2004 Toyota Corolla LE Front Rotor removal issue

[JohnS]

I have a 2004 Toyota Corolla LE that I am attempting to replace the front rotors. according to everything I have seen the rotors do not require the removal of the "Hub nut", The rotor should simply slide off.

I have not been able to make this happen. I have used penetrating oil, Tapped on the rotor with a mallet and attempted to use a 5 ton gear puller. Nothing even makes it budge a little. I have not attempted to max the pressure on the gear puller as I am afraid I will really mess something up. In my opinion, the pressure I have exerted would have caused anything that might have given to give if it was ever supposed to give.

There are no holes in the current rotors other than the ones for the "Hub" and the 5 lug nuts. I have rechecked this multiple times. There are no holes that have been filled in by anything (rust, grease ETC).

Taking another look at the "Hub Nut" it would appear that it does have to be removed for the rotor to be removed. but there is an indentation in the hub and the sleeve on the nut has been bent into that indentation so the nut cannot loosen up (See pictures)

Has anyone ever seen anything like this and does anyone have any suggestions? I am at a loss.

Update, after much research I have found multiple other people who thought the same thing I did. It turned out they were wrong and I guess I am too. Several managed to get the rotors off by using bolts, washers and nuts to go through the caliper mounting bolt holes on the back side of the rotor and push on the rotor. I am going to give that a try next.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[dapqam]

You definitely do not have to remove the nut to remove the rotor. It is strange that you can not get it off. As you say it does not look rusted, although that is a common problem. I suggest that you take the car to a brake shop or dealer or your mechanic and ask them to just loosen the rotors. Maybe they have a tool that will get the job done. Once they are loose, then you can continue with the job yourself. I recommend that a dry lubricant be sprayed on the mating surfaces of the rotor to eliminate this problem for the future. Just make sure not to get any lube on the braking surfaces. I also make sure the rotor is loose every year when I check the pad for wear, just to make sure that rust is not bonding the rotor to the hub.

One caution: if you hit the rotor too hard with a mallet or pry on it too hard it could bend and that would cause you to need to replace the rotor, so be careful. However, if it is on too tight you (or the mechanic) might have to hit is so hard to get it off that it bends it. In that case you will have to buy a new rotor. I would always buy OEM rotors. My experience is that they are better than any aftermarket rotor. I also use the OEM pads since it is critical that the technology of the rotor agrees with the technology of the pad. If, for example, you wanted to switch to ceramic pads I would buy the pads and rotors from the same source. They are designed to work together. Let us know how it worked out.

[JohnS]

Rotors replaced, topic can be closed.

Having reviewed all the input I could get, reading numerous articles and watching multiple videos I determined the following, since I was replacing the rotors anyway the use of a ball peen hammer would not matter as far as damaging the rotor since it would be replaced anyway, Continued use of the penetrating catalyst was appropriate and judicial use of the jaw puller in combination with pounding on the rotor with the ball peen hammer would be the best way to get the rotor off.

After a 16 hour hiatus I gathered the necessary tools and got in a position to work. After spraying the catalyst liberally I hit the back of the rotor hard several times. I could now see that the rotor gave just a little. The more I hit it the more I could tell it was wiggling. I put the gear puller in position and put some pressure on the rotor. I alternated between some good taps on the back of the rotor and all around the hat of the rotor and would then tighten the puller a half turn and spray a little more penetrating catalyst. I had repeated this procedure several times and was reaching for the catalyst when the rotor popped off, flew about 2 feet and hit my thigh with a good deal of force (thank God it was not 3 inches to the left!). Now knowing the right way to get these off I had little issue in removing the other.

The rotors and brake pads have been replaced and the car stops as it should with no squealing. I am a happy man!

Thanks dapqam for your input!