Brake Change Time
 

I have an 09 Z with 39k mi on it and the brake pads are wearing thin. Unfortunately I don't have a ton of money for a full rotor/caliper upgrade so I'm wondering if anyone can suggest some affordable yet good performing brake pads and fluid so I can change the pads out with one of the mechanics at work.

My Z is a daily driver, I don't track it or race but I do drive fast and sometimes have stop and go traffic.

The rotors look decent no grooves or warp that I can see so worst case I may need resurfacing which we can do at our shop.

Any thoughts?

Just buy some Castrol DOT4 fluid, $9 or something if you don't track the car. You just want fluid to not boil, they don't really increase performance once you get rid of the air bubbles.

Stocks are probably not cheap, but you can't go wrong with them

im in a similar situation...dont have the money for the upgrade i really want right now but need pads...there has to be some options besides stock...any info would help us guys...the search wasnt the greatest help btw

You should always machine the rotors (or replace them) everytime you change out your pads.

i dont surface the rotors if it's just a pad change. every OTHER time i change the pads i just replace the rotors all together.

ummm no. rotors are heat sinks, you want to keep shaving them down and make them thinner?

yah, most places will bring the rotor to the customer during the service and show them the natural wear grooves on the disc surface...and try to scare the customer into buying the resurfacing service. it's unnecessary unless your rotor bit a rock or something and put huge grooves making it impossible for the pads to have full contact even after breakin. the rotor's toast in that regard.

ive had more issues with resurfaced rotors vs just replacing pads and replacing the rotors all together every other pad change.

They have minimum thickness specs.:facepalm: Just think about that for a moment. You are going to replace the pad (new surface) and not machine (or replace) the rotors? I always resurface a rotor when doing a brake job. I've had a couple that I didn't and noise became a real issue. Look at the rotor surface. It does not look the same as one that is new or has been resurfaced.

It reminds me of the people who do clutch jobs and don't resurface the flywheel (or replace it).


This thread is turning funny.

You are still shaving metal away, not exactly a smart thing to do given you are taken away what it is suppose to do! If they have heavy deposits/grooves/lips on them, simply throw them away and get new ones. A simple rub on the rotor will take all the old deposits away, that's what you want primarily, it's especially true if you are staying with the same compound.

I just changed my pads again last night and the car is still stopping like it should. I must have missed the note about how resurfacing is a must every time you put on new pads. Oh, and I have changed my pads about 10 times in just the 370 alone..... I am sure all the track nuts aren't stupid enough to buy new rotors each time they swap pads for the track.

Whaaaaat......? :ugh2:

I'm hoping you're just talking about swapping pads for track events... or did you really go through 10 sets?!?!?

I swap it back and forth for each track days. I have done about 10 days, 10 changes is probably too little as I have to go back and forth each time. Heck, I am putting in random pads right now so I can find the proper brake balance on the car. I have 4 sets of pads in my garage right now.....

I've gone through 10 sets easily. I went through the stock pads in one 20 minute session when my car was brand new. I've also gone through 5 sets of rotors before switching to stoptechs.

I do agree though, no need to resurface rotors when changing pads. Just bed the pads in properly and they will conform to the rotor surface. The stock brakes overheat bad enough as it is without taking any mass off the rotors by shaving them down.


My recommendations:
For pure street use: Hawk Ceramics or Akebono ceramcis

For street/performance: Carbotech Bobcats.

In my youth... I was a cheep SOB on rotors. Would'nt resurface unless it had grooves you could file your nails on. Never ever replaced rotors till I bought a new car and actually took care of it properly. If you're really hurting for cash, just run some 280 wet/dry sandpaper over it at about 60 degrees from the groove dirction. It'll take any old pad material off the rotor and give the new pads something to bite into for initial bedding. Do it dry and just rub back and forth with your thumb as you rotate the rotor. Total hillbilly job but it's worked for me on numerous vehicles. Do it at your own risk but my opinion on changing rotors every break job is that it's bull$#it.

Try downshifting when your stopping too, might make those pads last longer.

wow! :tup: in my case my pads will last me 20K miles or so. :p

id have to agree you dont "HAVE" to resurface rotors. ive swapped pads on my car 4 or 5 times and countless times on my other cars, friends cars, family members cars and never had noise or brake related issues. as long as u dont have huge grooves or stress cracks youll be fine. maybe take some sand paper or a sanding cookie on an air tool and hit the rotors.

if u have the money and feel you should resurface them then do it. everyone has their own opinion.

Stock pads or Hawks seem like a reasonable idea. I used a set of Hawk HPS for a long time and they were decent for street driving, and the Hawk Ceramic street pads sound decent and were recommended above as well. I'm planning to try out the Carbotech Bobcat street pads that were also mentioned above starting in early Nov (after my next track appointment), but no personal review on them yet.

