I know some people have been asking what disservice are we doing to our engines by not running them frequently (I do fire up about once per week) but let's save that for another thread. I'm already having a brake issue though with just over 2 months and 2500 miles on the clock... I had a slight 'rubbing' sound, only noticeable when it was very quiet. Took it to the dealer today and we went on a short drive so they could hear, and then they pulled it into the shop. They said there was a slight ridge on my rotors and they would have to lightly turn them to make them flat again (under warranty.) I'm on the schedule to get this done on Thursday. I've got to assume this has to do with the brakes getting used so lightly under normal driving. I plan to do at least 1-2 hard stops a week (ideally on a full battery) to force the brakes to actually wear against the rotors. Any other suggestions?
I doubt if light use of the brakes would create any kind of problem on the surfaces. We sold our 2008 Prius with 162,000 miles with the original brakes in good condition. No noise or rubbing. This sounds like a quality issue.
Probably a small defect in the rotor that would have ground down pretty quickly in an ICE vehicle. The light use of the brakes in the Clarity is probably just dragging out the natural process of grinding it down. However, it's good for the dealers to deal with it. They need to get used to these cars despite the fact they won't need as much maintenance so the more they see them the better.
Normally I'd agree that makes sense - but the noise didn't start until 2-3 weeks ago. If you feel the rotors with your fingers you can actually feel pretty deep groves on them. I wouldn't expect that with new rotors. But maybe you are right and an ICE car would have worn things down by now. Sidenote, I was the center of attention in the service department. They had 1 clarity on the lot and I think most of the service department had never seen one actually driving. The guy moving my car actually got very confused because he couldn't hear the car 'start' when he pressed the button. haha
Occasionally a small piece of gravel or sand will get wedged under the leading edge of a pad and do what you describe. I don't attribute it to disuse--just bad luck.
Regenerative brakes have been in use for so long now that I really doubt it would cause any widespread problem. It sounds like your case is specific to your car. I'm glad the maintenance guys at the dealer were so helpful and excited to see the car!
