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Hyundai Sonata Brakes

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Comments

  • tsiglertsigler Member Posts: 1
    I don't know where you live, I'm in DE, but I just had the rear brakes on my 2007 Sonata replaced at 21800 this morning. Total cost including "surfacing" the rotors was $194.95 ($125 labor and $69.95 for "58302-3ka60 Pad Kit-RR"). My service manager explained to me that the backs wear out before the fronts because they are about half the size of the fronts. Seems, according to him, that is Hyundai's way of balancing the front-back braking bias. Like you, I usually get 70-80,000 miles before needing brakes. Didn't like what I was being told that's why trying to check out the situation. Seems I'll be buying something else before the next set is needed.
  • curtrcurtr Member Posts: 3
    I have an 06 Sonata GLX - and have never had any problems with brakes, after 191,000 miles. This may be because I have disc brakes all around...The front brakes have been replaced three times - once with aftermarket pads that 'sqealed' after only about 10,000 miles, so the third set went on. The rears have been replaced once.

    Now, I do my own work - and I'll say that both front and rear replacements have been among the simplest I've ever done. They're virtually 'snap in' - especially the rears.

    Altogether, the Sonata has been the best car I've ever owned.
  • curtrcurtr Member Posts: 3
    I'd say that your service manager was entirely wrong. If the rears are wearing out before the front (the burden on the front brakes is substantially more than the rears - on any car) I'd have a reputable garage check out the balance adjustment.

    Resurfacing rotors, in my opinion, is a scam - unless you have deep cuts in the rotor, you're good - at 191,000 miles, I've replaced the rear pads on my 06 Sonata ONCE, and it's a very simple job.
  • ayeuayeu Member Posts: 41
    tsigler -I live in Ohio. You are part of a long list that Hyundai (and some of the readers of this thread) refuse to accept or believe. Did your dealer increase the clearance in the pad slides? My dealer said that's the only way to prevent a recurrence. The good news is the brakes haven't seized since but they are a lot noisier. I got 11 months/21,000 out of my first set of back pads. I now have 63,300 miles on the car - original front pads and so far 42,000 on the replacement rear pads. I just rotated my tires and still have plenty of meat on all four pads.

