Brake discs.

[AndycruiserguyLomas]

I have decided to overhaul the braking system on my 95 12V. Having done 147k miles with no attention other than front disc skim 10 years ago the rears are thin and scored and the fronts are fair but a bit scored. I have decided 4 new discs are in order but am at a loss as to which way to jump on this one.

EBC £284 Per set
OEM £222
BLUEPRINT £180 All + VAT

The motor factor I use says blueprint and OEM are probably the same, does anyone know? why are EBC dearer, are they better? why?
Grooved discs, are they worth it? who makes them?

Lastly on this one I have always used OEM pads, always been happy, but are there any better pads out there?

I've had this one a long time and its a keeper so I would like to get it right 1st time.

All opinions welcome

Thanks Andy

 

[Ecoman]

I fitted 3G brakes to m ine which are basically machined EBC stock. They are not cheap at £450 a set delivered.

Personally I would go Toyota or EBC for the discs and fit Toyota pads too.

Blueprint are rubbish. I went through 2 sets of discs in 18 months on my Hilux and ended up fitting Toyota branded ones. The first set was Blueprint and the second set was Mintex. The problem was they kept warping or cracking and I'm not heavy on my brakes as I drive like Miss Daisy!

I don't like Mintex pads as nearly half of the set of their pads I have fitted has lost the friction material after about 6-8 months.

 

[karl webster]

I go blue print mate on trucks of my own


Karl

 

[Ecoman]

Sorry Karl I can't agree with you on this one

 

[karl webster]

I noticed your post as i submitted mine bill.

We all have different opinions and this is a good place to gain other peoples good or bad experiences.

Im quite interested what other peoples views are on this one as ive only heard good about anything blueprint.

Alot of people i know buy millners discs and pads and there happy as larry with them.They obvious re new them quite often though.

KArl

 

[Lorin]

Check out Mtec http://www.mtecbrakes.co.uk/ They can supply your discs in drilled, grooved, dimpled or any combination you want.

I have always believed that something that cheap would normally indicate quality issues. However, after a bit of research showing only positive reports I gave them a try about 3 years ago on a fast road/track car in drilled and grooved format. They survived approx 15,000 miles with abrasive race pads including track days and a lot of hard road miles. No cracking or warping despite pads catching fire once and brake fluid boiled several times (now upgraded to full race fluid so shouldn't happen again ).

They have since been fitted to several of my vehicles including the LC80 in grooved format and have done about 5000 miles with no issues and showing only minor wear. Several friends have also run them with no issues on a variety of vehicles including a T4 van that's done over 20,000 miles on a set with plenty of life left.

Given the evidence so far and at the price they are, they're a no brainer in my mind

 

[Rob]

Interesting link Lorin. Need to get some new discs as mine are warped/worn and as I am fitting the intercooler soon I should be getting performance discs. Question about the VW T4, how is that driven? Enthusiastically? Also have you given your discs much abuse like repeated braking from 70mph on short sections of dual carriageways between roundabouts? Which type have you gone for?

 

[Beau]

On my colorado, I have EBC Dimpled and grooved and got a deal on them by contacting them directly. They look nice on the cruiser, and less brake dust builds up on the wheels are the grooves channels most of it out. Good stuff.

I have used Blueprint Pads before and they have been terrible and did not last long at all.

 

[Ben]

ive just been reading an article on brakes in 4wd action magazine.

they said that grooved discs are very good, but...........................

that drilled discs arnt ideal for off road use as the holes fill up with mud.

 

[Rob]

That is what I have heard as well, also drilled disc are known for cracking if used hard. Kind of difficult not to on a 3 ton LC.

 

[Gary Stockton]

Not sure if you can get DBA discs here - think you can. They seem pretty decent.

Manufacturer: Disc Brakes Australia

yep - here (haven't checked all details...) DBA disks

 

[Julian T]

I have DBA (Disc Brakes Australia) on my 80, courtesy of OEC international, for me the brakes feel better than OEM, not Cheap but then we are talking about stopping the car reliably.

