CT5V BE Warped Brake Rotors

[papc271]

Hey all, I am brand new to this forum and brand new as a Cadillac owner. Just about a month ago I purchased a new 2026 CT5V Blackwing with the carbon ceramic brakes. The car still has less than 400 miles on it and it has been a blast to drive. As part of the break in restrictions I have pretty much babied it for each of those miles. Unfortunately over the last 2 weeks I started noticing a vibration in the steering wheel when decelerating, particularly between 60 and 35mph. I took the car to my local Chevy dealership to have it looked at and they reported that the rotors are warped. They weren't willing to do the work under warranty so it has to go back to the Cadillac dealer. I have contacted the Cadi dealer where I bought it and they have been great so far. The service rep said he will order the parts immediately and will send someone down to pick up the car so im not inconvenienced. They have been amazing to deal with. My question is, first is this a commons issue? I cant imagine with the cost of the CCBs they would have that many issues! Second, what tends to cause warped rotors so quickly? Like I said, they car has been babied, not a single hard brake application. I have followed the owners manual fairly strictly! Im just hoping this doesnt turn into an ongoing problem. Thanks in advance and im looking forward to many conversations on this forums in the years to come!

 

[LF4472]

I would assume they have pad deposits and are not warped. I believe your Owner's Manual has a burnishing procedure for the CCBs.

 

[papc271]

Thanks for your reply LF4472. According to the Chevy dealership, they had two service techs inspect the brakes and both techs determined the rotors were warped. I guess we will see what the Cadi dealer says later this week.

 

[nordique14]

Carbon ceramic rotors do not warped. They would not be “warped” due to use but could look warped if there was a manufacturing defect which caused the rotor to not be completely flat. GM should obviously replace any defective rotors.

I would have said they just had pad deposits but if you just babied them then it is unlikely they would have had pad material stuck to them. If you want to rule this out then you can do the burnishing process and see if that cures it.

 

[shbox]

Wow, never heard of warped CCB rotors. Because of what you said about babying it, I would bet my money on pad deposits as @LF4472 said. That is way more common. If it had been a manufacturing defect, it would have been noticeable from the get go. 400 miles of babying is just not enough to warp even a metal rotor.

 

[DCV]

You needed to properly bed the pads and you didn’t, so deposits built up unevenly that causes the vibration when you brake. You don’t baby brakes when you bed them. You get to speed and apply the brakes hard from 70 or so to 20, then let off but do not stop. Do it again and again and increase the speed. About 5 to 7 applications like this will bed the brakes, and when you drive..,use the brakes and don’t dab dab them. As said ceramic rotors do not warp. Smash those brakes.

 

[VBhak]

You needed to properly bed the pads and you didn’t, so deposits built up unevenly that causes the vibration when you brake. You don’t baby brakes when you bed them. You get to speed and apply the brakes hard from 70 or so to 20, then let off but do not stop. Do it again and again and increase the speed. About 5 to 7 applications like this will bed the brakes, and when you drive..,use the brakes and don’t dab dab them. As said ceramic rotors do not warp. Smash those brakes.

^^^ THIS ^^^

 

[hawk02]

You needed to properly bed the pads and you didn’t, so deposits built up unevenly that causes the vibration when you brake. You don’t baby brakes when you bed them. You get to speed and apply the brakes hard from 70 or so to 20, then let off but do not stop. Do it again and again and increase the speed. About 5 to 7 applications like this will bed the brakes, and when you drive..,use the brakes and don’t dab dab them. As said ceramic rotors do not warp. Smash those brakes.

Some pads are not recommended to be bedded aggressively. I replaced the OEM pads on my 5BW with Carbotech 1521s and was specifically told not to bed them. The recommendation was to just drive normally for the first 300 miles. Aggressive bedding on those pads can glaze the compound and actually reduce stopping performance.

The break-in procedure in the Cadillac's owner’s manual specifically states to avoid hard stops or aggressive braking for the first 200 miles. I would certainly verify the recommended procedure with the pad manufacturer before performing any aggressive bedding routine.