Although the industry has seen anti-lock braking systems (ABS) become standard equipment on modern imports, the majority of brake service still focuses on the replacement of brake pads and rotors. Rotor replacement, of course, has changed because new rotors have become a more cost-effective method of resolving pedal pulsation and brake shimmy problems associated with excessive disc run-out and lack of parallelism. Of course, the issue with rotors is, "Do we resurface or replace?"

CASE STUDY
To give the issue a real-world perspective, let's look at a 1997 Subaru Forester that I'm expecting to come into my shop with a brake pulsation complaint. During the initial interview, it becomes obvious that, depending upon whether he keeps or sells the car, the owner might be looking at several different service options.

Of course, unless it's an unlikely case of a bent wheel or a tire problem, the most probable cause is a lack of parallelism in one or more brake rotors. The Subaru came out of a relative's estate, has been well maintained, was driven in metro areas, and has likely had the brake rotors resurfaced at least once, or perhaps twice, in the 60,000 miles it's been driven.

Consequently, it's very likely the Subaru may need the brake rotors replaced.

RESURFACE VS. REPLACE
During any initial service write-up, the above information should be developed into several different service scenarios. To do this, let...