Just kidding...

But I am down to 3mm on the fronts on my '11 GC and I'm looking to replace the rotors and pads.

Help a fella out... I want really great non-OEM goods for my Soccer Brick because when it's not a kid hauler I drive a lot... I mean a lot!! Between 800-1000 freeway miles weekly.

Gimme some recommendations please, I see names like EBC and Raybestos, AC Delco and Akebono and I don't have a clue what to pick...

Name a good rotor set and some good ceramic pads please... Thanks to all!!

 

I'm running OEM semi-metallic pads and rotors on the front of my GC and my only complaint is they are loud. The pads have been on there 3 years and still have quite a bit of pad material left on them. I run Raybestos ceramic pads and rotors on the rear and have no complaint about stopping power, dust, or wear, but the rotor hats look really ugly from rust. Not sure if rotor hat appearance is a consideration at all for you.

I run Centric ceramic pads and rotors on my Honda and have no problem with them at all. They stop great, don't dust much, and the rotor hats haven't rusted at all. The nice thing about Centric is that their pads often come with the pad hardware, which is usually sold separately and often ignored.

I don't recommend putting the cheap parts store brand pads on the GC. I slapped some parts store brand organic pads on the rear once and they were gone within a year. Someone else on here said he had similar experience with ceramic pads from the parts store brand.

I'm sure Lscman will be around to tell you to make sure to clean and lube the slide pins and brake hardware (which I agree with 100% btw).

 

LSCMAN is the MAN!

 

You can't go by brand name alone because every manufacturer makes several different grades. That's true for both rotors and pads. "Service Grade" is considered an economy product. Professional grade is top of the line.

As for pads, most offer economy, OEM, and premium grades. Best bet is to visit the manufacturer's site and read up on the differences between the grades.

Bendix, Raybestos, Wagner, EBC, Akenobo are all good brands.

It's a myth that ceramics are "better" than semi metallics. They just have different features. They create less dust, but wear faster. And, there's no industry standard on what qualifies as ceramic. So no two brands are the same.

Semi mets offer the best stopping power but are noisy and very hard on rotors.

 

Go to www.rockauto.com and you'll see that they list pads and rotors just as RickMN said. Go with the grade that suits you best.

 

For my 2005 SXT, I will get these: http://www.ebay.com/itm/350578780631...84.m1423.l2649

Look them up for your minivan!

 

Just say no to ceramic pads. They are totally useless for anything involving serve duty, performance or heavy duty use. The van weighs over 2 tons, so it needs some durable pads that can take lots of heat. The Ceramics can't do that. No serious performance car or truck on the planet has ceramics.

Just go to Autozone and buy their Duralast semi-metallic pads with lifetime warranty and a set of their rotors. No need to buy pads ever again.

PS: replace all hardware, pins and rubber parts. This costs more than pads, but it will ensure they don't fail in 10K mi. The GC brake hardware will rust, stick and fail repeatedly unless the floating caliper mechanism and springs are properly lubricated.

 

Thanks to all of you, I'm taking in all of your input and I'm doin' my homework...

LSCMan thank you for the tip on Cera vs. Semi pads and everyone please keep inputting, I love a good opinion!

I'll try to do a pic series when I do the work and I'll be sure to post my experiences here.

 

For brake pads, I'm doing good with EBC greenstuff on my 1999 Honda Civic.

http://ebcbrakes.com/products/brake-pads/
http://ebcbrakes.com/product/greenstuff-brake-pads/