[Guest]

Hi there,

The guys in the US/Canada have had alot of issues concerning their brakes. It seems a be a very wide spread issue.

They have had noticable grooves in their rotors, and excessive brake dust.

I am aware of the brake dust, but have not yet checked the rotors for grooves... Anyone else aware of these issues??

 

[olorin]

i have no idea how to tell if they are grooves or not on my disc brakes.

i have asked father, friends, _and_ the service people during the 1000k service. they all said it looked fine. (service was of course hiding behind the blanket statement that mazda has not issued a product recall *snort*)

in my mind i have justified it that the NA people are driving through a lot of snow and grit (with the salt and gravel) which would justifiably lodge in the calipers and cause scoring with brake application. since i'm doing mainly city driving (no off road adventures yet!) then things have been ok.

i'd gladly hear counters to this theory (the human mind self justifies so many things!) so that i can arm myself and tell those service people off.

 

[Guest]

I'll have to check as soon as i get home....

Just run your fingers along the rotors and see if its smooth..

Also do a visual inspection on all 4 rotors and compare.

I'm a bit annoyed with the excessive brake dust on the rear wheels though.. :twisted: :twisted: :twisted:

 

[ZOOMER]

As you will appreciate my Mazda3 has not yet been delivered but I do have experience with two models of stick shift Honda Civics. Both of them gave off brake dust on front and particularly back. I use a lot of engine compression braking and am light on the brakes. I clean my car once a week and always the dust. Let's face it something has to give when braking and it should not be the rotors so hence the brake pad dust. If we get scoring in Oz as well as dust with highway and town driving then the rotor metal is too soft. We will have to see. MB please give us your report when you have checked your rotors. One more thing: I reckon that an automatic must use more brakes so more dust?? We need a comparison. Anyone??

 

[Elmo]

Sadly... for us Mazda3 owners... I think the car has got a problem with the brakes... or more specifically with the rear brakes.

As shown earlier in the first post, I too have some graining in the left rear disc. It is only minor at the moment, but none the less a new car should never have these problems.

I am also able to hear the rear brakes grinding every time I brake. I suggest you try this also, and notice the sound.

I have been going easy on the car (now done 1150klms - SP23 sedan), and the claim that the pads are wearing in is starting to piss me off... I have owned 3 new cars in the past, and none had this problem when so new.

For the sake of all Mazda3 owners, I call on you to note this in your questionnaire and feedback form that Mazda will send you.

 

[Guest]

Have you brought this in and expressed your concerns???

What did they say/do for you?

 

[Guest]

Zoomer : Sorry, didn't get to check the rotors, it was too dark by the time i got home, will have to wait till the weekend.

Will keep you posted!!

 

[olorin]

i can see the little discoloured grooves that people talk about, but running a finger along the rotor reveals that its smooth and only coats my finger in dust... i was expecting a pitted groove like an old lp or something...

 

[Elmo]

The car in for it's 1000k service on Monday morning.. I have expressed my concern over this... We'll see how it goes. My father is a mechanic and he said that a simple brake pad change should fix the problem. The new pads tend to be of a softer compound, so rocks and grit can get caught into them as they settle in to the shape of the discs...

Will let you know what happens... worse case, if the dealer says it's normal, then i'll be campaigning for them to fit new australian spec pads...

 

[ZOOMER]

Thanks MB. And Elmo do let us know re the brake pads and the possible swop to Oz spec pads. Thanks for keeping us up to date. What would I DO without this forum??

 

[fiordland]

I've brake dust, I guess what everyone needs to ask themselves is "am I prepared to wash my rims in exchange for extra large and powerful braking performance?" My answer is yes, to avoid brake dust you can always get the discs swapped out for a couple of sets of awful drums - ha ha.

Which 3 has issues? Is it the SP or the other 3's, they both have different braking config's. Mine run perfectly and I have 3 years warranty so can not work myself up into a lather over the braking system which is sharp every time I've had to use the cursed brake pedal.

The lines on your discs are natural, all cars have them and its simply the result of various hardened debris scratching the discs, nothing in the above photo looked unusual to me.

And whats this about "aussie spec brakes", our roads are fine and the braking system on my SP is actually bigger than the vehicles weight justifies. The grit that can get picked up on australian roads you'll generally find is the same all over the tarmac sealed world.

 

[Guest]

The lines on your discs are natural, all cars have them and its simply the result of various hardened debris scratching the discs, nothing in the above photo looked unusual to me.

DO you seriously call this 'natural' ...

i think not!

 

[M6Gr8]

from what it appears on the photo here,that "line" seems to be a little bit too much for one to call it normal to me.malebastard,if that is on my car,I will take it to the dealer to enquire about it.

The Mazda seems to have some issue with brakes as report by some user of the 6,where one has to machine the rotor with only some 30,000K on the clock.So be caution of this issue in the early day of the cars is wise to do.

 

[Guest]

Thanks m6gr8,

That pic of the rotor was taken from the US forum - they have been experiencing alot of brakes issues, and i was wondering if we were having the same issues.

We experience abnormal amounts of brake dust on the rear wheels, which i feel is a bit unusual for a new car. I'll wait a little bit longer to see how things go there.

btw...

ZOOMER : My rotors seem fine! No deep defined grooves there. I washed my car this weekend and i forgot how shiny the standard rims were!! :lol: :lol: :lol: They were caked in brake dust most of the time. :? :? :?

 

[ZOOMER]

Thanks for the update MB. Good to know your rotors are ok. As to the dust surely Mazda will have to address the issue if so many people are uncomfortable about the situation? I guess we should all report the matter to our dealer at either the 1000K service or immediately if the 1000k service has taken place and the matter was not reported then.
Thanks again.

 

[Guest]

No probs Zoomer...

So when are u expecting yours to arrive?

 

[M6Gr8]

Thanks m6gr8,

That pic of the rotor was taken from the US forum - they have been experiencing alot of brakes issues, and i was wondering if we were having the same issues.

We experience abnormal amounts of brake dust on the rear wheels, which i feel is a bit unusual for a new car. I'll wait a little bit longer to see how things go there.

It is absolutely weird to have lot of brake dust on the back wheels,as oppose to what normally will be for the front wheels due to braking force is much greater on the front.

The 6 has a lot of brake dust up the front and I consider it to be normal.But generally the brake dust doesn't worry me as much as the scratch line though.

 

[Guest]

I was looking at alot of cars and brake dust seems to be very visible on the front wheels, not the rear.

So it's a bit concerning to say the least, and mazda haven't really given us a reason why.

 

[M6Gr8]

But, how is the condition on the front?It doesn't have any dust at all?

 

[Guest]

The front is hardly visible of dust!

Which is strange i guess, looks like only the rear brakes are working.