Hey 1st post and yes I did search. Was hoping to get some advice on brakes, I have 3 - XB's that I use for work, two of them have the rear seats removed and are fitted with shelving and 75 gallon water tanks. I have an airbag system in the rear to help with the weight. My problem is that they go through the brakes in under 10K miles. I can understand it on the two with the tanks but the third is at 9K now and it sounds like brakes are going out on that one too. So a couple of questions. How long do you typically get out of stock brakes and does anyone have any recomendations on better/ longer lasting brake set-up's? I don't want to do a big brake conversion but I was thinking slotted and dimpled rotors and green, yellow or redstuff pads from ebc. but I don't want to spend the $$ if it doesn't significantly improve braking and brake life.

Thanks for any Help

Tim

 

Good question.
I think on average, with regular brakes (and a regular ride of course) you should get about 25-35K miles, roughly. But like I have said before, I am not a master mechanic and I could be wrong.

It really depends on how often you use them (stop and go traffic), how hard you stomp on them (autox racer), and if you downshift to slow down or not. Obviously, many factors will change depending on the conditions. Brakes are not like oil.

So, what are the conditions?

 

The added weight is your problem. Can't say that I can offer any good advice on your brake choices for longevity though.

 

Tim, just your front pads going out? or the shoes in the back too?
Check ebay, you can get direct replacement drilled and slotted rotor for under $100.
FYI, I brake about average, not really agressive and certainly not easy going on them. Mine are still fine, though I havent checked the actual pads themselves

 

He was talking about the brakes for the third car... the one that doesn't have a load yet.

 

someone is left foot braking , or a very aggressive driver.

 

Dooh . Man, I suck. That's why I never read the long posts...they lose my interest and I don't read em all the way through.


Yup, brakes should deffinitely be lasting you well past 9k unless you're running with a foot on the pedal all day. Even with what would be considered severe braking during daily driving you would get at least 20k off a set.

 

Leeeeeroyyy Jeeeenkiinnnnnss!!

couldnt resist...

 

LOL.

 

2 years and 55K+ and still on factory brakes.I bet it gets bad gas milage also,they drive hard and stop short.


Scott

 

Thanks for the reply's I've been out of town. Like I said I blame the weight on the two of them but the third is stock and only barely turned 9K so wtf? I don't drive that bad (my phone # is all over the box, I would get some complaints) and I don't have this problem an any of my other vehicle's. So has anybody gotten better life out of slotted/dimpled set-up with green, yellow or redstuff pads? Anybody here running them?

Tim

 

I have had slotted rotors - not a dimpled set-up - but those didn't help with the wearage of the pads. Of course, I haven't ever gone through a set of pads in 9k miles either...

I would suggest (unless you just want to spend money) that you try another set of brake pads and watch how your drive. You might not even notice that you are riding them, or that you step firmly on the brakes. It might just be second nature to you. Also, pay attention to the stop and go traffic that you might endure. That can make a big difference - if you are always stopping, you are bound to go through brake pads.

 

Thanks again,

My personal rides '02 Lexus GS430 has 50K on it and still on original brakes, and '04 Land Rover Discovery with 40K on it I just did the slotted/drilled rotors and better pads on that. The Box's are fun to drive but trust me the GS gets driven harder. I can see the two with the added weight, but not the third. There is a decent amount of stop & go. The one in question was involved in an accident at about 600 miles, I'm wondering if it maybe threw something out of alignment? Anybody else want to chime in on longevity of better rotors/pads?

Thanks

Tim

 

okay, seriously, 75 gallon tanks in an xb? sounds like a job for a panal van, not a sub-compact urban econobox.

sounds like you are seriously overworking the brakes. i don't think the xb was built with this kind of activity in mind.

 

The tanks are actually not used that often maybe twice a week for 20-25 miles at a time. These have replaced Ford E-250 vans and for the occasional use, the Ga$$ savings alone have been well worth it and if we have to replace the brakes more often it's not the end of the world. We still have other large capacity vehicles for the heavy hauling but don't need them all the time. I'm just checking my options, and trying to figure out the stock one.

Tim

 

I have almost 60k miles on my xB and the brake pads are still good.

 

I don't really think that an alignment is going to effect your brake pads much. Your tires - for sure. But your brake pads should be fine... maybe they were cracked (even a hair line) in the pads and made them run down faster?

Again, I suggest try to change the brakes with regular pads first and see how they ride. If they wear down fast, then look into it further. At that time you can possibly go with drilled rotors and the dimpled stuff that you were talking about. or have someone look to see if something is wrong else where. Unless, of course, you just want to spend the money and hope like hell that your money isn't going to be wasted.