I've been looking for brake pads and rotors for a friend, and I see O.E. rotors, and the supposedly "upgrade" ones that have drilled holes and/or slots for only a few bucks more. Are the drilled or slotted rotors really any better?
Drilled and slotted brake rotors better than solid?
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I understand that's the theoretical advantage, but I don't know if it produces any tangible differences for normal driving conditions.
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At first one would say better cooling, BUT it is a maybe.
What is does is offer better break performance.
How?
As the break pads friction against the disk, there is a brake erosion material building up between the brake and rotor that negatively impact brake performance. It is acting like powder lubricant. The holes or slots, allow that layer to escape.
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As brake pad material is vaporized by the heat of intensive spirited driving it produces gasses that have to escape to reduce brake fade. Drilled and/or slotted rotors help to vent those gasses. For a plain Jane daily driver it will be hard to notice a difference. The brakes will feel better simply because new pads and rotors are present. Drilled/slotted can result in slightly shorter pad life because they wipe off pad material faster. That, too, is hard to quantify because so many cars with d/s rotors are driven and braked harder. My pickup warps OEM plain rotors in about 20k miles so I might try d/s because they don’t cost more and pads are a cheap half hour job, just to see what happens. If your friend drives hard and lives in mountain country, why not? For my old man flat land driving I don’t expect to notice better braking other than maybe better warp resistance but I have no proof of that. It is flat here, we can see a mile down the road, and we roll out to a stop and hardly use the brakes.
The tangible advantage is that it looks better (on a sporty car).
Not alot of hard braking for this gal, and I don't think she drives the mountain passes much.
Yeah, I don't think the rotors are even visible on her Highlander.
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What makes them fail ? How do they look ?
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Most of the sports cars I have driven and ridden in do not have drilled/slotted breaks from the MFG. I would think if the MFG's could get 10 feet less distance stopping they would use them.
As many as a MFG would buy the cost difference would be nothing.
I am a guy that figures the engineers at the factorys are paid to come up with the best product. Me with out an degree in engineering will only muck it up by changing to non standard parts.
As many as a MFG would buy the cost difference would be nothing.
I am a guy that figures the engineers at the factorys are paid to come up with the best product. Me with out an degree in engineering will only muck it up by changing to non standard parts.
Go solid.
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Mine are warped, no doubt about it. I frequently towed a landscape trailer that is a little under 3000 lbs. with the mower on it so brakes are not required. I think it stressed my brakes too much. Last year I gave that trailer to my son and I bought one with brakes and it helped.
How would you know? The only effect of warped rotors would be that the caliper slides back and forth on the slide pins alot, but it doesn't affect how the brakes respond. If you're assuming they're warped because the brake pedal goes up and down when you press on the brakes, that's not because the rotors are warped; it's because they have pad material fused to them, making them thicker in some areas than others. If you want to assumed they are warped, go right ahead. Rotors that are actually warped cannot be turned (machined), but those affected by having pad material on them could be. However, for either problem, the easiest, and often the most economical solution is to replace the rotors, anyway.
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Have you ever driven for hours in stop and go traffic? slotted or holes help dissipate the heat quicker. warped rotors can give the brake pedal a pulsating feel. Every rotation they produce heat, and more wear, with each contact.
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