[General]: 02 GCS - Performance Rotor & Pad Report
#1
02-14-2014, 08:11 PM
02 GCS - Performance Rotor & Pad Report
2002 Grand Caravan Sport. Pictures will be at the bottom of this post.
This van is a surveillance vehicle and sees aggressive driving duty. The brakes get worked very hard. Very.
For most drivers the below report does not apply. A good quality rotor and pad set is all you need. We have been through the mill with some horrible configurations that failed miserably. This was our last attempt and we are really happy.
If you find you are constantly cooking rotors (Some call it warping but most of the time its material transfer onto the rotor from the pad giving you pedal feedback) and wearing out pads prematurely and getting less than desired braking at times maybe the below will help.
Before continuing, there are some respected & experienced members here that warn against drilled rotors cracking at the holes. If I had done better research I may have went without drilled, but it seems I am lucky. But our next set will be non-drilled to be safe. As the pic below shows they are holding up well.
On 12/15/2012 @ 125,245 miles we installed a set of Stop Tech Drilled rotors with the Cryo treatment option.
At the same time we we went with Raybestos Advanced Technology Pads. They are semi-metallic, and dust the wheels, but break very well and are hard to make fade. For this I do not mind washing her often as needed. We also flushed the fluid and went with Valvoline Synthetic DOT3-4 Brake Fluid.
We also perform a burnishing process that consists of:
• 8 moderate brake applications from 40 to 10 mph at approximately ¼-mile intervals.
• 8 somewhat harder brake applications from 60 to 10 mph at approximately ½-mile intervals.
• Drive 1.5 miles
• * 5 hard (but less than ABS) applications from 80 to 20 mph at 3/4-mile intervals. Drive at least two miles after last application.
• Allow brakes to cool at least 15 minutes either by parking the vehicle or continuing to drive at moderate speeds with minimal brake applications.
Today, 2/14/2014 @ 144,110 miles we put on new pads and closely inspected the rotors for cracking at the holes. The look very good. I have seen images of spider cracking at drilled rotor holes and perhaps StopTech has a quality formula going on these days.
So, for us to get 14 months out of a set of pads, and 18,855 miles and not need new rotors or rotor turning, and to really love the braking performance, we are very happy.
There are times we really need to bring the speed down from highway speeds very quickly and repetitively and they really resist fading well. I have been very pleasantly surprised how much abuse these brakes can take and how well they perform.
I can only imagine under normal driving, along with improved breaking, this setup would go a much longer term.
Thanks
This van is a surveillance vehicle and sees aggressive driving duty. The brakes get worked very hard. Very.
For most drivers the below report does not apply. A good quality rotor and pad set is all you need. We have been through the mill with some horrible configurations that failed miserably. This was our last attempt and we are really happy.
If you find you are constantly cooking rotors (Some call it warping but most of the time its material transfer onto the rotor from the pad giving you pedal feedback) and wearing out pads prematurely and getting less than desired braking at times maybe the below will help.
Before continuing, there are some respected & experienced members here that warn against drilled rotors cracking at the holes. If I had done better research I may have went without drilled, but it seems I am lucky. But our next set will be non-drilled to be safe. As the pic below shows they are holding up well.
On 12/15/2012 @ 125,245 miles we installed a set of Stop Tech Drilled rotors with the Cryo treatment option.
At the same time we we went with Raybestos Advanced Technology Pads. They are semi-metallic, and dust the wheels, but break very well and are hard to make fade. For this I do not mind washing her often as needed. We also flushed the fluid and went with Valvoline Synthetic DOT3-4 Brake Fluid.
We also perform a burnishing process that consists of:
• 8 moderate brake applications from 40 to 10 mph at approximately ¼-mile intervals.
• 8 somewhat harder brake applications from 60 to 10 mph at approximately ½-mile intervals.
• Drive 1.5 miles
• * 5 hard (but less than ABS) applications from 80 to 20 mph at 3/4-mile intervals. Drive at least two miles after last application.
• Allow brakes to cool at least 15 minutes either by parking the vehicle or continuing to drive at moderate speeds with minimal brake applications.
Today, 2/14/2014 @ 144,110 miles we put on new pads and closely inspected the rotors for cracking at the holes. The look very good. I have seen images of spider cracking at drilled rotor holes and perhaps StopTech has a quality formula going on these days.
So, for us to get 14 months out of a set of pads, and 18,855 miles and not need new rotors or rotor turning, and to really love the braking performance, we are very happy.
There are times we really need to bring the speed down from highway speeds very quickly and repetitively and they really resist fading well. I have been very pleasantly surprised how much abuse these brakes can take and how well they perform.
I can only imagine under normal driving, along with improved breaking, this setup would go a much longer term.
Thanks