    As far as buying another Hyundai, if I were to consider doing so, I would have to build in the inevitable brake repair costs against the total cost of ownership vs other cars. Aside from the brakes, all repairs (minor) have been under warranty so haven't cost me anything. My dealer always has oil change coupons for $19.95 so that's inexpensive maintenance. They always try to sell service over and above what HMC recommends. A classic is "upper engine decarbonization" which supposedly "decarbonizes" your intake manifold and injection system. I asked the Service Mgr how carbon forms ahead of combustion. He had no answer. I declined the service. Ironically, back at 15,000 miles they recommended a $130 brake service. I declined that one, too. 6,000 miles later they seized.
  • msallmenmsallmen Member Posts: 7
    I'm no mechanic, but it is my understanding that exhaust gases are recirculated back into the combustion chamber via the EGR valve. That is a likely source of carbon deposits. I'm also a fan of BG chemicals and their scheduled maintenance procedures. Their oil and fuel treatments breathed new life into my previous car. I plan to use all applicable BG products on my newly-acquired Hyundai.
    Here's their Fuel/Air Induction Service.
  • targettuningtargettuning Member Posts: 1,371
    The rear rotors on nearly every car with 4 wheel discs (with the possible exception of sport and high performance cars) are always smaller than the fronts. The brake bias front to rear is taken care of by the brake proportioning valve not by sizing brake rotors F to R and making the fronts larger. That said, the combination of smaller rear rotors + making the rear brakes share in much more of the work of stopping the car (via the aformentioned proportioning valve) may result in shorter rear pad life in the newest cars. In the "old days" the rear brakes did little in helping stop the car. I stated this before but we had a 1997 Taurus on which the rear brake shoes lasted nearly 150,000 miles. I thought that was great until the reality of the situation dawned on me....the rear brakes didn't do squat and were along for the ride. That HAS changed so expect rear brakes to wear out now. end of story!!
  • ayeuayeu Member Posts: 41
    Thanks for the tip on BG, I'm somewhat familiar with their products. My Sonata has almost 64,000 after three years, the brakes are working and it gets >30 mpg reliably. I'm going to assume that the fuel additives in the gas I use are working just fine. Regarding oil additives, oils nowadays are pretty slippery with good technology behind them. I change O & F after no more than 5,000 miles and it's still pretty clean.
  • LASHAWNLASHAWN Member Posts: 303
    Seems to me, at least from all the complaints I've read on this forum, that these rear brake concerns are only on vehicles from the north or midwest where it snows alot. Down here in the South brakes usually don't have to be changed until after 50k miles at least. I have an 06 Sonata LX and I changed out my front pads at 54k miles(63600 currently) and have yet to need new rear brakes.
  • sudha22sudha22 Member Posts: 12
    Wondering whether anyone have come aross this issue. When I drive for 10 minutes and then idle or accelerate > 40 MPH, I hear a squeaky sound. This sound stops once I apply the break to slow down. Took it to the dealer and he said that the brake pad may have worn out because of over heating applying brakes at high speed. It was unbelievable. Then I asked him to just inspect. He took a look and said that he took care of it and if the sound persists, he is going to apply some kind of silicone Gel for $200. I was in a hurry and was optimistic that he may have fixed the issue. However, it was not. Still running with it. Planning to take it to a local repair shop as I don't trust the dealership.. Do you guys have any suggestion? Please help!
  • ayeuayeu Member Posts: 41
    This sounds exactly like my problem. If you read through this series of comments, you'll see that you and I are not alone. Most likely your rear pads are heating up because they've seized in place and will need to be replaced. They will use a heat resistant anti-corrosive lubricant that may have to be reapplied annually. It's a Sonata problem typical in climates where salt is used. Are you in the north somewhere?
  • dave09sedave09se Member Posts: 20
    Rear disc brake trouble is common on alot of vehicles especially in areas where road salt is used if your are mechanically inclined most of the time all it takes is to clean and lubricate parts when ever you replace pads. I think they should have classes on general auto repair that people could take so they could learn how simple most general maint. is and how bad they take advantage of people that do not know.
  • sudha22sudha22 Member Posts: 12
    Thanks for responding..
    I guess Hyundai did not consider testing in places where it would snow. I am from Michigan and hence it is true that we have 3-4 months of snow.
    Reg my scenario, should I just change the pads through a local repair shop and ask him to lubricate it.. Please suggest.
    Is it OK to drive until then or am I risking the rotor or any other component? Your feedback is appreciated..
  • dave09sedave09se Member Posts: 20
    I cant diagnose your problem without hearing it or seeing it but I can say this if your pads are rubbing your rotors they will eventually wear the pads out and ruin the rotors, take it someone you trust and have them fix it right for you, dont let the dealer charge you for some crap you dont need.
  • sudha22sudha22 Member Posts: 12
    Thanks again.. I took it to a trusted repair shop. He took a look and said that nothing is wrong. He was not able to reproduce the problem. He applied some lubricants. He did not capture the steps to reproduce the problem correctly. Again, I left my car with him today. I insisted that he test drive with me. He did and was happy that he acknowledged the problem. He put his head out while driving and he felt that the sound was coming in the front. He is again taking a look. I am having my fingers crossed now. I am little frustrated with all the repair guys of not paying attention to the fine details that we provide. Unnecessary waste of time. :mad: Now I am waiting on him to get back.. Having my fingers crossed..
  • ayeuayeu Member Posts: 41
    Not that this belongs in the brake discussion, but I just want to vent. Now my lights don't turn off automatically as they're supposed to. Of course, I'm 4,000 miles over the bumper to bumper warranty. :{
  • sudha22sudha22 Member Posts: 12
    Interestingly the repair personnel thinks that brake is not the issue. He thinks that the seal for the front wheel bearing may be heating up which is causing the squeaking sound. He said that he had sprayed some oil. He said if the issue is fixed then it would be temporary and that the sound would come back once the oil dries out. He said that it is covered by warranty and I should take it to the dealer.

