As most of you know the 2008 Grand Caravan brakes absolutely suck...Im about to put a 3rd--technically the 4th set of front brakes, (I had a set of pads warrentied by the aftermarket company).. It is my guess that these brakes are not enough to handle the vehicles. on top of which i have a Mobility Braun Wheel Chair van. With the dropped floor and ramp and all that EXTRA weight....
MY first set of pads was at 17500 miles and then a few months later i had gotten those pads warrentied and replaced the rotors, since then i have replaced the pads again and turned the rotors. I get a tremendous amount of brake squeal and brake pulsation, i know that some will say its the aftermarket parts, except that i got all that with the original OEM brakes that came on the vehicle new...
So im looking to see if someone has done a performance brake upgrade, maybe bigger rotors, slotted or drilled, and maybe better pads...Please let me know what you know or have done, thanks
Frustrated in Michigan...

 

Try to find slotted and dimpled rotors for it!!! Try ebay the got good sets that a lot of guys here in DF are using and they happy with the results..

Try this and good luck!!!

http://tinyurl.com/33c6dp7

 

So i emailed EBC brakes and explained how crappy these brakes are on our 2008-09 Grand Caravans & T&C....they came back with this.

Hello Mike,

My name is Chris Noah with EBC Brakes. We do offer the highest quality
rotors and pads available on the market ( except ceramic rotors ).

You may be experiencing a vehicle geometry problem with your hubs if you are
replacing rotors and you get a vibration 2,000 miles after each install.

Please read this bit on rotor vibration I have pulled from our site.....


http://www.ebcbrakes.com/automotive/solve_brake_vibration.shtml


I would recommend you using our Yellowstuff high friction pads and USR "
sport slotted rotors ".


Here are your part numbers as follows...

Front pad part number DP41798R
Rear pad part number DP41804R

Front rotor part number USR7442
Rear rotor part number USR7443


I hope this helps Mike!


Regards,
Chris Noah.....

So I ordered the the front rotors and pads. i will let you know when they are installed...

 

New owner of an 08 sxt. Appears as if the dealer went thru the brakes as there is no sign of abnormal wear and tear with 30k on the clock. Consider me subscribed to the thread, always looking for ways to eliminate potential (likely) weak links. Joe

 

Another threadjack courtesy of the engineer in me. Looked up some specs between the earlier model years and the 08-10. Media.chrysler.com ( http://www.media.chrysler.com/dcxms/...ravanspecs.pdf , http://www.media.chrysler.com/dcxms/...ifications.pdf , http://www.media.chrysler.com/dcxms/...ifications.pdf) lists the weight difference between the loaded SXT's to be about 600lbs, quite substantial in my mind. Heres the kicker... total swept area or brake pad contact for front rotors is 228.5 sq in vs 55 sq in, latter being the newer model. Newer vans are also sporting 11.9" rotors vs 11.1". Doesn't make much sense to me to significantly decrease pad contact even if the rotor diameter were increased. A google search for 11.9 dodge rotor brought back a multitude of vehicles that chrysler has equipped with similar setups, certain sport enthusist vehicles (think SRT) included. Dodge nitro with 11.9 fronts is listed at 190.8 sq in pad contact with a 2.6 caliper piston, same as our vans.

While looking up specs on the 300c I came accross some info concerning pad brake in (http://www.300cforums.com/forums/bra...hats-deal.html and http://www.zeckhausen.com/bedding_in_brakes.htm ) . Due to the like new appearance of the rotors on our new (to us) minivan, I took the van out and performed the procedure. I did encounter brake fade, even to the point the ESC kicked off and wouldn't reset until restarted. Brake fade was encountered within the 4th time doing a quick 60-10 stop, a bit too soon for my liking. Such a small area of brake pad contact could easily lead to the pads wearing very quickly due to heat degradation. A high quality heat resistant pad (ceramic or sport pads such as the EBC yellows) should negate this effect, though not completely solve it. I will continue my research this saturday when I get the van switched over to synthetic motor oil; should have enough time to pull a wheel off and get a good look at the pads, rotors, caliper and caliper mounts. Finding a way to get more pad contact and possibly more squeeze (bigger caliper piston, more pistons) or upgrading to serious high performance components ( EBC ) will likely be the best fix. Not skimping during a brake job should also help. For those not aware, there is a difference between a $30 rotor and a $70 rotor. When safety is on the line, don't be cheap. More on this later. Joe

 

Well a very good friend has a 2008 Touring that has had two differant sets of pads on the rear. The Dealer replaced the factory rear pads with some type of cheap brake pad that has a noise that will not go away. So today I installed a new Carquest set of rear rotors and a new set of AKEBONO rear pads.Man what a differance in the braking dept. These pads list for about 60.00 compared to the OEM pads for about 130.00.
When the pads on my 2006 go out it will be a set of AKEBONO's going on it.
Akenono Brake
Akenono Brake

 

Spent some time on autozone.com cross referencing part numbers to vehicles I had determined were similar to the van (rotor size). Only match thus far is the dodge journey, which according to numerous sites and a lawsuit, is also plagued with brake problems. Exact same pads and rotors it seems. I have to take back my argument concerning the swept area as well, seems chrysler may have made a mistake ( http://www.media.chrysler.com/dcxms/...DG_Journey.pdf )Starting to believe that the chrysler parts are to blame, possible they found a supplier whose [junk] materials were cheap enough to justify using them. If that be the case, replacing the components with top quality (not top price! thanks rocketvette ) components should be of some value. Still can't wait to hear about mestude's setup... hope we get some pics too! Joe

 

How are those pads as far as brake dust is concerned? I have an 07 GC that is also a Braun Companionvan that had a wheelchair ramp and lowered floor. It is an SXT model. After about 100 miles (less if raining) the wheels are covered in brake dust. They stop just fine and don't pulsate, but I get so tired of having to constantly clean the wheels so that the brake dust doesn't eat into the wheel finish. My van only has 10K miles on it because it usually only gets driven when my handicapped son goes somewhere.
I would appreciate your feedback on the pads you got.
Thanks and sorry to hijack your thread mestude

 

I would personally go with EBC or Wagner's buy the mid or high grade with ceramic pads. they dont have to be slotted but it would cool better. The EBC and wagners are thicker then OEM rotors and pads.