What is Turning the Brakes?

You seem to be having brake problems and take your car to a mechanic. He says you need to turn the brakes. Um, what is turning the brakes? I'm glad you asked.

The brakes on your car work on a friction basis. The system on most cars is known as a disc system. This is because a rotor is attached to the wheel or axel and turns with it. There are brake pads sitting on each side of this rotor. When the brakes are engaged, a hydraulic system pushes a piston which causes these pads to squeeze together. Since the brake rotor is between them, the rotor is squeezed and the car slows down.

There is one downside to disc brake systems. Friction is great for stopping the rotor, but it also causes massive wear and tear. This where the word "turning" comes in. The system is designed such that the brake pads should wear out well before the rotor. Brake pads are fairly cheap and simple to replace. Rotors are not, but they will eventually suffer damage and need to be addressed.

When someone refers to "turning the brakes", they are really talking about turning the brake rotor. The word turning refers to the act of retooling the rotor. Over time, the rotor can warp, get gouges and have brake pad material build up on it. As this happens, the rotor becomes harder to stop. The turning process machines the rotor by shaving a tiny bit off. This creates a flat, perfect surface with no warping, gauges or brake pad debris. When reapplied to the car, the brakes should work much better as the pads will have a uniform surface to press against.

A rather obvious question may have popped up in your mind. Why should you have the brake rotors turned instead of just replacing them? The answer is found in your wallet. Turning rotors is much cheaper than replacing them. That being said, a turned rotor will not last nearly as long as a new one. You can expect to get 30,000 to 50,000 miles out of turned rotors.

What does turning the brakes refer to? It refers to the need to fix up a brake rotor that has started to show the wear and tear of the stopping process.

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