Quick question.....I'm approaching 30,000 miles on my '07 Tahoe LT and I'm starting to notice the front end shimmy like my rotors need to be turned soon. Last time I had my tires rotated they said I would be needing some brakes soon due to the heavy 20 inch wheels and tires on there.I was just wondering if any of you had replaced your GM brakes with an aftermarket that might last longer with the heavier wheels and tires....or are the GM brakes as good as it gets?

Thanks in advance

 

Best deal is graphite pads and new rotors and will drive like new.

 

hummm... I don't know if I buy the part about the 20's being heavier, its the trucks weight your stopping not just the wheels. 30k and new brakes, im guessing you drive fairly aggressively, and yes if the rotors are warpped they will give that shimmy, depending on the cost you might be able to repalce them rather then turn them down only to have them warp again since they will be thinner.

I have always heard that ceramic brake pads are the best and create the least amount of dust.

 

Ceramic pads by far are the best. At my shop we always put ceramic pads on if the are available. The make less noise and less brake dust on the wheels. We always use akebono, I put them on my old tahe (2000 limited) and the pedal felt instantly higher and firmer, better than it ever had in the 60,000 miles I had already put on it. As of yet my supplier does not carry them for the 2007 but you maybe able to find them on the net. Unless you have some REALLY cheap twentiesit is doubtful they are heavy enough to have caused the problem. Now if you had 24 maybe then it is recomend for a brake upgrade but not 20 after all the truck has a 20 inch option from the factory. The3 ways that rotorget warpedare 1 they are to thin, 2 extremly aggressive driving/last minute bracking(extreme heat) and 3 so ignorant technition did not take the time to tighten the wheels properly. The wheel should be torqued evenly, custom wheels should be done with a torque wrench regular wheelswith a torque stick. If one lug nut is a 80 ft pound and the one opposite of it ends up at 120 then the rotor gets warped. How recent were the wheels off? My guess is when they rotated your tires the wheels were put back on with a impact gun.

 

Thanks for all the responses...I currently have the factory 20's that come on the GMC Yukon with 285/50/20 tires. I was little unsure also when I was told the heavy wheels and tires were to blame for the shimmy when braking. However I am a first responder and live in the mtnsand drive aggresively sometimes when going to calls...well probably all the time. I think I may look into the ceramic pads and have my dealer check to see if the rotors can be turned or just replace them altogether. What would you guys say should be the normal life of a set of pads on our Tahoe's? Thanks again!

 

"normal" is relative to driving habits,
30k is normal for your style of driving, where as grandma might get 60k if she doesn’t ride the brakes.
I did a quick search and Advance Auto had a listed price for front rotors for an 07 Tahoe 5.3ltr as about $65 each.
You might want to double check availability for your vehicle see which is the cheaper route.
I haven’t had rotors turned in a long time but I'd guess they go for about 20 bucks or so to turn each.

No matter which way you go turning or new rotors, be sure to replace the pads.

 

I agree totally..I'll definately replace the pads regardless of what shape the rotors are in...I'll let you guys know what I found in case the rest of you run into this in the future. Thanks again

 

Also be sure you break-in the new pads correctly.