Hot Rod Brakes

[glockmail]

Put these on my Explorer a while back:



The OEM and replacements rotors kept warping. I do a lot of mountain driving and its hard on brakes.

As I recall, a person who shall remain unnamed told me that "the holes and slots won't do anything to make them work better" or some other shit like that. I am pleased to report that he has yet again been proven wrong, and I have been proven right: after over a year the new rotors are still true.

That's the difference when you have "car and driver" knowledge vs. hands on.

[darin]

Put these on my Explorer a while back:



The OEM and replacements rotors kept warping. I do a lot of mountain driving and its hard on brakes.

As I recall, a person who shall remain unnamed told me that "the holes and slots won't do anything to make them work better" or some other shit like that. I am pleased to report that he has yet again been proven wrong, and I have been proven right: after over a year the new rotors are still true.

That's the difference when you have "car and driver" knowledge vs. hands on.

You're fooling yourself. If you're warping OEM rotors you're driving poorly. The average Joe won't see any measurable benefit from blowing money on slotted or drilled rotors. A good set of pads is really the best brake up grade, other than training the driver to brake correctly.

Cross-drilling your rotors might look neat, but what is it really doing for you? Well, unless your car is using brake pads that are 50 to 60 years old, not a whole lot. Rotors were first “drilled” because early brake pad materials gave off gasses when heated to racing temperatures - a process known as “gassing out”. These gasses then formed a thin layer between the brake pad face and the rotor, acting as a lubricant and effectively lowering the coefficient of friction. The holes were implemented to give the gasses somewhere to go. It was an effective solution, but today's friction materials do not exhibit the same gassing out phenomenon as the early pads.

For this reason, the holes have carried over more as a design and lightening feature than a performance feature. Contrary to popular belief, they don't lower temperatures. In fact, by removing weight from the rotor, the temperatures can actually increase. The holes can actually create stress risers, allowing the rotor to crack sooner, and make a mess of brake pads - sort of like a cheese grater rubbing against them at every stop. Want more evidence? Look at NASCAR or F1. You would think that if drilling holes in the rotor was the hot ticket, these teams would be doing it.

The one glaring exception here is in the rare situation where the rotors are so oversized (look at any performance motorcycle or lighter formula car) that the rotors are drilled like Swiss cheese. While the issues of stress risers and brake pad wear are still present, these racing teams are replacing brake pads on a much more frequent basis - sometimes every race weekend. Drilling is used to reduce the mass of the rotor in spite of these concerns. (Remember – nothing comes for free. If these teams switched to non-drilled rotors, they would see lower operating temperatures and longer brake pad life - at the expense of higher weight. It's all about trade-offs.)

http://www.superchargersonline.com/content.asp?ID=98

Of course you paid money for shit. You want shit to work or be better. It's human nature.

[glockmail]

Thanks for quickly falling into my trap and verifying that you have "car and driver" knowledge vs. my "hands on". Your theories have been trumped by my actual experience.

[darin]

If you experience a ghost, I can't tell you it's not real. If you've seen Santa flying across the night sky, no amount of reason can convince you otherwise. If you drop acid then make love to a magical unicorn, that's all you.

You can believe what you want to believe. Your real-world-experience doesn't trump physics.

[glockmail]

If you experience a ghost, I can't tell you it's not real. If you've seen Santa flying across the night sky, no amount of reason can convince you otherwise. If you drop acid then make love to a magical unicorn, that's all you.

You can believe what you want to believe. Your real-world-experience doesn't trump physics.

You're knowledge of physics is limited to what you've read in a magazine. Mine's from engineering school (BS- Cum Laude) backed up by actual experimentation.

My the coffee's good this morning.

[darin]

You're knowledge of physics is limited to what you've read in a magazine. Mine's from engineering school (BS- Cum Laude) backed up by actual experimentation.

Emphasis on the BS.

[glockmail]

Emphasis on the BS.

I'm not surprised that you didn't understand its meaning: Bachelor of Science.

[-Cp]

I could see slotted rotors lasting better as they have better cooling properties... no?

[-Cp]

hmmm...

Today’s cars, trucks, SUVs, and vans come with a standard brake rotor which works great under light to moderate driving conditions. If your one of those guys or gals who likes to take things to the limits or is just looking for more performance from your car brake system then our slotted rotors, slotted and dimpled rotors, cross drilled rotors and performance rotors are for you and your car. These rotors are far superior than your stock rotors offering you a shorter stopping distance, resistance to brake fade, lower brake temperatures and an overall better performance look, especially through those big inch wheels you just broke the bank for on your car. What ever type of rotors you choose cross drilled rotors, slotted rotors, dimpled rotors or performance rotors you will notice the substantial improvement in your performance rotors upgrade on your car. What do Slotted rotors dimpled rotors and cross drilled rotors actually does on your car? Slotted rotors use the slots to clean off the brake pad giving the pad the maximum surface area to gain better stopping with your car. Using dimpled rotors and cross drilled rotors have similar traits, the main goal of the dimpled rotors and cross drilled rotors are to let heat escape of the rotor allowing cooler rotors with better gripping power for stopping your car. So, what is the reason for the two types the cross drilled could crack or warp easier on some lower brands the solution was to keep the rotor solid and provide more surface for the rear brake to catch providing less chance of damage on the rotor of your car.

http://www.streetbeatcustoms.com/brakerotors.html

[glockmail]

Plus they make that wicked cool baseball card in the spokes sound!

[darin]

hmmm...



http://www.streetbeatcustoms.com/brakerotors.html

pssst! Dude...they sell stuff there

Nobody (one person? two? Surely nobody who posts regularly) on this board will run their daily driver hard enough to justify slotted rotors. Not in every-day driving. Slotted rotors MIGHT show some percieved gain under repeated HEAVY brake use. Drilled rotors? They are only good if you want cracked rotors.

[glockmail]

My "daily drive" includes long mountain grades up to 2500 vertical feet in just a few miles with a full load. On the way down either you work the brakes or negotiate curves at 90, praying that Johnny Law ain't around the next one.

Such is the manly mountain life.

[April15]

Have you given consideration to a motorcycle? By the way my wife can warp a set of rotors quick on flat ground!

[glockmail]

I don't think a bike would do too well hauling three passengers and all their gear for ski weekends.

You need to duct tape her left foot to the floor. Either that or rig up a buzzer to the brake light. Maybe she's a 2-foot driver.

[actsnoblemartin]

It looks like a web cam

Put these on my Explorer a while back:



The OEM and replacements rotors kept warping. I do a lot of mountain driving and its hard on brakes.

As I recall, a person who shall remain unnamed told me that "the holes and slots won't do anything to make them work better" or some other shit like that. I am pleased to report that he has yet again been proven wrong, and I have been proven right: after over a year the new rotors are still true.

That's the difference when you have "car and driver" knowledge vs. hands on.