brake time!

[etlsport]

Ive been feeling my brakes going downhill for awhile now, and was thinkin maybe it was because i had been driving my moms accord for about a week and hadnt gotten used to driving the vx again (that accord i think has brake issues... it lurches to a stop if you so much as look at the brake pedal too hard)... but my g/f drove the vx and confirmed.. my brakes suck :( so time to do some maintenance

I plan on getting new rotors, stainless steel lines and bleeding the system starting with the master cylinder and then working my way around after the new lines are installed.. so a couple questions....

is it okay to replace my rotors and not the pads? i havent looked yet, but im pretty sure my pads are fine

ive heard drilled rotors are more prone to cracking and dont offer a whole lot of extra performance on the vx.. comments?

are slotted rotors worth the extra few bucks?

ill probably be going with R1 concepts unless someone can talk me out of it...

wheres the best place to get stainless steel lines, ive seen them from indy 4x and heard about them from darlington... ive yet to ever even be able to see darlington's website though...

any pointers on how to get everything lined back up correctly when reassembling with new rotors and lines?

[Tone]

Drilled and slotted are ok on the VX if heavy duty. Take a look at SP Performance rotors that are made in USA. I can probably save you a few $$ if you want to get them from me. I'd certainly replace the pads (cheap in relation) and I'd be installing braided stainless lines before or at the same time as you'll see the most improvement IMHO.

[Chopper]

I've had real good luck with the "cryo'' frozen rotors. May be overkill on a purely street machine, but they've proven themselves to me in the M coupe (80% track day car 20% blast around at 6:30 sunday morning in the woods car) When the time comes...I'll probably put them on the VX. With brakes and horsepower, a bit too much is always better than, a bit too little.

[Kenny]

My brakes were mushy in general and a bit hairy when going down a steep rock - I really had to mash it to the floor to stop or at least get a slow roll going down...

I was a bit fortunate to do my various brake upgrades in stages due to the way life works. If I had my way it would have been all at the same time....

Since I did it stages I can say where the big improvements came (spoiler:front discs).

First thing I did was stainless brake lines from Ind. 4X. Braking felt a bit more stiff after, but I still had to mash into the floor to stop fully. It drove me nuts when I was reaching into the back and took the pressure off the brake the tiniest bit, I would creep forward almost into the car ahead...


I was almost about to install a new booster, it was in my cargo area for about 1 hour, then I drove Ldub's VX and found the braking quite similar so I passed on that fun piece of work, and gave to booster back to Ldub...

Then I replaced my rear pads, these were down to the point of squealing! The rusty rotor was chewing these up:

http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/500/Rear_rotor_BAD.jpg


(front were good, 80% still). Braking got a bit better in the pedal feel with more meat on the new pads.


Then I replaced my rear rotors. Again, a bit more in pedal feel. I was still creeping down steep hills at Moab.


Then finally when my ship came in (literally - brake stuff got a bit lost for while by mail) I was able to put the front discs on with new EBC pads all around. THEN I noticed the difference in the pedal, I now only have to go about 50% into the pedal to stop instead of 90%, and I'm sure I'll have no problem stopping on a steep incline. I attribute it to the new front discs being much thicker than the old ones and maybe the extra bit of meat on the new front pads (the ones I replaced were about 80%) ... It sounds a bit goofy since it's all fluid pressure, but maybe it likes a few teaspoons less of fluid to push... I can't think of anything else.

I've bled my brakes multiple times over the years thinking that I must have air in em' with no change. Any my last bleed with the new rotors was quite basic compared to what I've done in the past.

I now have SP Performance drilled and slotted with EBC brake pads (6000 series) all from Tone. Worth every penny, I think.
http://www.vehicross.info/gallery/data/3182/sp_performance_front.jpg

When selecting discs and rotors, know that you may have options on finishing (I didn't know myself at the time). I have just a basic coating that wears off after a while (note the dull grey finish) I removed it and painted in the areas where the pads don't rub. The other option is to go nickel plating or some other plating -more $$. But might be worth it for added life around the edges and rotor drum...

As for brake lines, don't go overboard trying to get the style with the plastic coating, after a few years it may just crumble off - like some of ours did. Look for DOT approval and try not to skimp and go cheap on no-names. Get them from the 4x4 places discussed, they're cut to suit your VX and have proper connections.

As for pads, go stock with Merlin (low low low dust)- not much more $ than the EBC pads anyways. I'm not into the EBC pads enough yet to know if they are dust prone - they are sticky however.


Good Luck.

My $0.02.

[Dumke]

OK sorry maybe I am lost. What performace wize to steel brake lines add besides over all wear and tear protection and looks? I figure what better place to to ask then semi jacking a break thread sorry etl.

[etlsport]

no prob dumke.. rubber brake lines can expand slightly under lots of pressure, stainless lines do not, so all of your hydraulic power goes to your brakes and not expanding the rubber lines...

[etlsport]

after seeing kenny's rotors im thinking mine are in OK condition lol... but i did order a brake line kit from indy4x, should be here last this week or early next, then ill go ahead and bleed the whole system and hopefully that'll fix a majority of my trouble.. my vx is actin all sorts of screwey lately, TOD, brakes and driveline :rolleyes: hopefully its nothing some air pressure, a good brake bleeding and chassis lube wont fix