    It has started to rain since yesterday and I am unable to hear the sound. I just wanted the rain to stop before I can decide whether the repair shop fix works for sure or not.
  • big_mike1big_mike1 Member Posts: 4
    I have the issue with headlights not turning off also. Seems like a really retarded thing to have the car waste a day at the dealer (thankfully, I'm still under warranty, just passing 30k miles), but I guess I'll have to.
  • jesscjessc Member Posts: 1
    I have an 07 Sonata, bought new from the dealer 2.5 years ago. I've always taken it to Hyundai dealers only and on time for routine maintenance. The rear brake pads were replaced in July 08. In February 09, my car had the 30K mile service done (it was actually done at 32K miles because they said with my oil change timing I could wait until then), at which time the front brakes were measured at 60% remaining and rear had 90% remaining. Fast forward to September/October and less than 7K miles later (mostly highway driving by the way, involving much less braking than city driving), and the car was making an awful noise so I took it into the dealership ASAP where I live now in MA and get this --- the front was measuring at 25-30% remaining and the rear was as follows -- ZERO% remaining on one rear side and the other side had 70% pad remaining but that is because it was IMMOBILE in the caliper... in other words, it was not functioning causing the other rear side to wear down to metal-on-metal and wearing the front pads down too. That is frightening that I basically did not have any properly functioning rear brakes for a significant period of time unbeknownst to me!!! Thank god nothing bad happened and the only thing was damage to the car. The rear brakes and rotors were, needless to say, totally destroyed and had to be replaced. This is the part you should be warned about and the reason that I am posting this message--
    The dealership that I bought the car from in Pittsburgh said that Hyundai corporation is fully aware that there are two major problems with its brake systems (especially including the Sonatas) 1) like in my case, where the brakes become immobile in the caliper and do not work or 2) the pads stick to the rotors and don't release and wear down to nothing that way. The dealer said that Hyundai refuses to issue a recall or even a TSB bulletin on the issue, instead they have some crappy "goodwill unofficial warranty" that if this happens to your car in the first 2 years or 24K miles they will fix the problem for free. Can you say hush money for not reporting the problem? My car is only 2.5 years old, and the Pittsburgh dealership was upset for me about this, so they contacted their Hyundai rep who is trying to contact the rep here in MA to take care of the issue for me. It cost me $500, hopefully I will get reimbursed. I reported this problem online to the NHTSA, and if this problem has happened to you also you should report it because the more reports they get, the more likely they are to do something about it! It is just plain frightening to me that the dealers admit that Hyundai corporation knows about these brake problems, that they happen often, and they aren't doing anything about it. Regardless of a recall etc., they should at least have the decency and sense of responsibility to tell us car owners that this problem is out there so that we can be proactive and get out brakes looked at every so often to catch things while the pads can still be replaced and avoid having to pay for all new pads and new rotors. The dealership here in MA thinks that the reason they aren't doing a recall or TSB is because this might be a regional thing linked to areas that get a lot of snow (calcium chloride on the road). Regardless, Hyundai should be telling us consumers who live in these areas to be vigilant about our brake systems!! The dealership here implemented a service that they now offer to check your brakes and calipers every X-thousand of miles. Hyundai should be telling all the dealerships to do this at the very least. BE WARNED AND VIGILANT ABOUT CHECKING YOUR BRAKES!
  • espo35espo35 Member Posts: 144
    I think you are being sold a bill of goods by the dealer who first inspected your brakes and is now telling you that Hyundai is "aware" of a problem. I think they blew it on the brake inspection. Techs often just look at the outer brake pads (which they can see without removing the wheel). Sometimes, the inner pad is worn a lot more than the outer one.
    Sounds like they are just trying to cover their rears.
  • djado_yotsodjado_yotso Member Posts: 4
    Espo35 I think you should read more carefully the post. The problem is not that much how fast they wore out (it is but not the big one) but the fact that one of the rear pads is gone down to metal while the other one is at least 50%. That is not normally functioning break system. And yes the same thing happened to me with brand new 07 Sonata at 2.5 years and 26k miles on it. So it happens and quite often on top of that. The 2 dealerships I went to said that this is a common problem for the Sonata and one more model. So es they know about it and I filed a complaint with the NHTSA
  • cathandlercathandler Member Posts: 1
    I had much the same issue as many of you and got it taken care of today. I was experiencing a squeal from the left rear wheel that went away when the brakes were applied. That same wheel would become noticeably hot to the touch after a lengthy drive. With 11,400 on the odometer of my '09 GLS 4cyl I arrived at the dealership with some trepidation. They determined that the brake was sticking and the pads were damaged. They replaced the pads, resurfaced the rotors, and lubricated the pins and slides, all at no charge under the factory warranty (they may have done more, but it wasn't specified in the paperwork I received.) The service writer advised me that premature rust was a big issue with the rear brake hardware due to the highly corrosive calcium chloride solution being applied to roads during the winter driving season; he said the front wheels splash the crud onto the rear wheels. That, plus the front brakes do 80% of the work so the rear brakes are particularly susceptible to this kind of chronic problem. I guess I consider myself lucky for having it done under warranty, but it looks like the brakes will be a money pit post-warranty unless materials less susceptible to road salt-related damage are developed by Hyundai or the aftermarket.
  • espo35espo35 Member Posts: 144
    I'm in California so I don't deal with road salt or snow, either of which might cause a sliding caliper to bind.
  • jayessjayess Member Posts: 59
    I had a similar problem as I'd posted some time ago, also with an '07 Sonata. Started to hear the worn brake squeel sound at about 18.5K miles just ovet 1.5 yrs. The rears were worn down. Ultimately Hyundai reimbursed me in full for my initial cost to replace the rear brakes and turn the rotors. Then at 29.5K miles and just shy of 2.5 yrs they replaced the rears again - free - and resurfaced the rotors due to "excess wear".
    Then on my '08 they machined the rear rotors since the pads were sticking in the slides an lubed everything up, free since I'd reminded them of the issue we had with the '07. Car was 1 yr and 10.5K miles
    Jessc - I'm also purchased from a Pittsburgh area dealer - Cochran in Monroeville. My service advisor is 1st rate, he was the one who'd gone to the regional service mgr. and got me reimbursed...or maybe he was just playing good cop :) ...either way I'm very satisfied.
  • sudha22sudha22 Member Posts: 12
    The issue was not resolved and hence I took it back to the dealer. This time I insisted that a dealer personnel ride with me so that I can make him hear the sound. Thankfully I could reproduce the sound and he identified that as a ringing noise. Left the car to be fixed and went to work. Got a call around noon. He said that someone [ my repair shopy guy] has applied some pink solution on the pads in the front. I would be charged $$ and that I have to pay for cleaning up the stuff. I said that I went for the second opinion and I was fine to pay as I had been dealing with it for the past 2 weeks.
    Then when I went to pick the car, the dealer did not charge me anything. I was surprised immensely that a dealer not charging for something he said he would.
    I asked him repeatedly whether the sound is fixed and he confidently said that it is.
    Next I asked what was the fix. He said that they had to apply some sticky substance wherever the brake is being held on all 4 pads. I asked whether it needs to be done anytime I had to change the pads. He said yes. When I asked is it some kind of a glue, he said NO and said it is some kind of sticky substance. Whatever.. It has been a week since it was fixed and I have not heard the sound.

