One day, I was stupid and had the great idea to speed test my car in the country when i was out in the middle of no where(kansas). I know I am going to get s*** from you guys but i was goin' about 120-130. When I started breaking, my steering wheel would shake and i could feel the car shake a bit. I've also felt the steering wheel shake when breaking quickly and also breaking from about 90. Is this normal for a 95 gsr? Or is there something wrong here?

 

well if u were going 90 and u breaked hard, offcourse its gonna shake, however if your car shakes when u apply breaks normally then your frame might be bent, was your car ever in a accident?

 

youre probably like me and have warped rotors. I think thats what your problem is.

 

It's almost certainly warped brake rotors. The front rotors can warp pretty easily... The most common way to do it seems to be incorrect torque on your lug nuts. You need to cross tighten AND torque them to 80 ft-lbs. You can warp them because of heat and uneven cooling too. Supposedly, splashing water (ie like a car wash) on hot rotors may do this, but I'm skeptical. However, I do know for sure that getting them too hot will warp them. If you warp them, you need to replace them. I had the idea that I could just get them "turned" (ie resurfaced), but I was informed that it would only solve the problem for a day or two, then they'd be warped again because of uneven cooling (since the thickness would be different in different spots).

First, I incorrectly torqued my wheels and warped some Brembo blanks pretty quickly (after 2-3 months of normal use), then I overheated them and warped them a little worse. I went out to a track which happens to be a big brake course and proceeded to overheat my front brakes. I could see the smoke from inside of the car! According to the people there (who know more about this than I do), if I were to just stop and let them cool down, they would have warped worse and setting the parking brake is real bad too (shouldn't affect the front though). I didn't think about that at the time, but it certainly makes sense. I drove around on the roads by the track to cool my rotors evenly, and that seemed to save them for getting warped too much more than they already were. But I beat on them some more since then and now my car shakes violently when braking.

I'm still on stock rear rotors after 93k miles with no problems, but the front rotors warp so easily that I'm just going to buy the cheapest ones I can now. I spent the extra $$$ for Brembos and they warped on me after 2-3 months of normal driving (long before I went to an autocross or a track), and I've heard of similar experiences from other people. I'm betting the initial warping was due to incorrect/uneven lug nut torque, but I've never heard of that problem on other cars and it did happen a bit quick! AutoZone rotors here I come!



[Modified by Weston, 12:58 AM 1/13/2003]

 

It could also be that you need an alignment. Mine would shake as well while braking. I got an alignment and it went away. I'm not saying that was what fixed it, that is just what happened to my car. Hope this helps you.

 

I agree, shaking under braking usually indicates warped rotors.

 

ummmm, no, warped rotors.

our integras have not got too much metal on the rotors, so if you heat them up (IE brake hard from high speeds) you are going to warp them.

 

No. Could be:

1. Out of balance wheel
2. Flat spot on tire
3. Need an alignment
4. Bent rim

Rob -Bent frame is very, very rare-

 

not trying to butt in on anyones post, but i have a 93 civic. at 75-80mph it starts to shake, at 85 its bad. ive only hit 90 in it once before i thought my steering wheel would fall off. i heard i need a balance and alignment, but i think the car may have been in an accident (some things suggest it, but the seller said it wasnt in a accident). i hope i can get my problem fixed, any ideas?

 

well if u check all the rotors and the wheel and alignment already, and it seem fine then...if i were you i check the axles.....i have problems like that before....it was the rotors but i replace them and then week later it did it again..it was my axles.....jus double check..it might help....the drive axle...


[Modified by powerplantb18b1, 7:04 PM 1/13/2003]


[Modified by powerplantb18b1, 7:05 PM 1/13/2003]

 

when i first bought my teg back in 2000 it was used (1997) i thought that integras shook a lot when breaking but it was my rotors. they may look fine but they really aren't. you should get them checked out or resurface them thats what i did..

 

check your lug torque to see that its all even, your rotors to see if their warped, your tires to see if your balance is off and/or your rims to see if they are bent and check your alignment... my guess would be warped rotors/material on rotors.. but the others are also possibilities... I had that happen to me and I replaced my rotors w/ Brembo Blanks and the pads w/ Hawk HPs.. haven't had a problem since then.... http://www.collettimotorsports.com (click on specials)..