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Brake Rotors

Which rotors would you get?

  • Drilled Rotors

    Votes: 1 2.4%

  • Slotted Rotors

    Votes: 5 11.9%

  • Drilled & Slotted Rotors

    Votes: 19 45.2%

  • Not Drilled & Not Slotted Rotors (Standard)

    Votes: 17 40.5%
  • Total voters
    42
Bio248 said:
..so youre saying its the drills and slots in the rotors, not the rotor diameter, beefy calipers, or the nice pads they run? hmm...
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No, i'm not saying that. Don't misquote me or put words in my mouth. Like the 'ruskies', German engineers do not take a dump without a plan. there is a reason for the cross-drilling. If everything else is perfect and it didn't need the cross-drilled rotors, Porsche would not use them.
Neither am I saying you need them for everyday driving. Only that there is so much 'hearsay' out there that people buy into.
Why does Porsche use cross-drilled rotors? My answer is hearsay. Ask Porsche!
If they work for you, use them, if not, don't!
No matter what the subject, someone has a horror story. That is why you have a choice.
 


TorqueAutoMotiv said:
these brake debates are fun to watch

also i vote blanks cause in the real world they are cheaper and a good set of pads
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Hands down, if you are not a serious auto-crosser, that's the only thing you use your car to do, not even drive on the streets on the weekend, then yes, hands down, go for the best quality, not always cheaper, blank you can afford!:th_thumbsup-wink:
 
Cross drilling helps with cooling... but cooling isn't the issue with the brakes on our cars unless you're auto crossing....

So its a waste of money.

CHEAP ROTORS WARP.

simple as that.

As a GM tech you must realize that GM is having an issue with some of their rotors as of late right?
 
my ex gf warped the rotors on the mustang like 2 times in a year pissed me off
rotors warp easy if you ride them brakes lol
 
You are both right. You don't need to ride the brakes to warp crappy oem rotors. The rotors on my '98 Monte warped in less than 8,000 and the service writer tried to tell me that I didn't know how to drive a car with 4 wheel disc brakes. Then I whipped out my "Mr. Goodwrench" brake, etc certificates and they replaced the rotors.
After less than 5,000 miles, the rotors on my '99 Trans Am were warped and the service writer @ Pontiac replaced them @ no charge, adding that they knew there was a rotor problem and suggesting that, although they would keep replacing them under warranty, it might be a good idea to get some aftermarket rotors.
I think GM has that problem fixed.
Yes Matt, our rotors are thick enough and cool just fine for non-racing driving. That said, here in SE MO, I drive roads everyday that can best be described as 'roller coasters'! So, despite popular opinion, I am replacing the front, warped (at 50,0000 miles) rotors with r1concepts cross-drilled rotors and semi-metallic pads.:th_winking:
 
wasting your money but oh well, its your money to waste.

friends parents have an 09 saturn vue that has been through three sets of front rotors in the first six months they owned it.

all warped.
 


Cross drilling does have an advantage in reducing the rotor's mass, which allows it to cool (and heat) faster, and the lower unsprung mass aids handling quite a bit. Two downsides to drilled rotors is that they tend to crack easier if not drilled properly, and the pad has less area to "grab" and any specific time.

Of the two, I'd use blanks for a DD with good pads, and drilled for an auto-x/ race car.

my $.02
 
Probably wasting my time since the usual "know it alls" have all the correct answers but here it goes:

2001 GP from new, replaced stock pads with performance friction pads the day I drove the car home from the dealer. Previous experience with my new 98 GT and the GP brakes motivated the change on the 01 from day 1. Big improvement in the overall braking of the 01 GP with the performance friction pads.

50,000 miles replaced all 4 rotors with dimpled and slotted rotors and the SAME brand performance friction brake pads. MUCH better high speed braking to full stops especially in the last few seconds before coming to a complete stop. MUCH better braking in the rain. 100,000 miles now on the car and none of the 4 dimpled and slotted brake rotors are warped, still using the same performance friction pads. Yeah, I know there is no benefit to using these type of rotors!
 