    I am bit worried whether the fix is going to hold good or the issue is going to come again and without me knowing would it affect anything else..

    How could Hyundai ignore such an issue and not issue a recall for a permanent fix?

    In the inernet age, an issue such as this spreads so easily which would spoil their reputation.
  • espo35espo35 Member Posts: 144
    So the dealer DIDN'T charge you to undo the crappy job done by "your mechanic" and you're complaining that Hyundai is "ignoring the issue".....?

    Gotcha.
  • sudha22sudha22 Member Posts: 12
    Just read the entire thread of mine and then conclude.. I wouldn't have taken it to the mechanic if the dealer did the job right in the first place. Also, whatever mechanic did was he applied an anti-squeak solution.
  • ayeuayeu Member Posts: 41
    Sudha22 - Please read the brake comments from everybody then think objectively. There is a chronic problem with Hyundai brakes (check out the Santa Fe brake comments, too) that Hyundai Motors is ignoring. My Service Manager acknowledges it. Hyundai dealers recommend regular disassembly and lubrication of pad slides at a cost of about 1¢ per mile (my dealer charges $130 every 15,000 miles), so they acknowledge it, too.
    I was in for an oil change last week and the guy who sold me my car asked how I liked it. I told him other than the brake issue I like it. He asked if I'd buy another one and I said "I'm not sure (read: I don't think so)". He called me an honest man. I recommended that he go to Edmunds.com and read the thread on Sonata brakes to see what he may have to defend against.

