Just purchased used R56 with 13K miles about a month ago. After visual inspection I found both rear rotors showing a rust ring on the outer 30-40%. When the service adviser looked at it you could tell he knew it was odd, then another adviser came to see and he looked equally puzzled. They said a tech would look at it and determine the cause. After a couple of hours they tell me that they checked it out and "it's normal". They said the brakes need to be used more and over time it will go away. Really?

At this point I knew I was being told anything to get me to go away since the car is still under warranty and any repairs they would have to eat it. I know this is not normal brake wear.

Has anyone else experienced this problem and was if fixed my Mini under warranty?

 

Same story with my 2010 nonT. Dealer said it was normal. When my fronts wore out I had the rears done as well even though there was still life there. Replaced with Akebono ceramics and disc wear is somewhat smoother.

 

When you say somewhat smoother, you mean after replacing pads and rotors you're still having the same issue but to lesser extent?

I'm trying to determine if this is maybe a caliper issue.

 

I noticed a similar thing with my fiancee's 2010 R56 that we bought with only 20k on it.

Seems the car sat and the rear rotors developed a strange wear pattern.

 

I love it when I take my Mini to the dealer (out of warranty) they always recommend stuff like new air filter, rear brakes and all this other crap but when you're under your warranty they are like it's normal BS. I'm sort of glad I have a third party warranty because not only has it paid for it's self MaxCare ($2800/$200 deduct) have never denied a claim that wasn't wear & tear.

 

knowing what a worn disk brake pad looks like can save you MANY dollars . . .


you can check your pad condition without even removing a wheel


ask nice and I'll tell you how ... or search my posts for a pictorial . . .


teaser

 

That's exactly what I meant. The new discs are brownish after 13 k mi. But do not have the corrugated surface. Indy tech said rear calipers were working ok.

 

I had this time of problem on a non-mini. Dealer called it de-laminating brake rotor. Changed the rotor. Had it happen again. I pulled the brakes apart and found the pads did not slide freely. the calipers worked properly, but the top (outer) parts of the pad were binding on rust and dirt. Cleaned the metal side edges of the pads (ears included) and the brake carrier. the pads could slide freely and problem went away.