Sup guys. Got a '09 tC 70k miles. My last inspection (3 months ago) Toyota recommended to replace my front rotors. I'm not trying to pay them since I can do it myself.

I'm in New York. Got AutoZone and Napa near me. Should i buy from them or eBay / Amazon. Which brand?

Been searching for couple days now and I forgot I was a member of this kool site.

Would appreciate some suggestions. Thanks!

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I have had good luck with PowerStop. Lots of different options to fit your budget from them. Installed on a few cars and everyone is liking them. Currently running R1 d/s rotors with their Z23 Evolution pads. Will do their rotor + pads combo when these need replacing.

 

Yeah I been seeing a lot of power stop in my searches. Autozone offered a front kit believe $120 the Z17 package. I asked why it wasn't so expensive and they said because they don't offer warranty on it. They call it a "performance kit". I can get the same one from Amazon bit cheaper but saw some bad comments bout them.

Ill look into your suggestion. Thanks.

 

Daily driver? I'd get the discs with painted/ black oxide(?) vents to reduce rust. Akebono ceramic pads ain't cheap but they're good quality.

Check to see if your old discs have threaded bolt holes for easy removal. Beats banging rust with a big hammer.

 

I purchased cross drilled and slotted rotors and ceramic pads (for another vehicle, mind you) from Rockauto and they have had a terrible shutter and shake under normal braking contsince the day they were put on...absolutely hate them. So I’d personally go with brand name parts to avoid this issue.

 

Stuttering when braking is caused by crossdrilling and slotting. Absolutely zero benefits, purely marketing. Put any smooth rotor on and braking will be... smooth! How about that! ;)

Removing material for holes and slots reduces thermal-mass of rotor. Meaning for same braking-force and heat generated, drilled & slotted rotors will heat up more! Genuine Porsche rotors with holes are not drilled. The holes are cast in place as part of manufacturing process. This preserves continuous grain-boundaries that drilling would not do. However, you still end up with variable heat-gradients and stress-risers around hole. So even Porsche's own "drilled" rotors will crack. Guess which model this was from?




Some info from engineer working on race cars and major manufacturers of brake systems:
http://www.924board.org/viewtopic.php?t=5155

Many moons ago, vendor made bold claims about drilled
and slotted rotors. Real racers and engineers waded into battle. Famous Altima Brake Thread:
Altimas.net - Crossdrilled/slotted rotors-why they are like this, like that-final discussion
Similar thread started by same vendor, not as much tech:
https://www.nissanclub.com/threads/c...cussion.32327/

 

FWIW, rotors are much less likely to crack due to being d/s if they do it properly and chamfer the holes and drill @ the correct time in the casting process.

Been on my d/s rotors 2 years so far and no issues. No issues on my previous car either, just don't cheap out on the parts.

 

Those Amazon comments are valid as Powerstop does have spotty quality-control depending upon which overseas supplier they used this past month. Most of time, they're fine for street use, but do have random issues here and there. They do not have factories of their own making their own products. Thus consistency and quality cannot be assured, thus very limited or no warranty.

I recommend EBC which has higher quality-control and has been around for much longer. They have their own plants in U.S. and U.K. and can monitor production much more closely. Comes with better warranty. Not really needed as lifespan is well beyond that.

My '84 Supra went 200k-miles on set of EBC rotors bought way back in early '90. Would've been longer since I sold car with good brakes. I've been racing Porsches for past 30-yrs with variety of brakes: PFC, EBC, AP, Brembo, Willwood, etc. I actually replaced Porsche's factory carbon-ceramic MMC brakes with EBC since they are actually more durable on racetracks like Laguna Seca, Willow Springs, Thunderhill, etc.

My race-bikes uses EBC or Galfer stainless-420 brakes. Goes through set of pads each year and after 5-yrs so far, not a single sign of wear. Can't even feel any grooves at all (even with semi-metallic pads).