    Other manufacturers don't have this problem. Hyundai and Kia do. They have made great progress with nice cars and this one problem could be easily solved and would avoid a disastrous change in customer quality perception.
  • saint_judesaint_jude Member Posts: 9
    I have a 2007 Sonata that has a stuck caliper for the second time in about one year. The first time, the repair was under warranty, but now, at 55K, I'm not sure if the repair will be covered. I caught it when I took it in for an oil change at Mr. Tire, and they advised me the break on the driver's side was starting to affect the rotor and should be fixed asap. I have also had paint chips in my blue metallic paint. My 2004 was a splendid car and never gave me a single problem, but I think this will be the last Hyundai I buy for awhile.
  • aengbertsaengberts Member Posts: 1
    My in-laws bought a 2007 sonata that had its front-breaks literally fall off the car when they started it one day. The car has barely 16,000 miles on it. The pads in the back also had to be replaced for premature wear.
    The dealer blamed it on my in-laws missing a regular inspection to charge them the repair work (over $300.00) and not cover it under warranty.
    Does anyone know who to contact at Hyunday to appeal to the decision of the dealer?
    Inspection or not, breaks are supposed to hold on to the car and 16,000 miles is too early to have to replace pads.
  • backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    The car is less than five years old and has less than 60k miles, so if the first repair was under warranty, this one should be also. Suggest you take it to the same dealer who repaired it the first time, as it would be hard for them to deny warranty coverage on this since they fixed it before under warranty. Also often dealers will cover repairs for 1 year/12k miles--just in case they try to suggest it's not covered by the factory warranty.
  • ayeuayeu Member Posts: 41
    I think you're lucky to have had your brakes repaired under warranty. Brakes are not part of the bumper to bumper warranty. My rear brake failure at eleven months after purchasing the car was an out of pocket repair. Great Lakes Hyundai refused to cover them under warranty, though they did discount the repair.
  • backybacky Member Posts: 18,949
    Wear items are not covered (e.g if brake pads wear out under normal use), but if a part is defective (e.g. if the caliper here was defective), it would be covered.
  • mmmmotommmmoto Member Posts: 3
    I just had my 2007 Sonata rear drivers side brake pads wear out completely at only 20,054 miles in the Chicago area. Unbelievable! The passenger side rear pads are perfect and have lots of pad left on them (as they should), but the drivers side is down to the metal. I called my local dealer (Gregory Hyundai in northern Illinois) and they said it was not a warrantied repair. They also said that it is a common condition in salty (read northern) climates. They want to charge me $295 to do the rear brakes, and will not just do the one side. Plus, they recommend that customers spend an additional $300 for a 15,000 service that in part lubricates the brake pins so the calipers do not seize and cause the pads to wear out in salty climates. They also want to charge $500 for a 30,000 mile service that includes the same procedure. This is bullpoop! I am 50+ years old and have owned Mercedes, Lexus, Ferrari, Toyota, Chevrolet, etc. and actually bought into the Hyundai story. But the maintenance issues (I have had ongoing seat problems for months, as well) and costs have doomed Hyundai's reputation for me. The brake pads should not wear out at 20,000 on only one wheel.

    There is no requirement in the owner's manual that specifies anything other than inspecting the brake pads at 15,000 which was done. They actually looked good on both sides at 15,000 miles when I inspected them myself. This should be a warrantied repair.

    I also noticed that my gas mileage dropped by 5 mpg in the last 3 weeks. Now I know why.

    I will definitely not be buying a Genesis from them ( I was actually close to buying one this week!), as they do not stand behind their designs or product. It costs more to service a darn Hyundai than it costs to maintain my wife's Lexus IS250 or my Porsche! I can imagine what will happen with an expensive Genesis when they want to service that car!

    Also, try and find or contact the zone office to discuss your problem. Or, call the 800 number and get put on hold for 5 - 10 minutes to talk to an employee who works for a company contracted to take customer service calls for Hyundai who can't connect you to anyone at Hyundai. A very weak support structure, in my opinion.

    The dealer says they don't make much money on the cars, so they need to make it on service.

    >Beware of Hyundai. In my opinion, they manufacture a flawed product (especially for the northern salt climate) and the company does not stand behind their product! The "10 year warranty" is a fantasy, as they look for loopholes to stick-it-to their customers.