As for the rest, as mentioned above I'd flush the fluid with fresh stuff. Just don't accidentally buy a silicone-based fluid (DOT 5.0). Stick with DOT4-compat stuff, and if you want to splurge, get higher boiling point stuff. SS brake lines are nice and relatively cheap too.

LOL I've got mainly highway and hwy rush-hour, only 2500 on the odometer so far. Couple of times on the backroads. Wonder how long mine will last... My little Tacoma lasted almost 100k. 20k sounds awfully low. Maybe I'll be getting my carbotech pads sooner than I thought.:yum:

I have never driven with the Bobcats, but I have heard bad things about them. Do your research with people who have actually used it on this car

I've installed them on several customer's corvettes and no one has been unhappy with them.

I have rough 12K miles on the stock oem pads (one in the middle), they barely have more wear than my XP8 with one track day on it. I am guessing 35K miles?

http://img16.imageshack.us/img16/92/dsc4925u.jpg
Shot at 2011-10-17

yah, my Z only sees surface streets 99% of the time and i drive pretty spiritedly. :p if you do hwy miles i am sure you will do very well.

i have to agree with cossie on this one. no way should you be turning your rotors every time you change pads. i've never heard of ANYONE doing that.

think, if your rotor has not gotten warped from heat, and is in perfectly good shape, then turning it would be redundant...

I'll report back eventually. When my stockers are dead (soon), Bobcats will replace them for daily driving and autocross use.

onj the sport pkg brakes, what is the best tool tp push the piston back. do they make a reverse c clamp where it pushes out? i am sick of using pliers and scrtaching my caliper

not the exact one i have but i dont remember where i got mine.


EDIT never mind not the right part :) ill try and find it... again

wow $$

here it is. this does both sides at the same time.

Amazon.com: Disc Brake Pad Piston Compressor Caliper Wind Back Tool: Home Improvement

I like the bobcats. I've been running them for ~1500 miles now. No noise (except for when the rotors are rusty) and so far appears to be no noticable dust. They are expensive... but I'm definitely happy with them.

Can't just use a rag on the outer jaw? I just use the pads generally but a rag on the jaw of a pair of pliers is what I use if I can't get enough leverage on the pad.

I just use a regular smallish C-clamp from the hardware store, and you can prevent the damage with some cardboard or whatever between the clamp and the painted part of the caliper.

my mileage just went over 27000 and whenever i hit brake soft speed of under 10 or 15 it make scratching noise do i need new pad ???

Probably. Check to see how much pad you have left.

Most likely, same thing I am currently dealing with. I plan on changing my pads tomorrow :)

FWIW - from Hawk Performance webpage

1.Install brake pads properly. Be sure pads are securely positioned in the caliper.
2. Flush system with fresh brake fluid.
3. Check all hydraulic parts for excess wear and tear.
4. Check disc for proper thickness, parallelism, and lateral runout.
5. Check disc for scoring or grooves over .012”depth. If either applies, resurfacing is required.
6. If discs do not need resurfacing, then contamination from the previous brake pads must be removed. Sand discs with 130 grit sandpaper using moderate pressure. Use soap and water to clean discs’ surface after sanding and machining. Discs should be free and clear of oil, grease, and brake fluid.
7. Inspect calipers for freedom of movement. Lubricate where necessary.

JCWhitney has some relatively cheap in price rotors and pads on their website for the base non-sport 370Z. I'm skeptical, but I went ahead and purchased a pair of Centric OEM F rotors and F/R pads for $120 shipped. Reading around, Centric is apparently affiliated with Powerslot and Stoptech, so I'm hoping they aren't too terrible. I have 53k miles now on my original setup, so I figured to change them about now. Obviously can tell I'm mostly a street cruiser.

Thoughts?

WCS... i'll just return the products. Crossing fingers!

Centrics are fine rotors. They'll be fine.

I'm pretty sure Centric is the maker of the generic blanks that a *lot* of aftermarket and OEM rotors come from. They're pretty good :) The other guys that use them just relabel and/or add some kind of finish, or coating, or maybe cut slots, etc.

get some EBC red stuff's. decently priced and awesome performance from what i hear. i put them on my girlfriend's tc for the hell of it and the initial bite is awesome.

nice, bumped brake thread. I'll give an update on the Carbotech XP8s

Let me start by saying thier awesome! Unbelievable stopping power, no heat up required. Cold, stopping pressure is equivalent to stock. Warm, it gets a little lighter. (less foot pressure more stopping)

1st 3k miles no noise.

I'm at 5k on them now. They squeek at slow speeds, coming up to traffic lights with light pressure on brakes. Not loud enough for people to turn their heads and look.

Noise seems to go away for a while after getting them really hot on a back road.

I've heard this experience repeated with other that installed the XP8s so I think it's pretty typical.