It certainly could be, yes. Warped rotors would seem to be a reasonable explanation to me, I would strongly recommend having the system inspected straightaway. The safety of you and your family is depending on the brakes, dont take chances, get the brake system inspected and repaired (if needed) right away please!!!

Answered by Dr. Hagerty (expert)
9,669 answers provided

Sounds more like hot-spotting to me and friction material transfer from the pads. Warped rotors are highly rare in passenger cars, as it take extreme heat to cause this. This would also explain why its worse at times.

What happens is that your rotors get extremely hot in one area, then the friction material from the pads sticks to the hot-spot, leaving a small amount behind, causing high rotor run-out.

It varies, as sometimes the material will shear off of the rotor and the shuddering feels less. It turns into an endless cycle after a while.

There is no rhyme or reason to why it happens, but substandard brake pads are typically the culprit. I always recommend high-grade semi-metallics or ceramic pads to help combat this.

Answered by cup1981 (expert)
140 answers provided

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Answered by Dr. Hagerty (expert)
9,669 answers provided