Protecting new disc rotors for an interim period
Discussion
So for one reason or another I've got to stop work on working on my car. On Sunday I had got to the stage of fitting brand new disc rotors, and re-fitting the calipers to the wheels. During this process I sprayed brake cleaner on the rotors to remove all of the protective chemicals that they came with from the factory.
The very next day I found out I would have to spend this week away from the car doing other things which I can't avoid, and after that I'm away for about 3 weeks. Even when I get back it'll be another week before I can work on the car again. All the while it's sat outside, jacked up, with the brand new discs on show to the good ol' British summer!
The question I have is what can I do to prevent them from rusting up? Is there a chemical I can put on there that will protect it from surface rust? And, if there isn't, how would I go about removing the rust from the rotors before I drive the car?
The very next day I found out I would have to spend this week away from the car doing other things which I can't avoid, and after that I'm away for about 3 weeks. Even when I get back it'll be another week before I can work on the car again. All the while it's sat outside, jacked up, with the brand new discs on show to the good ol' British summer!
The question I have is what can I do to prevent them from rusting up? Is there a chemical I can put on there that will protect it from surface rust? And, if there isn't, how would I go about removing the rust from the rotors before I drive the car?
You can't, and there's no need to. They're going to be exposed to the elements for the whole of their working life and they're going to corrode regardless of anything you do - the next few weeks is no different to the rest of their life. Surface corrosion might look unsightly after a couple of weeks but will be cleaned up as soon as you apply the brakes on your first journey.
sgtBerbatov said:
Is there a chemical I can put on there that will protect it from surface rust? And, if there isn't, how would I go about removing the rust from the rotors before I drive the car?
Yes it's called 'oil'. Wipe off with solvent.Hopefully the pads will still be retracted, if they aren't then back them off so they aren't touching.
Although as has been pointed out, they're going to rust sometime, at least at this time of the year there shouldn't be too much rain.
sgtBerbatov said:
227bhp said:
Hopefully the pads will still be retracted, if they aren't then back them off so they aren't touching.
The calipers haven't been fitted, it's just the rotors. Take the discs off and put them inside out of the rain.
I'm stopping short of wiping your arse though, hopefully you can manage that?
227bhp said:
I'm stopping short of wiping your arse though, hopefully you can manage that?
And I'm stopping short of telling you where to go. Being nice costs nothing, sir.I know full well a rotor will get rusty because it's bare metal. I didn't know, however, whether the rotors being brand new and subject to the rain - without being used - would cause a problem when bedding in when the car is eventually used. That's all I wanted to know, and whether I could protect them.
sgtBerbatov said:
I didn't know, however, whether the rotors being brand new and subject to the rain - without being used - would cause a problem when bedding in when the car is eventually used.
It will make zero difference to bedding in. Discs rust all the time and surface rust will be scraped off as soon as you use the brakes. Fitting the wheels and/or covering the discs with plastic bags also won't stop corrosion - but if covering them up stops you worrying about it then there's no harm in that.Gassing Station | Suspension, Brakes & Tyres | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff