Front brake upgrade

Homesteader · Jul 30, 2014

Need help in finding a good set up for my front brakes. Running 35's.
Any suggestions?
Thanks

79jasper · Jul 30, 2014

I think the ebc's might be common.
Look into some of the rotor tests, before deciding. Like drilled and slotted vs oem, etc.
Not sure if pads and rotors will make the difference you want though.
So may look into a hydroboost conversion, if you haven't already.

Sent from my SM-G900R4 using Tapatalk

CurtisF · Jul 30, 2014

From the advice of many, I ran Hawk pads and slotted rotors on my truck this last time around. The stopping force improved a little.

However, over the weekend I found the pads wore out and took out the rotors well before putting 50K miles on them. The OEM stuff took me to at least 80K miles each time, so I lost quite a bit of longevity. I'm not too happy about that.

Picked up the Motorcraft stuff and went with the Ford severe duty pads on the front end. I have a brake job to do this weekend.

bruce · Jul 30, 2014

I have art cryo rotors and performance plus pads with ate super blue fluid and honestly it doesn't really stop much better than stock. The only real benefit is that when I was having caliper sticking issues the cryo rotors didn't warp at all

isootmypants · Jul 30, 2014

Ssbc has a nice set of calipers and pads for around 900. I'd like to do soon. Matched with a set of slotted rotor

smokinstroker · Jul 30, 2014

If I can help with rotors or pads let me know, I have quite a few options

DHFF · Jul 30, 2014

I have yet to find a set of rotors that don't warp at some point. I dunno if its driving habit or what but they always do with me. I know they warp from getting hot but I never tow and they shouldn't really ever get that hot. Good luck finding a good set.

Homesteader · Jul 30, 2014

Does the calipers make a big difference? Can Napa calipers be used with slotted rotors and Hawk pads? I don't see to many options on calipers.

PSDEng · Jul 30, 2014

I'm using napa calipers w/powerslot slotted rotors and hawk pads. I haven't put many miles on them yet though. I ordered motorcraft calipers through rockauto and they sent the wrong ones. Napa was the only place around that had calipers for my truck available so I didn't have much of a choice.

Homesteader · Jul 30, 2014

PSDEng said:
I'm using napa calipers w/powerslot slotted rotors and hawk pads. I haven't put many miles on them yet though. I ordered motorcraft calipers through rockauto and they sent the wrong ones. Napa was the only place around that had calipers for my truck available so I didn't have much of a choice.

Napa is my only choice that I have here local. Mostly everything I purchase has to be shipped in. May have to go with Napa or wait to order something better.

PSDEng · Jul 30, 2014

They don't seem to be any worse than stock fwiw. Out of the box they look like good units, we'll see how they hold up with time though.

Homesteader · Jul 30, 2014

How are the power stop brake kits they have on Amazon. 4 slotted and crosse drilled rotors with pads. The price looks good. Has anyone run this set up?

bruce · Jul 30, 2014

IMO all the stock calipers are junk, go with whoever has the best warranty

Homesteader · Jul 30, 2014

What are the best brands? I see power slot,power stop,frozen for rotors and Hawk for pads.

powerlifter405 · Jul 30, 2014

I had EBC's on my 02 front & rear and compared to stock vs the price I paid; Meh. They did a little better but nothing substantial to justify the cost IMHO.

On my 08, I used Diversified Cryogenics frozen slotted rotors w/ Hawks front & rear ( I wanna say the SD). Very big difference in stopping power, hot and cold. They would easily and quickly chirp the tires to a very sudden stop. Well worth the cost IMHO.

The front DCF slotted/ front/rear hawk combo was heads above the EBC's. I will not hesitate to go that route when I do my 99. Even if their life is a little less, I was very pleased w/ the consistent and solid feel the brakes had and to me I'd rather have shorter solid stopping distances. Doing a brake job is stupid easy so it's a no brainer IMHO.

Baker42 · Jul 30, 2014

Homesteader said:
Napa is my only choice that I have here local. Mostly everything I purchase has to be shipped in. May have to go with Napa or wait to order something better.

There all made in China anyway. I will never spend 900 on pads and rotors
My wife has an 02 WRX with Brembo big brake kit ($300 pads) and its just shiny and pretty still stops about the same.

hwrdbd · Jul 31, 2014

I got my front calipers from Napa a couple years back. They were actual motorcraft reman pieces with ford stamped right on the caliper. No issues so far, and they paint/coating is holding up surprisingly well. Around the same time I replaced a rear caliper with an advance auto reman, it rusted in about a month... But I it still works I suppose..

powerstrokenstang · Jul 31, 2014

R1 cross drilled and slotted rotors off ebay. Around 150 a pair and have been great.

Motomez · Aug 1, 2014

I just replaced my rotors and pads at 155K I replaced the stock pads at 75K and got another 80 with the Hawks. I went with Performance Friction Carbon Metallic pads on the recommendation from a friend in the business and these are hands down the Best pads i have used. The hotter they get the better they work. Its hard to believe how well they stop an 8000 pound truck.

IdahoF350 · Aug 4, 2014

With the stock calipers, or remanufactured stock calipers, the amount of force on the pads is the same, so changing to a reman caliper gains you nothing other than fresh surfaces, seals. Servicing the caliper slider pins allows more force to be transferred to the pads. Also, maintaining any surfaces the pads slide in will help.

The hydraulic side of the system needs attention too. Replacing the fluid is important, and with the heat we can generate in our calipers, finding a fluid with a high dry boiling point is key. I use Valvoline SynPower fluid in all my vehicles. It's the highest dry boiling point by far of any off the shelf fluid, matches the performance of a lot of the best performance fluids like Motul, Willwood, and Castrol SRF, and it is reasonably priced.

The final area I've had improvement in brake performance is braided stainless brake hoses. Especially if your hoses are older, they can lose their ability to contain the pressure and will flex, and they can deteriorate and either delaminate or disintegrate internally, preventing the full hydraulic force you create with the master cylinder from being realized in the caliper.