(edit)

Gary you beat me to it, your post went up while I was typing this out

 

[Lorin]

Interesting link Lorin. Need to get some new discs as mine are warped/worn and as I am fitting the intercooler soon I should be getting performance discs. Question about the VW T4, how is that driven? Enthusiastically? Also have you given your discs much abuse like repeated braking from 70mph on short sections of dual carriageways between roundabouts? Which type have you gone for?

Hi Rob, yep T4 is driven pretty enthusiastically -for a van. It is lowered and the owner is a fast car enthusiast The discs on my car had fairly substantial abuse including repeated breaking from 70mph as you describe and from much higher speeds on the track - substantial enough to boil standard brake fluid. The discs on my car were drilled and grooved whereas I just got grooved on the cruiser. The discs were replaced on the cruiser as part of an overall brake upgrade to the later post 93 brakes, 100 series pads and braided lines, so I can't really comment on the effect of just the discs. However, the brakes are now capable of locking up all four wheels in the dry with relative ease whereas there was no hope before. They have also stood up to a fair few alpine descents with the cruiser fully loaded with no drop in performance despite noticable heat build up when stopped.

 

[Rob]

Should of mentioned, I was asking about the brakes on your cruiser... Track day cars get completely different type of use than heavy 4x4s, like braking for long periods of time.

 

[Beau]

ive just been reading an article on brakes in 4wd action magazine.

they said that grooved discs are very good, but...........................

that drilled discs arnt ideal for off road use as the holes fill up with mud.

This is what I heard as well, so I got the Dimpled one instead.

 

[Julian Voelcker]

We end up going for either end of the market. For customers on a budget we supply Milner's disks that are generally pretty good for the money and then at the other end we do Nitrac grooved disks - these have the advantage of being cryo treated so they tend to last longer.

In a ranking I would put them in the following order although I've not seen the blueprint ones on for long enough to establish longevity:-

Milner & Blueprint
Toyota
3g
Nitrac

Pound per mile there is very little between the Milner's and genuine Toyota.

 

[frank rabbets]

At 130,000 miles I have original 1995 discs all round and I don't drive like a Vicar. The fronts appear little worn but I have recently had to skim the rear ones on my lathe. Perhaps 1995 was a good year for LC's because everything appears to be good quality.

Frank

 

[silvercruiser]

Check out Mtec http://www.mtecbrakes.co.uk/ They can supply your discs in drilled, grooved, dimpled or any combination you want.

I have always believed that something that cheap would normally indicate quality issues. However, after a bit of research showing only positive reports I gave them a try about 3 years ago on a fast road/track car in drilled and grooved format. They survived approx 15,000 miles with abrasive race pads including track days and a lot of hard road miles. No cracking or warping despite pads catching fire once and brake fluid boiled several times (now upgraded to full race fluid so shouldn't happen again ).

They have since been fitted to several of my vehicles including the LC80 in grooved format and have done about 5000 miles with no issues and showing only minor wear. Several friends have also run them with no issues on a variety of vehicles including a T4 van that's done over 20,000 miles on a set with plenty of life left.

Given the evidence so far and at the price they are, they're a no brainer in my mind

+1 good brakes i went for grooved and dimpled to get away from the cracking issue's.

Joe

 

[Mal Eade]

Hi All

I overhauled my system after boiling the fluid last year in the Pyrenees
I have used Brembo discs with EBC pads but what made a big difference to my stopping power was I change all my flexible lines for stainless steel braided ones. I also use Dot5 plus fluid

First time out with the new bits in place hit the peddle hard and almost ended up sitting on my dashboard..... Well pleased.

Must say the EBC pad do make a mess of the wheels as they do produce a lot of dust.

Speak as you find and I am well please with my system compared to the other and that was using cheaper disks and pads.


Mal