I need help selecting new pads&rotors...
 

Dear Z gurus, I need your help out here

I have the non-sport (stock) brakes. My rear pads are worn down to 3mm now and I need to find me a new set of pads & rotors.

I drive all street, but I drive her VERY hard. Also it would be pretty cool to get drilled & slotted rotors. I love the looks :)

My dealer recommends stoptech, but I'd like to see what your guys' opinions are. I need something cost-effective, somewhere in or near the "super street" category.

Noise would be an issue for me. My current pads & rotors squeak until they warm up a bit. Usually 1-2 city blocks and the noise is gone. I don't care about dust. What are your recommendations?

Hawk HPS will be your best bet for pads.
Rotors... Stoptechs are fine :tup:

Z1 makes rotors for the Z as well :tup:

I'd stay away from drilled rotors, even though they look awesome.

I heard that the HPS will destroy my rotors? Is that true? This is why I've come to you guys for help :)

How come? I'd like my rotors to be drilled & slotted. I'm notorious for warping them. Just to give you an idea, I destroyed a brand new OEM set in less than a week... Lol!

This Kit will take care of your needs.

Go with the Posi Quiet pads for normal street driving. StopTech is also a good pad option but I like my cars clean and the Posi Quiets offer the lowest dust of any of the pads I have used.

With Motul fluid and SS Brake Lines the Posi Quiets will still offer a great upgrade to your current setup.

I know that some people don't like the Hawk HPS (they dust heavily for a street oriented pad, and they're not sufficient for real tracking). Barring other variables, they won't destroy your rotors.

Drilling holes in a rotor weakens it. If you do get drilled rotors, make sure they are good quality and the holes are chamfered. If you're notorious for warping your rotors (which is most likely just uneven pad depositing), try reevaluating your braking technique :tiphat:

Drilled rotors crack under heavy use.

And destroying a set in a week means there's something critically wrong with your driving. Not to mention I have no idea how you would manage that without driving like an asshat on the street.

Are you holding the brake pedal down when stopped?

A week?!? :eek: Yeah that's insane. I can't imagine that happening on public roadways without being completely irresponsible :shakes head:

What Chuck said. Don't hold the brake pedal when stopped if your brakes are hot. This causes the pad to deposit a bunch of material in a single location on the rotor and is the definition of uneven pad depositing, which is often incorrectly referred to as a warped rotor.

All drilled rotors will crack due to the area around the holes cooling faster than the rest of the rotor however the cracks you will see on the surface of the rotor are superficial and do not affect the integrity of the rotor. If the cracks start to spread then you should worry but for normal street use we have 0 issues with our rotors cracking to a point of concern.

I drive auto, so yes, I usually hold it down when stopped.

And I drive like a banshee high on meth.


So I guess I'll avoid drilled rotors. Just gonna go with slotted ones.

Josh, thanks for the link! Is the price for a full set of 4, or per wheel?

Throw it in neutral at stop lights and get off the brake or keep replacing rotors. And keep track driving on the track.

If you've got the brakes good and hot and you're on a level surface, throw the car into N while you're at a light if you can.

The only other suggestion I can offer is to back off the hard braking when driving on public roadways. Otherwise, you're probably going to be replacing rotors a lot more often than is necessary. In which case, you might as well buy the generic rotors from any local auto parts store.

FWIW, I find myself limit accelerating fairly often when I'm doing some spirited driving. Limit braking on the other hand? Never. That's just asking for an accident.

:iagree:

Thanks guys :) I do pop it into N when I can, I just hate the delay when you pop into manual again :/ as far as my driving habits... It's just my crazy nature. I go through brakes and tires a lot. If I wanted to baby it, I'd get a civic!