    :mad:
  • dave09sedave09se Member Posts: 20
    Hyundai is not the only company with brake problems it is common on alot of vehicles with rear disc brakes in winter climates all of the garbage ends up back there and corrodes everything, its just the nature of the beast. I plan on inspecting mine at least once this winter and keeping them cleaned out with fresh water atleast once a week this has helped alot with other cars and trucks ive had before.
  • mmmmotommmmoto Member Posts: 3
    Update! I took the drivers side rear brake apart last night. The outside brake pad was worn down to metal, but the inside pad still had some meat on it. The pins were perfect and well lubricated! I pushed the piston back in, cleaned everything, put some anti-squeek on the back of each new pad, and we are operational again. I do not understand why the outside pad would be down to metal, with the inside pad being OK and the other rear side being fine. Perhaps the caliper is defective. Bad design, though. This has never happened to me before on any :sick:
  • dave09sedave09se Member Posts: 20
    There is supposedly a fix for this problem on the hyundai service website although it is not listed for the Sonata, it is for other Hyundai vehicles but is supposed to work for the Sonata also, I will dig a little deeper and see what I can find out, it is posted on the Hyundaiforums website also.
  • saint_judesaint_jude Member Posts: 9
    Update: Thanks for your message, Dave09se!! You helped me put some things together.

    To recap: I had the rear breaks redone at 36K while still in warranty because the Hyundai dealer said the caliper was stuck. Now, at 55K, when I got my oil changed and breaks checked at Mr. Tire last Saturday afternoon, they told me that the caliper was stuck, and said they "popped" the caliper out of the stuck position so that I could drive it to the Hyundai dealership without wearing the rotor down too much more--I wanted to see if the break repair would be covered again by warranty since I had them worked on only 15 months ago.

    At the Hyundai dealership yesterday, they found the same problem as dave09se--heavy wear on the outside of the driver's side rear pad to the point that it was cutting into my rotor, while the inside pad on the driver's side rear break was still fine. Perhaps not surprisingly, they observed the same imbalance of wear on pads on the passenger's side rear break, except that it wasn't as bad. The mechanic said I still had 25% left on my right break--not sure if that was the inside or outside, but both driver's side and passenger's side were wearing unevenly!!!!!! Roberto, the manager, said there was a break part that had rusted (supposedly the problem wasn't the caliper) and that this part was inhibiting the ability of the pads to move into breaking position simultaneously. So he admitted that the pressure on both sides was so uneven that it was making the breaks don't wear evenly. The manager said he couldn't get the caliper to malfunction again, and I really had to have my car, so we "split the cost" of a rear break job and it's hopefully working well again. He offered me a free oil change after another 3K at which time he wants to check the caliper again to see if it was faulty. BUT, now I'm beginning to think that perhaps it isn't necessarily a caliper problem, and was perhaps misdiagnosed by both Hyundai when I had my breaks done at 36K, and also at Mr. Tire.

    The point is, the break pads should not be wearing unevenly on each wheel, correct???? The inside pad on each wheel should wear in sync with the outside on the same wheel. Otherwise, you aren't going to get the breaking power you should have, AND you're going to end up replacing breaks and rotors more often than you should have to. I believe Hyundai may be getting its break parts from someone who is not making them with good enough materials to make them last long enough for natural break wear to occur. They need to check the specs on the manufacturing. Does this make any sense? I'm just a girl who knows very little about cars, but I can reason enough to know that if I have to change my breaks every 20K simply because one pad has gone bad, I'm not getting my money's worth.
  • sudha22sudha22 Member Posts: 12
    Did you find aything? Curious...
  • Sandman6472Sandman6472 Member Posts: 6,953
    You do know that that cars have "brakes", workers have "breaks" at work during their day. Just an FYI bud!

    The Sandman :sick: :shades:

    2023 Hyundai Kona Limited AWD (wife) / 2015 Golf TSI (me) / 2019 Chevrolet Cruze Premier RS (daughter #1) / 2020 Hyundai Accent SE (daughter #2) / 2023 Subaru Impreza Base (son)

