Keeping Rotors From Rusting: Any Tips?

So now that I have two Challenge cars, my old Jeep, our Miata, and my DD in the driveway I'm starting to realize it is nearly impossible to move them all around enough to keep the rotors from turning to $hit.

My co-driver (WilberM3) and I just brought the E30 out of the mothballs (mothballs being used very loosely since we put it away wet and let it sit there for a year without any pre-storage work...including not actually using mothballs to keep the rodents out...) Well besides needing to replace the coolant temp sensor, plug wires, coolant (brownish water), and oil, we found ourselves needing to replace all four rotor because they were so badly pitted from rust.

So here we are with brandy new rotors and two weeks after the event they are starting to rust again! I'm thinking if any group of car guys has tips or advice on storing old cars this would be the place!

So...any suggestions?

remove rotors from car for long term storage? (yes, easier said than done) Better quality rotors seem more resistant to rust "damage" than the el-cheapos.

We did kick around the idea of putting the old rotors back on before the winter...so we kept them just incase.

Has anyone developed a wax-like spray for this? Something that would burn off quickly with use. If not anyone want to invent it with me? :)

miatame wrote: Has anyone developed a wax-like spray for this? Something that would burn off quickly with use. If not anyone want to invent it with me? :)

Limited market with massive liability.

how much work are you willing to do? if you put anything at all on the rotors, it will contaminate the pads, so at bare minimum you're looking at greasing the rotors and installing "storage" pads.

have you seen new cars on haulers with the sticky plastic sheeting on the wheels? that also serves to keep moisture off the rotors. perhaps the last step of your storage process should be to remove the wheel, put a kitchen garbage bag (with the drawstring) over the brake assembly, tie the drawstring, then carefully poke lug holes in the bag and put the wheel back on. this is probably the cheapest and least risky of your options.

Tried lawn & garden trash bags over the tires?

slefain wrote:

That's great...until you need to use your brakes :)

I like the trash bag idea.

I don't like this thread. It is just reminding me that my rotors are badly pitted and my pads about done. Not looking forward to that bill (broke college student).

The key is to keep moisture off the rotors after you park the vehicle. Am I to assume that you people are keeping your cars in an UN-AIR-CONDITIONED garage???? Or (shudder) OUTSIDE??????

Really, my one garage isn't heated or cooled and I really don't have any trouble with rusty rotors. The other I keep down around 80 degrees in the summer, so it's even less of a problem there.

I’ve stored a few rotors in my garage but it still gets damp in there and they get rusty. I ended up sprayed them with cheap paint to keep them from rusting then remove it with brake clean before using them.

Can you pull the wheels to paint the rotors on the car then brake clean them before driving?

When I worked at a Dodge dealer the new rotors came in primer that we had to clean off. Some techs just installed them and went for a quick drive

What about garbage bags over the tires (or if you take the wheels off, just rotors) with a bunch of rice in the bottom?

A lot of new rotors we buy for european cars come with a primer like coating (zimmerman I think). It specifically says to not wash it off. A one mile drive will scrape it all off. Not sure if an off the shelf primer would be OK to use though.

I bet a trash bag with desiccant bags would work great!

Centric-brand rotors have an "e-finish" that's supposed to resist corrosion better than most other rotors. I don't know if this is marketing BS or if it actually works, but Centric is Stop-Tech's parent company, so the rotor itself is most likely not crap.

http://www.tirerack.com/brakes/brakes.jsp?make=Centric&model=Premium+Rotor&group=Premium+Rotor&autoMake=BMW&autoModel=325is&autoYear=1990&autoModClar=

cheap spray paint.. it will keep it from rusting and come right off after the car rolls about 10 feet.

I plan on doing a light sandblast to mine before they go back on. Just enough to knock the crust off.

Put WD 40 on the rotors. 3 big brake checks will clean the wd off.

No personal experience but whattabout Pam cooking spray or Pledge furniture polish?

Taiden wrote: I bet a trash bag with desiccant bags would work great!

This.

A coworker stores his 65 Corvette all winter in his garage. He puts the whole car in a giant bag and in with the car goes several packages of desiccant gel. I got a bag of decissant at Walmart years ago in the craft section. Its commonly used to dry flowers for floral arrangements.