Slotted or Cross Drilled?

[ScottXXL]

Which is better Slotted or Cross Drilled brake rotors? Is there a big difference? Has anyone gotten them truned yet? Can any brake shop turn them for you or do you need to go to a specialist? Last question...sorry, how long do they last compared to stock rotors before replacing them? Thanks for any help!

 

[Maniak]

The ART rotors (www.appliedrotortechnolgy.com) are Cryo treated and Slotted. They can be turned by just about any machine shop (haven't taken them to an Autoparts store to get them turned since they screwed up the last set).

There is a difinate difference between the stock and the ART rotors. The pads are lasting much longer. We were going through pads/rotors at about 20k miles. We now have over 30k on this set and the pads still have almost half left. The rotors are wearing clean (no ripples,ridges or warps)

The rotors/pads cost just over $300 when we got them last year.

I haven't used cross drilled rotors.. The cross drilled rotors I found were almost the same price as the ART rotors and the ART rotors are cryo treated. After talking to a friend at a precision machine shop he figured the ART rotors (cryo treated) would work better that rotors that just had metal removed. I'm happy with the dicision but I know there are people here who use the cross drilled rotors that can tell you about them.

 

[PunkChild]

I believe cross drilled are better but they are prone to cracking.

 

[drvred]

It says it all to me, when Porsches come from the factory with drilled rotors, and the first thing the racers do is throw them away.
They are a waste of money for anything driven on the street. If you are using the brakes hard enough to need the additional cooling, you shouldnt be in an Explorer doing it.
I think,(based on my racing experience)that if you do need cooling help, try running brake ducts to the center of the rotor. It would be much more effective.
One of the pieces of advice I got when I started racing was that anyone would sell you the "the latest and greatest gotta have go fast piece". The trick was finding the people who were genuinely trying to help, and who was just looking to separate you from your money.
You can buy alot of brake pads for $300.

Rick
93 XLT
stock

 

[Maniak]

I'd have to say it really depends on where you live and what type of brakes you have. Many people think (including me) that the Ford Brake rotors on the First Gen Explorer are thin. There are many people who do lots of driving stop and go and even moutain driving that can get away with the stock rotors. Just like there are people who can go 200k miles with very few problems (like us). In our case we were going through brake rotors about every 20k miles. I looks as if it was the trips from 9k feet to 2k feet with an auto tranny once a week the contributed (sp?) most of the problem.

All I can say is that from personal experience that yes the Slotted/cryo brake rotors work. Yes you can buy a lot of brakes for $300 but my time is worth much more than that so I'm not going to waste it changing the rotors every 9 months and have to deal with the anyance factor (I hate the warpted rotor feel). IMHO it was worth the extra money not to have to deal with the hastle.

I do believe as Rick does that there are many companies that try to sell the latest/greatest new fangled part when you don't really need it. I just don't think good rotors are part of it. If we were talking about drilling stock rotors then I would completely agree with Rick. Make sure what ever you get really works for you.

 

[LukeDog3D]

I agree with Maniak. The early Explorer rotors are subpar. I think it is advisable to buy aftermarket rotors if yours are almost gone.
I bought some slotted and cross drilled rotors from JC whitney and they were a big improvement. They don't fade when I try to bring the truck down from 70 and there almost no dust collecting on my rims. Look real cool too.

 

[ScottXXL]

Thanks guys! My right side rotor is going thats why I asked before getting new ones. I'll replace both. If they last longer then factor then I'm sold. I also saw in Sport Truck Magazine a Chevy brake system with cross drilled/slotted rotors. They were said to be superior to conventional and also sported a powerful Bauer caliper system. Really looked like tuff stuff.

Thanks for your wisdom fellas!

 

[mike91]

Cross drilled rotors maybe be slightly better; however, there is a slim line of caution that needs to be followed when drilling the holes (proximity, no. of holes). If its not done 100% correctly, chances are that the rotor will crack prematurely. Speaking from experience (6k miles cracked the left rotor) I would say to go with cryogenically frozen rotor whether cross drilled or slotted, but go with the slotted if available. Saves the worry of cracking and wasting money on 6k miles of braking.

 

[ScottXXL]

Thanks for the response guys!

So where can I get some slotted rotors that are cryo treated at a good price?

 

[mike91]

I know this site has them for around $300 if I recall - http://www.appliedrotortechnolgy.com