Been awhile since my last post but after 53000 miles its time for breaks on my '04QC

Are ceramic pads ok to use with factory rotors, or must I change rotors if I choose ceramics.?

I use the truck as a daily driver, most of it is highway driving.

Are ceramics overkill for my need? Should I just stick with semi-metallics?

After checking through search, these questions still linger.

 

put ceramic pads on my 02 quad i traded off.stock rotors just had them turned. 98% dust free stop great. only complant-when backing up if i applied light touch to the pedal they would sometimes squeal.

 

DO NOT use ceramic's on a truck. They're great for 2,500-4,000 pound passenger cars, but do not offer good performance or life on a 5,000+ pound truck. They do not dissipate heat as well, and will warp your rotors. And they will absoutely coat your wheels in black dust. When ceramics first came out, we were putting them on everything. No problems with cars, but trucks and SUV's were coming back in short order with noise, absurd amounts of dust, pulsations and pads worn out in 10-15k miles.

Use semi-met's or better, severe duty's. I recommend Napa's premium line.

 

I have a buddy with a 99 ram 2500 diesel and he does a lot of towing. He runs ceramics and swears by them... I had put ceramics on my 05 neon and loved not having the brake dust. So its all a matter of opinion on what to run... Kind of like the question "What oil should I run"

 

On my last truck, ceramics were absolute JUNK. I will never run them on a ruck again.

Go with NAPA premium

 

I just put a set on my truck on factory rotors, first there is more dust thatn factory pads, next they squeal like a bitch and yes my rotors have a slight pulsation with only 5000km on them. Never again will i run them.

 

For starters, NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER NEVER put quality brakes on a crappy OEM rotors. The rotors themselves are junk, and are more likely to warp and crack simply because your using a better quality brake pad. If you are going to make the change to any brake pad from the OEM, you should seriously replace the rotors as well.

And before someone decides to argue with me.....check any section on this forum, and you'll find people complaining or having major issues with their OEM brakes and rotors. Some people even having their brakes replaced at 25,000 miles or less on normal driving.....

You CAN run ceramics on a truck. That being said, something MOST people forget to do is go thru a break-in process on the new brakes & rotors. You have to get them worn in before you go doing any normal driving. This is just like a break-in period for a new motor or transmission or a new truck.

 

Generally speaking, ceramic pads have less stopping power (less friction) butkeep your wheels cleanerbecause the ceramic dust doesn't stick to metal.If you want performance, best best is a metallic/semi metallic compound. I rec a Hawk or EBC product and use a brake dust repellent on your wheels (Michelin and Advance Auto both carry a wheel cleaner that also repels metallic brake dust). But to answer your question, sure, you can use ceramic pads on OEM rotors. Ceramic is easier on the rotors than OEM pads. Just remember to deglaze the rotors or your pads will bed in poorly and wear faster.

 

Thanks for the all the info.

 

I would go with what either
Hawk or Performance Friction
companies recommend.

The Dodge factory rotors certainly have had problems
with what the brake engineers call
TMV or thickness of material variation
which causes brake vibration when the wear on the rotor is uneven.

The common slang term is
"Warped Rotors"
but the rotor does not acutally warp