What is a good upgrade for the front brakes?

[Mike Moyer]

Looking to upgrade the front brakes on my 93 XLT 2WD. I do not want to get into a lot of money like I did with the brake upgrade on my wifes BMW. Will sloted rotors or cross drilled rotors that make big of a diff with out upgrading the rotor size or going to a 4 piston caliper. Thanks.

Mike

 

[Rhett]

I am not a big brake man but I can say that the cryogenically treated slotted rotors for the Explorer are supposed to be good (they are available through Explorer Express I think). I have stock rotors on mine, so I can't say for sure.

I think if you are going to increase the size of the rotor or pad, you are going to have to do some MAJOR upgrades to the rest of the braking system, like the master cylinder and power assist.

What I am getting at is the fact that the braking system was designed to handle the stock size calipers, pads, and rotors, and if you simply upgrade those parts you might end up over-stressing the other parts of your braking setup.

On the other hand, the cryo slotted rotors I mentioned are supposed to bolt right on and work with the other OEM equipment. A 4-piston setup sure would be nice; it's possible to do, but it would be a lot of $$$$ and work I think. Maybe someone who is a brake person can weigh in...

 

[Maniak]

Slotted/Cross drilled rotors can be found all over the place, Kragen, Checker Auto Parts, Explorer Express and a few other places. The Cryo Treated/Slotted rotors are made by a company called ART (applied rotor technologies). I have a set on our 1992 4x4 XLT. They made a big difference. We were warping the front rotors way too much and since switching to the ART rotors and performance friction pads (thats the name brand and the same pads I used to use with the stock rotors) we haven't had any warping problem. I changed the pads at about 40k miles and there was still 1/3 of the pad left. The rotors are still smooth and the stopping distance is still great.


The ART rotors with a set of pads is just over $300.

Here's a link to an install article I did on them last year.
(dead link)

 

[soupbone]

What size are the rotors? Do you have steel braided brake lines with the ART kit? Do they make a noticeable difference? Will upgading the rear rotors also make any difference in overall stopping power? Do the performance pads generate more brake dust?


Thanks

 

[Maniak]

>>What size are the rotors?
As far as I can tell, they are stock diameter

>>Do you have steel braided brake lines with the ART kit?
Yes, We installed Steel braided lines when we did the lift kit (we needed longer ones anyway). The Steel braided lines gave us a more positive feel in the pedal but didn't help the stopping distance.

>>Do they make a noticeable difference?
I definately noticed a big difference. They stop quicker, pads last longer, and the rotors aren't warping.

>>Will upgading the rear rotors also make any difference in overall stopping power?
I'm not sure, but I would assume so. Changing the Drums on a first Generation Explorer to Disc brakes makes an improvement.

Do the performance pads generate more brake dust?
I've always used "Performance Friction" pads on my Fords. They last a long time and brake very well. When I changed these pads on our explorer I tried a set of Raybestos Superstop (also known as brutestop) and either I got a bad set of pads or the Raybestos pads stink. The pads are not supposed to be rebuilds but she shims shifted and broke free from the pads in about 2 weeks. When I removed the pads I noticed that there were two anti rattle shims. Not only were there two shims but both shims had caliper marking on them. This tells me that the pads are rebuilds. I changed back to the "Performance Friction" pads and all was well again. I also noticed that the Performance Friction pads were quieter (no noise) and stopped better.
ART ships a set of "Performance Friction" pads with the rotors. So far, the only place I've been able to buy the brand "Performance Friction" was at Autozone. Checker/Kragen don't carry that brand (which is why I tried the Raybestos)

Shoot an email off to Dean at ART (his email is listed on their web site..(dead link) He can answer brake questions better than I.

 

[Ray Hutchinson]

Brake Upgradew

Mike, One of the cheapest, most effective upgrades of the front brakes on the early Ex's disc/drum brake system is to frequently manually adjust the rear drum brakes! I was having rotor warp and short front pad life until a mechanic at work suggested that I adjust the rears often. The "automatic" adjusters on the Ex'srear drums aren't very effective, so the rears are usually out of adjustment. Keeping the rears properly adjusted let's them do more of the braking, so your fronts aren't doing all the work, generating too much heat and wear I make sure I adjust the rears before each wheelin trip.

Another mod my mechanic friend suggested was to "mod my driving habits...that is slow down and plan ahead more: fewer heavy braking and panic stops

These two cheap "mods" really have made a difference in the brake life on my truck.

BTW, After hearing the good reports, I am going to get either slotted or drilled rotors when I have to repladce mine though

 

[Mike Moyer]

Hey thanks you all I will try the ART rotors/pads.