  • espo35espo35 Member Posts: 144
    Just don't break your brakes before breakfast.
  • saint_judesaint_jude Member Posts: 9
    Per the earlier message from targettuning, my Sonata was brand new when I bought it back in November 2006. I am very particular about my car and have always been told by mechanics that I am extremely easy on my breaks. To have two serious problems with breaks by 55K miles--one diagnosed at 36K as a stuck caliper, and this time as a problem with corroded pins in the break systems that won't allow the pads to move properly (the Hyundai manager's words) and causing uneven wear on BOTH rear wheels--this is ridiculous, and is certainly not because I've abused my vehicle in any way or not taken care of it properly.
  • targettuningtargettuning Member Posts: 1,371
    I see much traffic here regarding Hyundai rear brakes. Some of the problems seem premature at less than 20K miles while others (st jude) are diagnosed at relatively high mileage. Yes, 55K and 36K miles are relatively high mileages for brakes these days and within the range where brake problems leave the realm of "premature" and into the area of "normal" . Brakes do not and will not last the life of the car and to expect brakes to last much beyond 40 or 50K miles is setting yourself up for disappointment and in st judes case not "ridiculous" at all. No, you have not abused your vehicle BUT you HAVE used it. Apparently there could be a construction material problem on the calipers. Since, as I have pointed out time and time again, almost all calipers (from other manufacturers) are designed the same..there just isn't a lot of creative latitude when designing these because they all HAVE to perform the same function within similar physical confines. With this in mind it can only be the interaction of various materials when salt or slush splash is introduced causing this so-calling sticking of a sliding surface or pin. Another thing I would comment on is the big issue of one pad wearing more than the pad on the opposite side of the disc (on the same wheel). Based on my experience with another brand and year car (1995 Dodge Stratus) this isn't exactly abnormal. I experienced just this with the last pad replacement only a couple of months ago. In no way are my front brakes malfunctioning on that car but one pad on each side had significantly less friction material left than the other. I do not know what the Hyundai problem is except to speculate on the disimilarity of metals (that react negatively to each other) used in caliper construction but if this is the case it should be relatively easy to engineer the problem away...and I am sure Hyundai is doing or has done just that.
  • bernardmarxbernardmarx Member Posts: 6
    My 2006 Honda Accord VP has 40K miles and the brakes look new. I suspect that the brakes will last to 80K.
  • aqua33v6aqua33v6 Member Posts: 38
    My 2006 Honda Accord VP has 40K miles and the brakes look new. I suspect that the brakes will last to 80K.

    So what's your point???

    A friend of mine has a 2006 Acura TSX. At 43K miles, his front pads were completely worn (less than 5% pad material remaining), and his front rotors were warped noticeably. He drives about 50/50 city/freeway, and his driving style is moderate; he doesn't abuse the car in any way. I very much doubt the Accord's brake system components are of higher-quality or better design than the more expensive, and sportier, TSX.

    Is his car's braking system defective? Absolutely not. The front brakes wore out at a typical mileage for his driving style and his mix of city/freeway driving.
  • targettuningtargettuning Member Posts: 1,371
    I agree... what is the point of his statement? There as many driving styles as there are drivers but tossing out the extremes the average is probably 40 or 50K miles for rear brakes. I don't consider that many miles to be "too soon for brakes" at all.
  • Sandman6472Sandman6472 Member Posts: 6,953
    Just had my front pads replaced at 24k on the odo, luckily the rotors were fine. I do 90% suburban driving and am somewhat hard on on the brakes. I've now started to let the car coast to any oncoming red light when it's safe to do so which uses less braking action. My rear drums are still in great shape and was told the brake fluid is still good when I asked about putting new fluid in. Hopefully my new driving style will help the pads longevity.

    The Sandman :sick: :shades:

    2023 Hyundai Kona Limited AWD (wife) / 2015 Golf TSI (me) / 2019 Chevrolet Cruze Premier RS (daughter #1) / 2020 Hyundai Accent SE (daughter #2) / 2023 Subaru Impreza Base (son)

  • espo35espo35 Member Posts: 144
    In my six years with Hyundai, I would say avg. front brake pad life for a Sonata is 40,000 miles. Rears- 50-60,000 miles. I managed a dealership near San Francisco and these numbers dropped almost in half (due to the hills).

    Per this discussion of REAR brakes, they have only 1 piston, which presses the inside pad against the rotor. The caliper is a "sliding-type", which transfers forse to the outer pad.
    If the pads are wearing significantly more on the inside pad (which seems to be the case for you folks), the caliper is obviously not sliding correctly. This is probably due to road-salt, brake pad dust or lack of lubrication (or a combination of these) causing the caliper to bind, or not slide freely.

