Who makes the good rotors nowadays? 1994 4x4 with abs

[mechjames]

Hi All,
I've noticed since the last time I did brakes on an explorer about 4 -5 years ago, there isn't a lot of choice of brake rotors anymore. Back then there was Raybestos Advanced Technology as well as the Professional Grade, PowerSlot, Power Stop, EBC, all kinds of brake rotors with slots and drills, and even a lot of manufacturers making different levels of stock replacement styles (Wagner, etc)

Nowadays it seems to be Parts Store China Made, Raybestos Professional, StopTech (Centric, was PowerSlot) and EBC for expensive ones.

What is everyone using for rotors today and how do you like them? Do they warp/crack? I've never had much luck with Parts Store Made in China no name rotors, seem to start to pedal vibration after a couple months and there's usually not enough metal to turn them on a lathe.

I'm leaning to ordering Raybestos Professional online from Rockauto or eBay, or possibly purchasing the stoptech slotted ones (local parts store has them in stock the same price as summitracing) because they won't rust much as they have the protective black coating on the hub.

I can't afford to spend $300 on the EBC cross drilled/slotted even though they would probably last forever.

 

[2stroke]

Brake performance. They make all kinds of brake components including rotors. All made in USA. Reasonable shipping, and very good prices.

http://brakeperformance.com/

 

[mechjames]

That looks like all the centric/stoptech stuff. Good prices, will check them out!

 

[Anime]

Last I heard, the Raybestos line, including the "professional" ones, were all cheaper versions of the ones they made years ago and now all were made in China.

There may be some old stock around, even Rockauto might be selling old stuff that's better quality than what's at the parts stores, but there's no way to tell what you'll get until you open the box.

I got mine from NAPA years ago, when they were still selling the good Raybestos stuff as NAPA parts, and while they pick up some pad material from time to time, they otherwise are great and have never warped or given me any issues.

Cross-drilled rotors are a BAD idea on a vehicle that sees general use. Cross-drilled rotors are made for racing. The holes in the rotors allow for better cooling, but they also severely weaken it and make a great starting point for cracks. You can often see the hairline cracks around the holes on cross-drilled rotors that are on daily driven vehicles. What you don't see is the carnage that happens when the rotor finally cracks and falls apart. Not pretty when it happens at speed.

The Stoptech slotted ones from the local parts store might be your best bet, both for quality and warranty. With the right pads, the slotted rotors will give a little better braking performance, and if there are any issues you know where to go.

The $300 EBC cross-drilled/slotted are for high-performance use. The less expensive slotted-only rotors are way, way better for an Explorer that sees off-road use and general driving around.

 

[mechjames]

There may be some old stock around, even Rockauto might be selling old stuff that's better quality than what's at the parts stores, but there's no way to tell what you'll get until you open the box.

Cross-drilled rotors are a BAD idea on a vehicle that sees general use. Cross-drilled rotors are made for racing. The holes in the rotors allow for better cooling, but they also severely weaken it and make a great starting point for cracks. You can often see the hairline cracks around the holes on cross-drilled rotors that are on daily driven vehicles. What you don't see is the carnage that happens when the rotor finally cracks and falls apart. Not pretty when it happens at speed.

The Stoptech slotted ones from the local parts store might be your best bet, both for quality and warranty. With the right pads, the slotted rotors will give a little better braking performance, and if there are any issues you know where to go.

I checked with rockauto. None of the old part number left in stock, they all have the R at the end of the part number.

This is just gonna be a winter use and off road mud/camping truck, no daily driving but it does have 35" tires and a 6" lift.

If the cross drilled ones can crack, what do you think about the dimpled ones? That brake performance site has slotted and dimpled, not drilled and include new brake pads in the price (although I already have a new set of the Wagner thermoquiet ready to go in)

 

[Anime]

If the cross drilled ones can crack, what do you think about the dimpled ones? That brake performance site has slotted and dimpled, not drilled and include new brake pads in the price (although I already have a new set of the Wagner thermoquiet ready to go in)

The dimples are usually just there to look kind of like the holes in a cross drilled rotor, the ones that have slots and then dimples in a row between the slots are pretty much just doing it for looks.

My preference would be for the $140 rotors that just have slots with no dimples, or just going with the smooth premium rotors for $110. Other sites say the pads that are included with the slotted/dimpled rotors are mediocre and not worth using.

