[Blazin72]

The front rotors on my truck are no longer true and are just above the minimum thickness. I am going to install new pads and rotors and wouldn't mind a little bit of an upgrade. The truck has 4 wheel discs and I almost never pull more than 5000 lbs on a trailer, well under the 10,000 lb max trailer weight rating. Even so, is it worth it to go with slotted rotors? Is there a good brake pad that will improve braking over the OE pads?

[curtis73]

I personally suggest against slotted or drilled rotors for the street unless its a light sports car that you drive really hard on the street. But in general, if you drive a car hard enough on the street to really see the benefit of drilled or slotted rotors, you have probably already been to jail for it

Its just not worth the price and trouble. Their big benefit is that they allow outgassing to exit the friction surface thereby increasing the contact between the pads and rotors. In 90% of driving (including towing) you won't notice the benefit. Instead, you want the largest possible continuous piece of iron to wick heat, prevent stress fractures, and be able to contain the most heat without having problems. I have made the mistake a few times of putting drilled or slotted rotors on a street car and was terribly disappointed. It never showed up as better braking. If I was constantly doing threshold braking at every apex of a 13-turn road track, it would be different, but the added noise and reduced ability to re-machine the rotors bugged me.

Put it this way... slotted or drilled rotors are an upgrade to light high performance street racers, but you never hear of someone using them as an HD upgrade to their tow vehicle. On a street vehicle you won't notice the difference in braking performance, but you might notice the extra noise, the reduced life due to not being able to machine them as easily, and the extra cost.

[ernkazern]

You might look into ceramic pads. I know they're a better pad for a street car or light truck. I'm not sure about your application though. Always use a quality name brand like Raybestos or Wagner. They'll last longer and give you better performance. There used to be a code on the side of a brake pad that would tell you their cold and hot coefficient of friction rating. I don't know if they still use that or not. Maybe someone else can chime in with more info about the ratings system. D3EA certified brake pads are high quality pads. The high line Raybestos, NAPA, and AC Delco pads pass the D3EA test.

[Blazin72]

Thanks for the information guys. How about three piston calipers? They're out of my price range and my current calipers do not need replacement but there will be a time to replace them too. Would they be a worthwhile upgrade when that time comes?