I have seen some drilled rotors develop small cracks that emanate from the holes that were drilled in the rotors. I've always used slotted rotors on my cars. Gas slotting supposedly helps dissipate gasses that develop between the pad and rotor surface under braking. The real reason I've always used gas slotted rotors on my cars is that they're cheap and I've never had a problem with them. I've used ATE power discs on my E30 since the mid-90s. If you've found something that works for you, I say stick with it.

 

OK i understand that logic. I only buy my brakes and rotors from one company in California. I have never had an issue with cracks. It could be cause I get both brakes and rotors every time brakes are due since I save so much money doing them myself. I use drilled and slotted rotors in all my cars because I always had issues with warping due to heat (I am a really fast driver) and I was getting push back every time i took the cars to the dealership for warranty. When I made the change the issue stopped so I stuck with it and the company. That could be crazy but it has worked for me.

 

nope, not crazy at all. if you find something that works for you, that's all that matters

 

I had the same problem. Tried many options and nothing helped. Ended up replacing the front hubs/bearings (it is all one assembly, costs around $100 each). This fixed the problem and it has been ok thus far (10K miles already). I suspect that the front bearing wear out causing play (your car has 200K miles). That play causes the new rotors to wear out unevenly a little at a time. Ultimately the rotor wear is enough to cause the vibration you are feeling.

I recommend getting the hubs replaced and installing new rotors or resurfacing your existing rotors all at the same time. This should fix your issue. If you only do the hubs and not touch the rotors, you will continue having vibrations. Good luck!

 

Funny you are saying this (and I trully appreciate the input) a friend of mine had the exact same issue on his E39 (same basic suspension design) After changing several rotor sets, he ended up changing the bearing/hub, problem went away.

I am going to replace the front left wheel bearing as it was never replaced, right side was replaced already by PO and has zero runout.
Amazing that I cannot find any play or noise on the bearing... I have a new one in the trunk, I will replace it this week and report back.

 

I'm having the exact same issue, no vibration through brake pedal but crazy vibration through steering wheel. I haven't changed anything yet as I don't want to throw parts at it, but I'm also getting some groaning/creaking from the passenger side caliper. Pads are fine but I was told the thrust arm bushings are about due for replacement by my indy. The groaning/creaking caliper is what is clueing me in to the problem...does the caliper need lubing or replacement in your opinion? Caliper pins maybe? Thanks

 

Jim165 I would do thrust arms bushing 1st if they are bad and check your slidders on your callipers.

I changed my wheel bearing and my vibration is still there, I will do rotors again.

 

Wouldn't have suspected wheel bearings as they would always cause a vibration as long as the car was in motion, regardless of whether braking or not. But at 200K they probably weren't going to last too much longer. Call it preventative maintenance.


Funny you have Zimmermans. I had Zimmermans and went through two sets with the same problems. I now have a set of Textars. Hopefully they last longer.

 

Thanks for the response, frchdragon and sorry for your continued problems. I'll have to jave my indy check it out again and possibly go the thrust arm bushing replacement route amd check the caliper pins. I'll report back....

 

(Copying one of my old posts from another thread. To update, even after another 15K miles on the "stock" rotors and pads, the brakes continue to feel perfect. With so many aftermarket options for slotted rotors, high carbon rotors, low dust pads, etc. it's easy to lose sight of the engineering that BMW put into the stock setup, and if brake feel is important to you, it's hard to improve on the way the car felt coming out of the showroom....)

Hi Folks, I've been reading this thread with interest and suffering from the same problem for more than a year, and finally fixed it this week!! I'll share the background and solution in hopes that it helps someone else.

My car is a 2008 528xi with 117K miles. I normally replace pads and rotors with whatever seems like a good buy from the online parts stores, and last summer I bought a set of Bosch QuietCast low-dust pads and matching high-carbon rotors to replace the front brakes. I installed them properly, did not grease the caliper slide pins, and bedded the brakes as directed. They seemed OK at first but soon I noticed a slight judder or vibration in the steering wheel under moderate brake pressure, especially at higher speeds.

So I replaced the thrust arms/tension struts including the bushings and ball joints, which improved the judder but did not completely fix it. It seemed to worsen this summer, especially on hot days, and I replaced the pads with a new set, also Bosch QuietCast, and checked both rotors for any evidence of deposits or warping. This did not help either, and the judder really started to affect my enjoyment of the car.

Before chasing down anything more extreme like sticking calipers or bad bearings (not a simple fix on an XDrive car), I decided to go back to full stock brakes and ordered new OEM rotors (Zimmermann) and OEM pads (Jurid/ATE). I carefully brushed and cleaned the hub surfaces where the rotors attach, as well as the inside of the wheels where they contact the rotors. Finally, I decided to go against published advice and lightly greased the caliper slide pins with silicone brake lubricant, just to reduce the risk of a sticking caliper.

IT FEELS LIKE A NEW CAR AGAIN. The braking is perfect at all speeds, pedal effort is reduced and easier to modulate, and even the steering and handling feel silky smooth. I suspect that the old pads and rotors were transmitting a slight vibration to the steering wheel even when I wasn't braking, and the difference is very noticeable. The drawback is that my front wheels are already turning black from brake dust, but that's a small price to pay for the end of this year-long problem. Hopefully it's gone for good!

I hope this helps some of you who are struggling with this issue.