If you spend the money on slotted rotors, you probably want to use Stoptech pads or something equivalent. You might also need to find out the details of the "lifetime warranty" on those rotors and if you can use any brake pad or if the "lifetime warranty" is only valid if you buy and use their brake pads.

If that site really does sell USA-made smooth rotors for $110/pair with a lifetime warranty, that'd be a heck of a deal. The parts store rotors are $100 EACH for the lifetime warranty, or $50-60 each for a one-year warranty.

There also seems to be some pretty heavy discount coupons for brakeperformance too:

http://www.retailmenot.com/view/brakeperformance.com

Details: All Brake Rotors 50% Off! Free Shipping + Free Set of Pads


Sounds too good to be true to me, but reviews on other sites say the rotors are ok. Maybe you can be the guinea pig and try some out to let everyone know if this is a viable source for quality Explorer rotors.

 

[natenkiki2004]

Dumb question; what good is a lifetime warranty unless you drive the vehicle very infrequently? The warranty doesn't cover normal wear.

 

[Anime]

A lifetime warranty is useful on rotors in case any "defects" don't show up until after more than a year, which often is the case with infrequent use. If nothing else, it shows the company backs up its products for the long haul and the products are touted as being better than junk that is just designed to last slightly past the one year warranty period.

Sometimes a "lifetime warranty" actually DOES cover wear and there are still companies that offer such lifetime warranties on their rotors and brake pads. They are banking on it as a selling tactic since most people don't keep their vehicles long enough to wear out the second set of pads or rotors, and often people are only replacing rotors because the originals were damaged when the factory brake pads wore down to the metal backing plate. Of the people that do keep their vehicle long enough to take advantage of such a warranty, plenty won't remember the warranty the next time they replace the brakes or won't have the warranty info or something else, so a very small amount of customers actually ever replace brake pads or rotors under warranty in the long run, most warranty claims are within days or weeks, from customers with products that had something seriously wrong.

Of course, when it comes to brakes, warranty isn't really the most important thing. You can usually get awesome brake pads like Akebonos and run those on stock rotors, just replacing them before they wear down too far, and never have to worry about much else (aside from greasing the slide pins) for hundreds of thousands of miles.

 

[2stroke]

The only thing I have ever ordered from brake performance have been the standard, smooth brake rotors. They are made in USA. The price varies from vehicle to vehicle. The first one was $70 for both, the other was $110 for both. I have never heard of a better deal for quality rotors. Even the cheapest of the cheap are $30 a rotor. They are high quality, and I will continue to buy from them in the future. The premium ones are just coated where the brakes don't touch. It is only there for looks. I live in the salty road state of MN and have not had a rotor of any kind rust out on me, but have had them crack after sitting, and warp from general use. I have never had a problem with brake performance yet, but only have about 20,000 on one car, and less than 10,000 on the other.

 

[FR-425]

Nobody mentioned these... . ..

Ceramic coated ..super quiet .. rust proof, made in Germany.

 

[Warlock03]

Oh the misinformation here...
slotted/dimpled/drilled, yes are aimed for high performance.
Dimpled work the same way slotted works. Think of the slots as wipers on your windshield. They sweep away the gasses that are produced from the pads making friction with the rotor.
in a 4x4 situation slotted/drilled are not needed, in fact due to the low speed would actually be a henderance to the braking effect by reducing the surface area of the rotor.

Cracking, yes cheaper parts will crack easier.

I use slotted/double drilled, cryo dipped rotors on my SRT due to my driving habits and track use.
I also had drilled/slotted rotors on my heavy Magnum that I road raced/auto crossed. I have video of that 4800# sled with the rotors glowing as I braked at the end of a mile straight into a hairpin turn.

I purchase through r1concepts.Com

Pads,
pads are the meat in this steak and taters meal here. Again, I'm all race on my cars.
I'll be honest, I have not researched my 03 Explorer yet, but, but there are options, just search, search, search...

 

[mechjames]

Nobody mentioned these... . ..

Ceramic coated ..super quiet .. rust proof, made in Germany.

