Professional shops turn rotors, in my opinion, for the same reasons
professional repairmen replace many items in your home or on your car. Less
chance of comeback calls, reduced liability, and a bit more revenue. Over the
years I've both resurfaced rotors and also have replaced pads without turning
rotors. Truthfully, I've never noticed any difference in even braking - only
longer rotor life.
If rotors, or drums, are warped and give pulsating braking then turning is
definitely called for.
In one instance I was leaving on a hurried trip from Richmond, VA to Dayton,
Ohio and before getting out of town heard the horrible scraping sound of
metal to metal as the lining on one front pad had worn down. The rotor was
quite badly grooved. Showing poor judgment, clouded by get-there-itis, I
merely slipped a set of new pads on and left on the trip. (I did at least
replace both pads!) I never noticed any adverse results so I left the one
grooved rotor and one good rotor in commission.
Others may have different results, or different on other cars, but in at
least this one instance it worked out OK. From that time on I did not turn or
reface rotors so long as they were not warped and did not pulsate. FWIW
Larry
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