    Working in California, I can honestly tell you I have had zero complaints of this, which seems to make road salt the most likely culprit.
  • saint_judesaint_jude Member Posts: 9
    Thanks for your input. I live in Washington, D.C., so neither salt, nor hills, are a particularly big problem--at least not like New York or Colorado. I have had time to finally figure out this whole mess, and I have to say, Hyundai Consumer Affairs has impressed me, but I still think Corporate is dragging their heels in issuing a recall. The final diagnosis was the "shim kit" problem, which their man said is corroding and causing problems. I am going to copy and paste the email I sent to my dad regarding the matter:

    Speaking of things breaking… I think I told you my Sonata had a sticky rear caliper that had to be replaced under warranty by Hyundai just over a year ago (around 36K miles), but when I took my car in for an oil change, I asked to have my breaks checked, and the guys are Mr. Tire said that the driver’s side rear wheel caliper was malfunctioning again and was starting to affect the rotor. I took it back to Hyundai Monday to see if repairs would be covered again (I’m at 55K miles now) since it was a recurring problem. They said the caliper was working fine, but that there were “pins” in the wheels that were badly corroded, and for that reason, the two pads on that wheel weren’t squeezing both sides of the rotor synchronously (or releasing) as they should, so one pad wore completely down, while the other remained okay. Checking both rear wheels, they found the same thing on the passenger’s side, but not as bad as the driver’s side.

    When they tried to charge me the $288 for the repairs, I spoke to the manager, and although he was willing to give me 50% off my repairs, I still wasn’t satisfied. In my mind, both pads on both wheels should hit and release from the rotors at the same time, right? I mean, I know I’m a girl and everything, but I at least understood that much. And because both sides were malfunctioning and wearing unevenly, I pointed out that I wasn’t getting all the breaking power I should—albeit the front breaks are the workhorses of breaking, but the rear breaks are there for a reason. Then I mentioned that if I had to come in every 15 to 20K miles (who knows when it might happen) to get my breaks changed because one pad was gone, that would end up costing me a lot of money, not to mention the fact that I would worry about when it would happen and it might damage my rotors even further. I also surmised that since both sides were corroded and wearing unevenly that the parts they were supplying were made of inferior metals. So…

    After doing online research on the problem I found out on Edmunds.com that this is a common problem on Sonatas, and in particular, the 2007 Sonata seems to be worse. A friend told me to forget about it since every car has problems, but I sent an email to Hyundai Consumer Affairs and copied several of the comments from Sonata owners I found on Edmunds.com. They had a rep call me, and the first person I spoke to (a woman who obviously knew nothing about cars) tried to spit back the same story that Hyundai’s service manager did, but with no real compensation or resolution to the real problem, which is that the parts they are putting on their cars are poorly made. So, I asked to speak to a supervisor, and of course none were available right then to talk to me, so I had to wait for a call back, but now I’m glad I did.

    The supervisor called and he said they are going to reimburse the charges for the repairs, and he explained that sometimes when they have problems that are common like this, parts are “updated” but they don’t always send out a recall. Their reasoning is that, because eventually everyone has these parts replaced when they get their breaks serviced, the “fix” just kind of works itself out naturally, but let's face it--their customers have to bite the bullet and now they're getting a lot of bad press because they didn't recall those parts. Furthermore, when their cars get a bad reputation, our car resale values go down, so it's just better for everyone to be in touch with Hyundai Corporate and get these things worked out.

    I asked the supervisor if the “shim kit” (which he told me was the problem) had been “updated” in the last year since I had my first break job, and I asked if there was any way of telling whether the parts recently installed were the "updated" ones, which were supposed to be more durable parts. He said he would find out and let me know. Then I requested that if he found out the parts on my car weren’t an updated version, I wanted them replaced on warranty whenever they are finally updated. He reiterated that he will check on the update and get back to me. In the meantime, the service manager at my local dealership has said that they would be willing to give me a free oil change 3000 miles from now and check for corrosion and uneven wear problems again at that time. So…

    I feel like they’re really trying to work with me, and I respect that, but with all the bad press they’re getting, I can hardly think it’s saving them money to hold off on the recall. They should just do it.
  • espo35espo35 Member Posts: 144
    Well, you certainly are persistant! The only thing I can think of that they'd be calling a "shim kit" comes with brake pads. They are stainless steel, thin, metal shims on the steel backing of the brake pads.I can't imagine this causing a binding problem. By chance, does your repair invoice have any part #'s listed?
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