I have driven harder, includding a PCA Driving School and they look like new!

Remember that the WRX was ment to be, and has them all over the world minus in the states (and here!) with the 4pots!

Leo

Thats funny I wasnt even offered any replacement pads!

Umh, my rotors look like hell too... What was this about it being the pads? I had done a search a while back and everyone said that it was normal? If they swap my pads, will it fix the problem?

--Spadini

It is the pads. I guess you could consider it "normal" since it happens to a lot of WRXs. If the dealer fits the good pads, yes it won't happen again. But if you have a groove in the rotor you'll have to get them turned as well (which the dealer should also do under warranty).

It's not the pads.

According to SOA, the rotors were covered with an anti rust compound for shipping purposes.

If it is not cleaned off, it gums up, leaves deposits on the rotors, which causes the scoring.

There is an extensive thread titled "Groovy Rotors." Do a search to find more.

Regardless of the cause, SOA has a serious problem here. Due to this problem, the total swept area of the brakes as specified in the manual is not up to spec as the pads do not contact the rotors in the scored area.

In other words, the brakes are defective.

Complain loudly to SOA. Do NOT take their well rehearsed and empty corporate excuses.

I also recommend reporting this dangerous defect to the NHTSA at www.nhtsa.dot.gov.

I have heard that you may be able to improve the situation by removing the deposits (they look like burrs and can be found in the grooves) with a key or screwdriving. This MAY in some cases allow the grooves to work themselves out. Still, I would never recommend doing such a jury rigged operation on a vital safety feature of your car.

Make SOA fix this problem and please report any progress you have with them.

Many people have decided not to buy WRXs, not because of the specific problem, but because of SOA's irresponsible and flippant handling of this dangerous problem. I, for one, will never purchase a vehicle from a company that treats its customers like this again.

Good luck.

And please just park your cars, because if you choose to keep driving a car with a KNOWN safety defect, you can't complain when it kills you.
Nothing worse than not being able to complain about what killed you...

Or get new pads, and your rotors turned...
It's not that big a deal.

It is important to note that the first pics that came out of the WRX in the continental US, were those of like 3 in a dealer in Fl. in service for BRAKES!

Leo

Kurichan is right, that is a possibility, I remembering talking to a stoptech representative about pad deposits. For the stoptech kit, there is also the anti-rust coating on the rotor. If that stuff is not off, then it will cause problems in the performance of the rotor. the best thing to do is get some soap and water and splash it on, to try an dissolve it. At least that is how the stoptech anti-rust coating work, not sure about the Subaru ones. But the deposits will cause a "warped" rotor feeling. If you do a search on stoptech, there is a long explanation about rotors and how they are supposed to act. Although, factory brakes should not have problems like this.:rolleyes: Another reason why I spent the money to get better brakes. ;)

WRXster is right. If it is so bad, don't drive, especially with your family. Get it fixed at your own expense and then try and collect from Subaru. Driving a car with a brake system defect is just plain stupid.

Wow, nobody ever said I was right before... How much do I owe you? :)
Originally posted by GRWRX
WRXster is right. If it is so bad, don't drive, especially with your family. Get it fixed at your own expense and then try and collect from Subaru. Driving a car with a brake system defect is just plain stupid.

(run on :lol: )

I just got home from the dealer and was told that I was SOL with them and had to contact SOA if I wanted them to do anything. The dealer said that it was normal wear and it's due to a protective coating that is applied to protect them from rust - yeah right. On my last car I had crossed drilled rotors coated with a gold protectant that burned off where the pad met the rotor but stayed on other parts of the rotor. I never had a problem from them with groove marks and had race pads on them as well. I told the Tech this too but he said that's how Subaru does it and the grooves would go away eventually - yeah right. I explained that there was no way that the grooves would go away and, in fact would get worse due to the fact that the pad and rotor surfaces are now mated together, groove to groove if you will.

After that, I saw a couple of WRX's on the lot and had him walk over and take a look with me and turned out that they had very few miles and had the same looking groove marks as mine. BTW, my Rex only has 4500 miles on it. Before I left he ended up saying that they've had several other WRX owners come through there and complain about the same problem as well.

Oh well, guess I'll call SOA now.

My personal experience...

I had grooves...they went away. Just like SOA said they would.

sorry if your experiences are different.

How many miles do you have on your Rex?

About 8200. And I brake hard all the time.

SOA will give you the same BS response they've given everyone else.... You drove abusively and caused the grooving yourself.

Some executive at Subaru (who was probably pissed off that Subaru decided to bring the WRX over) has evidently decided that ANY problem with a WRX can be blamed on the owner and classified as "abuse".

My favorite was the guy who lost his 2nd gear synchronizer after 600 miles and the dealer told him that SOA refused to cover the part, that it was impossible that it could have failed under any circumstances other than owner abuse. The guy was still in his break-in period and was keeping it under 3k rpm!! I'd do a search to find the thread for you but it seems the search function has an error right now.

SOA's corporate line on WRX problems is becoming tiresome. I wonder when they'll start owning up to the fact that SOME things CAN break on a car without the owner abusing it.

How do u tell if u have the so called "groovy rotors" caused by the pads and/or the coating of anti-rust crap they put on the rotors? On my rotors there is this lighter line than the rest of the rotor but when i used my nail to feel it i don't feel it...u can only see it....is this the problem u guys are discussing?

Run your finger nail across the grooves from top to bottom (parallel against the horizontal grooves on the rotor). Did that make since:lol:

Originally posted by RedlineRex
How do u tell if u have the so called "groovy rotors"
They might occur in varying degrees, but if you have a severe case, you will know when you look at them! Look at the rear rotors, and you see a smooth and shiny metal surface. Look at the front rotors, and they show concentric rings that are typcially a few mm wide, and have a different color/texture. You can also feel them when you run your finger over the surface (when it's cooled down!).

When I mentioned them to a service technician while being in for a different problem, he said that the grooves might improve braking performance because they increase the surface area! :lol: :confused: :eek: :mad:

I have a different color line that is about a few mm wide but when i ran my fingers through it i couldn't really feel it...Is this normal...? Is this a sign for future "groovy rotors"? I've only had this car for about a couple of weeks and have about 300 mi on the odometer.