Brake Upgrade

[bornwild]

Hey Guys,

It's time to change my discs at the next service (30,000km) and I want to upgrade to something better than stock.

Any suggestions as to what?(I had a look at some OMP and they're not too bad) And where I can get them in Melbourne? Wouldn't want to be buying something that expensive off ebay.

Cheers,
NM

[CNBLU]

contact gslrallysport ;)

[bornwild]

Cheers mate :)

I'll post here what the results are. :)

[MatsHolden]

I went RDA rotors all around with EBC Greenstuff front pads and Lucas rear pads... Performance is great. With Lucas racing fluid to help with fade. Love braking now!

[bornwild]

I went RDA rotors all around with EBC Greenstuff front pads and Lucas rear pads... Performance is great. With Lucas racing fluid to help with fade. Love braking now!

Do you reckon the rotors last you longer than stock ones or shorter?

[Keep'emRunning]

i went DBA slotted all round.. they're not much more expensive than stock rotors and have noticeably more bite.

The only problem was one had to be skimmed after 5000 k's due to a slight warp, but since then they've been great.

Not too sure about the slotted & crossdrilled.. heard that crossdrilling can cause microfractures around the holes if not stress relieved.. any opinions on the dba's?

[EL BURITO]

Do you reckon the rotors last you longer than stock ones or shorter?
WTF have you been doing to only get 30K

I got almost double that

[MatsHolden]

Do you reckon the rotors last you longer than stock ones or shorter?

I got about 65,000 out of the fronts (OEM) and about 75,000 out of the rears (OEM), I can't see why I won't be able to to get roughly the same numbers out of the upgraded discs. However, I wouldn't bother upgrading if the OEM brakes are fine as they are good brakes. And I went with RDA slotted rotors all around.

[bornwild]

Yeahhh I know the german cars have pretty good brakes due to Autobahn stopping etc. Just wanted something better for the same money if it can be had but yeah I'm pretty satisfied with my stopping power at the moment.

I thought I'd need to change my discs as there is a pretty big groove on them??

Oh guys, btw, what do I use to stop the squeeling noise? I know there's some gel you apply behind the discs or something?!

[MatsHolden]

I thought I'd need to change my discs as there is a pretty big groove on them??

Yeah you'll get a groove, but it doesn't mean they're due for replacing. Personally I think they'll have plenty left on them after only 30,000.

[xplosv57]

Oh guys, btw, what do I use to stop the squeeling noise? I know there's some gel you apply behind the discs or something?!

There's brake grease that is applied to the back of the brake pads, the pad rattles on the caliper!!

You can put grease on the back of the brake disc, but that's only so it is easier to remove when they need replacing again!!


Yeah you'll get a groove, but it doesn't mean they're due for replacing. Personally I think they'll have plenty left on them after only 30,000.

Depends how it's been driven, i've seen identical cars use brakes quite differently, one may get under 20,000km, same model car can get 70,000km being driven in different conditions!!!

But do agree, for an Astra, 30k does sound very minimal!!! Is it on the brake pad wear indicator??

[MatsHolden]

Depends how it's been driven, i've seen identical cars use brakes quite differently, one may get under 20,000km, same model car can get 70,000km being driven in different conditions!!!

But do agree, for an Astra, 30k does sound very minimal!!! Is it on the brake pad wear indicator??

True, but i'm just going from how hard I was on the OEM brakes and still got 70,000 out of them. lol Sure the Astra is a heavier car, but 30,000 just sounds very minimal.

[bornwild]

There's brake grease that is applied to the back of the brake pads, the pad rattles on the caliper!!

You can put grease on the back of the brake disc, but that's only so it is easier to remove when they need replacing again!!



Depends how it's been driven, i've seen identical cars use brakes quite differently, one may get under 20,000km, same model car can get 70,000km being driven in different conditions!!!

But do agree, for an Astra, 30k does sound very minimal!!! Is it on the brake pad wear indicator??

Nah none of that, I just thought it was time. My brother changed his discs on his Focus at a similar distance (35000km) so yeah. Alright, that's probably another $600 that'll stay in my pocket.

But when the time does come; RDA, DBA or OMP?

Cheers guys.

ps. ahh yeah that grease is applied on the pads lol not the disc...my bad, should I do it myself or tell Holden to do it at the next service??

[xplosv57]

Nah none of that, I just thought it was time. My brother changed his discs on his Focus at a similar distance (35000km) so yeah. Alright, that's probably another $600 that'll stay in my pocket.

ps. ahh yeah that grease is applied on the pads lol not the disc...my bad, should I do it myself or tell Holden to do it at the next service??

Yeah don't bother replacing your discs unless your pads are due, even then, measure the disc and see if it's at minimum thickness!!!

Do you mean grease the pads yourself, or fit the brakes yourself?? If your getting the brakes done at Holden, they will (or should) grease the pads before fitting, i know we do it with all our cars!!!

Fitting the brakes yourself isn't too bad if your handy on the tools, but if you're not too sure get a pro to do it, don't wanna be second guessing with a safety item like brakes!!!

[bornwild]

Nahh I mean whether I should bother just greasing the pads :)

Doesn't seem like they greased them at all because it's been squeeling from day 1 but only lately has it become really...really noticable.

At the start I thought "ahh new brakes bla bla" but yeah.

What would be the minimum thickness for the discs?

[xplosv57]

Nahh I mean whether I should bother just greasing the pads :)

Doesn't seem like they greased them at all because it's been squeeling from day 1 but only lately has it become really...really noticable.

At the start I thought "ahh new brakes bla bla" but yeah.

What would be the minimum thickness for the discs?

Well if you are handy on the tools, would pay to grease your existing pads if the noise is that irritable, if not, just stick with it till the pads are due for replacement, no point getting Holden to grease your pads, they'll charge you for remove and refit, waste of money!!! (unless your under warranty).

With the minimum thickness, should be stamped on the disc somewhere or maybe check your owners manual or search on the net!!!

[bornwild]

Cheers for that mate :)

I still got around 2yrs left on warranty but I'll probably still do it myself as they'll take a whole freaking day just to do that. They took 2hrs changing my foglight-bulb....