Brake rotor discussion

Alrighty, i'm pricing out parts to finish the Escort.

Brakes:

EBC Greens: $125
Corksport SS lines: $100
Rotors: $200 for Brembos, $112 for Centric Premium, $200 for ATE PremiumOne slotted rotors, $270 for PowerSlots.
Calipers: $30 each for front, $50 each for rears
MBC: $40

Two questions, one small and quick, one more discussion-oriented.

1) I replaced the passenger front and rear calipers with new parts less than a year ago. Would replacing them again so everything is brand new and the same age be a smart idea for an extra $80? Or just symptoms of OCD?

2) The biggie. Which rotors do i buy? I know that pads make a bigger difference than rotors, and i've always been an "Expensive pads, cheap rotors" kind of guy, but i've also usually found Brembos to be not that much more expensive in the first place. There's a HUGE price difference between the Brembos and the Centric Premiums here. I know Centric is a reputable company...

So... if you were building a car for AutoX duty, which of the above rotors would you buy? Or any other suggestions?

Also open to suggestions on pads. I just threw the Greens out there because they last forever, and i remember liking them on the Celica. This car will NOT see track work anytime soon, and i'm not worried about dusting.

I put some Centric Premiums on my E46 about a month ago. I like them, the hub area comes painted so it won't rust and they held up fine during two track days at Sebring (hard on brakes) on a heavy car with relatively undersized rotors.

^That's encouraging... i doubt i'll be stressing them THAT much in an AutoX situation. And we're talking about a 2300lb car with 10.25" front rotors.

When I worked at Napa the primary difference between the cheap rotors and the good ones were the packaging. Of course this is just a view from the warehouse standpoint but more of the cheap ones came back due to being warped because of the way they were stacked on the pallets. I guess they had to jam more rotors on a pallet so they didn't care about putting them flat.

I've seen some other small differences in the vanes, coatings, and materials but it's application dependent.

Go for the Centrics, but please lose those pads. We've had a set of EBC Yellows brake in half and had poor performance from greens as well, all on different vehicles.

Hawk HPS or PerformanceFriction are better choices IMO.

you really don't need to replace your calipers. I'd probably just go with stock rotors. I use them on my ITA car and they work fine with my Hawk HT10 pads and I rarely get brake fade.. If you do want to upgrade I'd just go with the Brembos.

Steven

Javelin wrote: Go for the Centrics, but please lose those pads. We've had a set of EBC Yellows brake in half and had poor performance from greens as well, all on different vehicles. Hawk HPS or PerformanceFriction are better choices IMO.

I've read your thoughts on those pads before. I ran the Greens on the Celica, then stepped up to the Yellows, and i found the Yellows UHMAZING.

I was looking at the Hawks you mention, though... I'm more than willing to give something else a try, for sure. Bad idea to run the HP Pluses if the car will ever see street duties? Don't care about noise or dust at all. Or is it just silly to run those instead of HPS?

You and i tend to cancel each other out on brakes and tires, though.

Smack35 wrote: you really don't need to replace your calipers. I'd probably just go with stock rotors. I use them on my ITA car and they work fine with my Hawk HT10 pads and I rarely get brake fade.. If you do want to upgrade I'd just go with the Brembos. Steven

Ok... i'll leave the two "new" ones alone, though. The other ones look pretty bad and god knows when they've been serviced, so i am going to replace the ones on the driver's side.

Thanks!

1. OCD
2. Porterfield R4S if available, otherwise Hawk HPS
3. Centric or Brembo

HP+ if you're going to do track days, but honestly HPS is great.

+1 on replacing the remaining calipers and leaving the "new" ones alone.

PS - Don't forget good DOT4 fluid.

AngryCorvair wrote: 1. OCD 2. Porterfield R4S if available, otherwise Hawk HPS 3. Centric or Brembo

Thank you sir!

Didn't know i could get the R4Ss for this car... may have to give them a try, since i've heard people rant and rave about them forever.

$135 for a full set, not bad at all.

Javelin wrote: HP+ if you're going to do track days, but honestly HPS is great. +1 on replacing the remaining calipers and leaving the "new" ones alone. PS - Don't forget good DOT4 fluid.

Cool, so i'm just OCD. Thanks everyone for saving me $80.

Good DOT4 is on the menu for sure.

I run the cheapest rotors Napa sells. The last as long as I need them to, even on a 2800lb (empty) car with 10" frt rotors and rear drums.

I'll also suggest Porterfield R4S's. They are the best multi-duty pad I've ever used. They work on track days, autocrossing and street. And they are very rotor-friendly.

Bobzilla wrote: I run the cheapest rotors Napa sells. The last as long as I need them to, even on a 2800lb (empty) car with 10" frt rotors and rear drums.

Spank you Bob. The cheapest i can find any rotor for this thing is $80 + shipping, so i think the Centrics are going to be within a few bucks of that at least. But cheap rotors are definitely the name of the game here.

what is it again? I bet I can beat that price

Bobzilla wrote: what is it again? I bet I can beat that price

That price was through RockAuto.

It's a 93 Escort GT. 10.25" front discs. And DOES have rear disc. Rockauto was a pain in the ass to price everything because they mix it all together.

I'm just price now... will be buying on the 4th.

Appreciate it! (my prices were for all 4, btw)

75.00 with tax, have them in about 2 hours.

damn those are some expensive rotors..... the Brembo blanks (not slotted or drilled) for either my Integra of my CRX cost me < $30 each, granted I have a sponsor that sells me my stuff at cost... but even so his shop would only charge ~ $90 for them to someone in off the street

pads: add Carbotech to the mix .. I love 'um

$30 EACH = $120 for the set. $90 each = $270 for a set of 4.

Bobzilla wrote: 75.00 with tax, have them in about 2 hours.

Wow, for all four, that's hard to beat!

Thanks Bob, i'll let you know when i'm ready.

Bobzilla wrote: $30 EACH = $120 for the set. $90 each = $270 for a set of 4.

actually I said < $30 each... last ones were $24.95.... = ~$100 and his supplier wants $200.... twice as much... thank goodness I've got a sponsor

wbjones wrote:

Bobzilla wrote: $30 EACH = $120 for the set. $90 each = $270 for a set of 4.

actually I said < $30 each... last ones were $24.95.... = ~$100 and his supplier wants $200.... twice as much... thank goodness I've got a sponsor

Well, it's TireRack. I'm sure i could find them cheaper elsewhere. Rockauto had the fronts for cheaper, but didn't have the rears at all i think. I saw the fronts on closeout for $19.xx i think.

I'd like a sponsor.... I should bug Jim @ PierceMotorsports about it.

I've always went with brembo blank rotors.

Everyone tells me the metallurgy etc is the same from brand to brand & it's useless paying the premium price, but I consistently get great wear from them w/ more aggressive pads (e.g. hawk HP+).

Stock type rotors from NAPA and Hawk HP+ pads are all you need on an Escort.. Remove the dust shield if it still has one.