What exactly does it take to warp the A4 rotors? I did this to my '80 Scirroco and and now find myself wimpin' out in the Audi so as not to abuse the brakes. I understand it's a function of uneven heating and cooling, but if I hit 'em real hard for say 3 seconds, and then lay off, am I in danger? <br>

Did you buy your car to baby it.....or to drive it?....I can guarantee the german engineers that designed it...did not baby the car...nor did they mean for it to be babied. I would brake in whatever manner you want to ....I know someone with an 96 A4 with 90K miles..and if I remember correctly.....he still has his stock front rotors and brakes fine. I happened to switch to Brembo OEM size cross-drilled front brake rotors....I am the one that should worry about possibly getting cracks between the holes on the rotors....because now...I am not covered by the warranty.<p>Steve S.<br>97 2.8QM

One school of thought on warping rotors goes something like this... if you hit your brakes hard when they're cold, they'll warp. If you touch them lightly when you first drive away in the morning to get them warmed up, they will not.<br>I've lived with lots of warped rotors on various cars because my wife backs out of our drive in the morning and blasts down the street to the first intersection where she no doubt slams on the brakes! Just a thought.

A big contributor to rotor warping is incorrect or unbalanced lug bolt torque. If you had your wheels installed at a shop, they likely put them on with an impact wrench. This generally installs the lugs at about 200+ ft-lbs of torque. Do some hard driving at this torque level and you're likely to crack your rims and / or warp your rotors. You'll also have a hell of a time changing the wheel on the side of the road.<p>You don't need or want anymore than 90 ft-lbs (I use 80-85 for street and track) on your lugs. I suggest that if you do it yourself, get a torque wrench (a cheap one will do). Else tell the garage to install the tires by hand to 85 ft-lbs and WATCH them do it. <p>Dwayne<br>94 S4<br>

It is strange how the brake caliper just slips over the rotor though...and it not directly<br>bolted in place...the wheel actually holds it on...you gotta see it to understand fully.<p>Steve S.<br>97 2.8QM<p>P.S. I would have loved to get the Brembo BIG brake kit...but I didn't have an<br>extra $2.2K to spend on front brakes alone. (bigger rotors, bigger calipers, bigger<br>brake pads, steel braided lines...the works)