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jbamonte said:
Probably wasting my time since the usual "know it alls" have all the correct answers but here it goes:

2001 GP from new, replaced stock pads with performance friction pads the day I drove the car home from the dealer. Previous experience with my new 98 GT and the GP brakes motivated the change on the 01 from day 1. Big improvement in the overall braking of the 01 GP with the performance friction pads.

50,000 miles replaced all 4 rotors with dimpled and slotted rotors and the SAME brand performance friction brake pads. MUCH better high speed braking to full stops especially in the last few seconds before coming to a complete stop. MUCH better braking in the rain. 100,000 miles now on the car and none of the 4 dimpled and slotted brake rotors are warped, still using the same performance friction pads. Yeah, I know there is no benefit to using these type of rotors!
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Question: How many internal "fins" do those performance rotors have? If they have more than stock, that helps them stay cooler under high-speed braking due to more surface area.
 
One thing most people fail to consider when having these brake debates is that you are limited by how well your tires grip the road. If you can lock up your tires with your existing brakes, then you cannot improve your brakes in the sense that you will stop faster. The best brakes in the world will not improve the coefficient of friction between your tires and the road. Better brakes will give you better pedal feel, last longer and require less pedal pressure to achieve the same results. If you make your brakes stronger and want to stop faster, you will need wider, stickier tires to really stop faster.
 


To your point, there are several factors that can affect the coefficient of friction between your tires and the surface you are driving on such as rubber compound, tread pattern, road surface temperature, tire temperature, road surface material, road surface conditions, etc., but not brakes. Brakes do not affect how well your tires stick to the road.
 
no ****.

But i was merely pointing out that wider tires are only good in the dry unless you have an increased mass.
 
Does anyone have a link to a picture describing what rotor warp means? My brakes are ****, I still have the stock 98 brakes with metallic pads and they suck so bad.

They are good for normal use but if I drive hard for a couple of miles (3 or 4 WOTs and hard braking) they quit on me right away. The other day I was late for work and I almost rear end some poor guy because of this.

I'm glad to hear that the pads do make a difference I was thinking just today of ordering some ceramic pads while I switch to the 12" set.
 


I guess one thing that hasn't been said should be said; when you get on the brakes hard enough and activate the ABS, it feels like warped rotors. You need to know the difference! I had Sam Strano, Jr. set up my '99 T/A's suspension and brakes. The brakes worked so much better than the stock setup that I was constantly getting into the ABS while I learned how little effort it took to actually stop the car! Fooled the heck out of my wife too. In fact, we got so used to the T/A that, at least, when I drove our '98 Chevy 1500 Z71, I'd almost wait too long before applying the brakes. BTW, I have never hit the ABS in the truck.
 
Juanmiguel said:
Does anyone have a link to a picture describing what rotor warp means? My brakes are ****, I still have the stock 98 brakes with metallic pads and they suck so bad.

Having specialized in brakes, both with GM and the aftermarket, I can tell you that, beyond just plain lousy stock rotors, the biggest cause of rotor warpage is the guy at the tire shop with the impact! Or, the guy who rotates your tires. I rotate my own and always take my torque wrench with me to the tire shop. If they will not let me torque my own lug nuts or let me watch the guy who is doing it with a torque wrench, I won't buy tires from them or let them repair a flat!
If the wheels are not properly* and evenly torqued, the rotors will warp! All the manufacturers and all the brake specialty shops that I worked with (Over 100 in So. Cal.) told the same story.
*To properly torque a wheel, you start out at 60 ftlbs and go around the lug nuts in a 5-point star pattern (Obviously, trucks have 6 or 8 lug nuts, you have to figure a pattern). Then go to 75 ftlbs, etc until you reach the manufacturer's torque spec.:)
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not even full fledged race cars use slots or cross drilled rotors

5-1.jpg
 
The C6.R's carbon-carbon brake rotors measure 13 inches in diameter in the front and 12 inches in the rear. Rotors will last through a 24-hour race with proper cooling. They cannot be resurfaced. And get ready for this: They cost $3,500 each.

vemp_0709_07_z+chevrolet_corvette_C6R+brakes.jpg


...yeah, they are also carbon... different beast all together. and they have a duct cooling them off...
 
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