I just changed the rear break pads and did some other work on my rear breaks on my '89 IROC. I put everything back together but, little did I know, my dad had put WD-40 all over my rotors over night to keep them from rusting. I didn't know that when I put them back on, so I've put everything back together with the WD-40 still on.

Is this going to do any permanent damage to my rotors and/or pads? (Other than obviously severely reducing friction on the first couple of stops, but I'd think that the lubricant would ultimately "burn off", right?)

Thanks

 

it will just burn off .

 

Great; thanks!

 

It doesn't just burn off...the brakes aren't part of the exhaust system

The brake pads will absorb the WD-40 and this will decrease the braking power of the pads...this is why you use a lot of brake cleaner to help make sure that the braking surface is clean.

In reality, this just means that your rear brakes are less effective than the normal (20%) of braking that they do.

If this was the front brakes, I would replace the pads...but it shouldn't matter much with the rears.

BTW...what was your dad thinking? the brake surfaces are exposed to the air and surface rust will happen regardless. The brake pads will clean off the minute amounts of surface rust when they are applied...

HTH.

 

Well 18inchboyds told me what I wanted to hear and 88TPI406GTA told me what I was afriad of.

Half of the "burning off" idea comes from the fact that the break rotors/pads build up a lot of heat during breaking. The second half of that assumption is that WD-40 will vaporize and escape the brake system with the amount of heat produced in that process. I'm neither familiar with the amount of heat the brakes produce nor the boiling point of WD-40, so my assumptions could be way off.

Honestly, I wouldn't have put the WD-40 on there myself exactly because of why you said--rust builds up on them anyway and it does come off really easily. Plus, the thought of lubricating something that's inherently supposed to produce friction just doesn't seem like the best idea.

*Hopefully* more of the WD-40 ends up coming off rather than getting absorbed. I just got caught in some flash-flooding today (different story) which brought water up to my doors, so perhaps all of that nasty rainwater wiped some of it off?

 

You can use WD-40 as brake cleaner. I believe it says it right on the can. You have nothing to worry about.

 

WD40 is silicone based and will contaminate the pad leading to pitting, rotor contamination, and eventually, pad disintegration (in very small pieces). I've had techs get silicone on pads during reassembly a few times and this is always the result. Replace the pads and machine the rotors.

 

WD-40 is not silicone based.

 

I always clean my ROTORS with brakeclean. You can get that at any AUTOPARTS store..

 

It is brake-safe.

 

Get a can of brake clean and clean both sides of the rotors thoroughly. Put the rear of car on jacks and check the rear
brakes are holding with car in gear.If not take the pads off and look for signs the wd-40 soaked into them, if only on the surface lightly sand the pads to remove and replace, then recheck they hold the rear while on jacks and in gear.

If it has soaked into pads deeply, replace them. You sure don't need to turn your rotors, that's nuts.

 

It is brake safe because it's silicone based, as opposed to petroleum based (petroleum eats the rubber used in brake hoses, dust boots, seals, etc.).

 

It won't eat the rubber but it sure will makes things slick
because it is a lubricant regardless of it's base. If it was on the rotors or pads it needs to be removed.

 

You might want to tell the people that make WD-40 about that, because they seem to think that it's a non-silicone, petroleum based produt.

http://www.wd40.com/Brands/wd40_faqs.html

 

I think we can all agree you don't want it on your rotors or brake pads. THE END

 

Reading on THE can of WD-40, CLEANSMOST SURFACES OF: Grease,Tar,Adhesives.

WD-40 DISPLACES MOISTURE.

I WAS WACTHING THE DISCOVER CHANNEL once and they are talking about WD-40. NASA was looking for sometimg to displace moisture (water) in there ROCKETS!!!

 

NOO where onthe can does it say WD-40 is sicicone base.

It does say DISPLACES MOISTURE...

i'M LOOKING AT THE CAN NOW!!!!

 

I stand corrected, I just read the MSDS for WD40 and it is indeed based on petroleum distillates. I'd always thought it was silicone based (smells like it!)... How that is "brake safe" must have something to do with the petroleum being distilled to remove the volitale compounds. My shop uses only PB Blaster for corroded fasteners, it works the best for our purposes.
HOWEVER -
ANY kind of contaminate in the pads will weaken the binders in the compound (they will disintegrate), prevent them from crystallizing (they will never bed-in), and if you drive around with them like this the heat and pressure from braking will imbed in the rotor face. That will cause chatter, noise, and premature wear of any pad you put on them unless you machine out the contaminate. If you haven't driven with the pads just use some brake cleaner on the rotors and they will be fine.

 

Sorry for the late response...

WD-40 is a penetrant and lubricant amongst the rest of the marketing...

It has its place amongst the rest of the stuff in my garage...but if you use it to clean your rotors instead of brake-cleaner, good luck.

Ever see what is left when WD-40 drys out? The lubricant stuff, whatever it may be. It certainly doesn't dry clean like brake-cleaner.

sancho:
"Plus, the thought of lubricating something that's inherently supposed to produce friction just doesn't seem like the best idea."

Exactly. Like I said above, it won't kill you on the rear pads, but I would not recommend using it on the brake rotor/pad surfaces...there will be residue that contaminates and therefore, makes the braking less effective. It won't prevent the friction of the braking, but like any contaminant, will certainly not just burn off.

HTH.

 

I like to set the RECORD stright...


I am not the one asking about WD-40 on rotors...

I was RELYING to it..

Thank you

 

wd-40 will glaze your rotors and your pads over. this is all i know i have no knowledge of getting this off. try to use a non abreshive solvent. Check wd-40s site and tech boards for common mistakes made with lubricants. Hope this helps your problem.

 

READS who WRITES THIS STUFF!!!!!!!!!!!!!!


I am sick of POEPLE E MAIL ME & talking about WD-40 on ROTORS..


I KNOW BETTER THAN THAT, I'M NOT SPIULD....

THANK YOU

 

I'm sick of people emailing me telling me not to email them without reading what they said the first time when I didn't even email them in the first place

 

Ditto!
Zodiac85,
Are you getting thread updates and thinking they are addressing you?

 

I like to say I am SORRY you guys did not e mail me, the WEBMASTER did..

I feel like a JERK...and a IDIOT

 

lol don't worry about it, it happens.