What the part number? They're not listed on Bosch's Site for a 1994:
http://www.boschautoparts.com/auto

 

[Anime]

Just throwing this out there, but since the Centric rotors are the ones that are avalable as slotted/dimpled/cross-drilled for the Explorer, and they are made in the USA, and the ones that brakeperformance sells are apparently available in the same configurations and also made in the USA...maybe brakeperformance is just selling unbranded Centric rotors, even though they aren't listed as an authorized e-tailer by Centric?

I don't see any other company producing these exact same parts in the USA.

The only way to find out for sure (other than asking brakeperformance directly, which I doubt will lead to an answer for legal/business reasons) would be to buy the same parts from brakeperformance and an authorized Centric dealer and compare the two.


The Bosch parts may be nice if you can find them. I doubt they are really Bosch through, just re-branded using the Bosch name like a lot of other auto parts, but if they're made in Germany, they may actually be super high quality stuff.

 

[mechjames]

Just throwing this out there, but since the Centric rotors are the ones that are avalable as slotted/dimpled/cross-drilled for the Explorer, and they are made in the USA, and the ones that brakeperformance sells are apparently available in the same configurations and also made in the USA...maybe brakeperformance is just selling unbranded Centric rotors, even though they aren't listed as an authorized e-tailer by Centric?

I don't see any other company producing these exact same parts in the USA.

The only way to find out for sure (other than asking brakeperformance directly, which I doubt will lead to an answer for legal/business reasons) would be to buy the same parts from brakeperformance and an authorized Centric dealer and compare the two.

When you click the fitment info button and the image pops up with the illustration and dimentions, it's exactly the same image you get for centric and stoptech rotors

 

[Anime]

If they weren't selling the Centric/Stoptech stuff, I would guess Centric would have forced them to stop using their images.

Given the apparent size/volume of brake components Centric sells, it's entirely possible brakeperformance is just an independent reseller, and the stuff they sell may even be drop shipped by Centric, just in generic packaging.

Then again, maybe they sell the seconds/blems from Centric.

Either way, the premium smooth rotors seem like a good deal with the lifetime warranty, and should be fine with the Thermoquiet pads if you want to use those. You may want to check pricing on the smooth rotors at the local store that carries Stoptech just in case it's less, if brakeperformance charges shipping to BC.

 

[FR-425]

Bosch does not maintain a retail web site. You can not buy directly from them unless you are a dealer.

If you want to purchase Bosch parts you need to go to a third party retailer.

I don't know what you have for parts stores in BC, but the inter-web is not much help for 20 year old trucks.

You need to ask your local parts guy to see about getting higher end parts.

They don't generally stock the stuff that is five times the cost of the Chinese junk. Nor do they spend the time to list them on their web sites.

 

[mechjames]

Bosch does not maintain a retail web site. You can not buy directly from them unless you are a dealer.

If you want to purchase Bosch parts you need to go to a third party retailer.

I don't know what you have for parts stores in BC, but the inter-web is not much help for 20 year old trucks.

You need to ask your local parts guy to see about getting higher end parts.

They don't generally stock the stuff that is five times the cost of the Chinese junk. Nor do they spend the time to list them on their web sites.

I know Bosch doesn't maintain a retail web site but they do have a catalog with part numbers and they don't list my truck in that catalog for rotors. They sell brake pads, starters and alternators for my truck though

I don't usually buy from local retailers in BC, I order online and ship to washington state at the border to pick up.

 

[FR-425]

 

[Anime]

Rockauto has the Raybestos "Professional Grade" rotors for ~$36/ea + shipping, and they even have a Powerstop rotor + pad kit (2 rotors and 1 set of 4 pads) for ~$90, so you'll have to decide if you want to spring for either of those for the price, or go with the brakeperformance (possibly Centric) rotors for the ~$110.

Your decision may be easier if you call and ask them about the "lifetime warranty" - it may be you have to ship the used rotors back to them at your expense, and they evaluate them and let you know if they'll honor it.

You may also want to try and get a quote from our forum vendor Ford dealers on OE Ford rotors, though I'm guessing they are just Bendix parts, or at least the originals that came on there probably were since most of the brake components were Bendix.

Nobody mentioned these... . ..

Ceramic coated ..super quiet .. rust proof, made in Germany.

Are those rotors for the Explorer or another vehicle?

Going by the Bosch website, they do not manufacture their QuietCast rotors (or ANY brake rotors) for the 93-94 Ford Explorer.

 

[FR-425]

Guess they quit making them then,,, ,.. . .