Replacing rotors

[turbotim2]

Try to avoid Brembo rotors if you can, they're cheap and made in China. Mine warped after about three months use with no hard braking or panic stops.

[polskamafia mjl]

Really?! I was under the impression that Brembo was a high class company. The s60R came w/ brembo brakes and I know Porshe and a few other high end cars use Brembo. Just finished putting on the brakes. Took me a while to figure out how to get the calipers off the rotors.
My pads were flush w/ the rotor so I had to pull the inboard side into the rotor to push the piston in until there was enough room for the pads/calipers to slide off the rotors.
Thanks for all the advice guys. Only took about 2 hours to do everything.

[Ozark Lee]

Brembo was, and still is, one of the leading brake companies in the world. Most of the Formula 1 cars run Brembo brakes to this day.

Sadly they have apparently decided to outsource all of the over the counter consumer products to China and the quality has suffered mightily. I would rather bolt on a set of Raybestos rotors than the new Brembos.

...Lee

[polskamafia mjl]

Speaking of rotors, I was going to ask for 4 new high performance rotors for christmas, haha. I was actually wondering what brands you guys suggest. I'm thinking slotted...not drilled...any opinions?

[Ozark Lee]

Zimmerman continues to have a good reputation.

...Lee

[polskamafia mjl]

What kind of lubricant/cleaner should be used on brake calipers to clean them off and allow the piston to slide easier?

[Ozark Lee]

For brake cleaner I just use whatever brake cleaner is the cheapest. For the grease on the pins I use Sil Glyde. The Sil Glyde is a water resistant and heat resistant grease. If you can't find any just use plain old axle grease - it is better than nothing.

...Lee

[polskamafia mjl]

By pins, do you mean the pins on the rear brakes? Also, is there a special tool to separate or open up the calipers a bit when you're trying to slide them off the rotors?

[JDS60R]

Instructions included. Most are able to get the job done without the special tools.

[Ozark Lee]

By pins, do you mean the pins on the rear brakes? Also, is there a special tool to separate or open up the calipers a bit when you're trying to slide them off the rotors?

The pins I was referring to are on the fronts. They are actually the large allen head bolts that hold the caliper on but the caliper moves back and forth on those bolts.

When I do a brake job I just use a large screwdriver to compress the piston a bit on the fronts so that the caliper will come off. I then use a caliper compressor tool that you can pick up ant any auto parts store for under $10.00 to compress the front caliper back down.

On the rears that tool won't work so I use the screwdriver to press the pistons all the way down before I remove the caliper. The pins that hold in the pads don't need to be greased at all. If you are replacing the rotors a bit of grease along the mating surface between the caliper and the mount can keep them from binding. On the rears if you aren't replacing the rotors all you need to do is grease the back of the pads and shims, drop the new pads in, and tap the pins back in around the anti rattle clip.

...Lee