Best aftermarket cross-drilled front rotors/low dust brakepads for 4.8is?

[RedsoX5]

Thanks for any suggestions. By best I mean reasonable cost, good to excellent quality and nice appearance. No junk. Need to replace my front rotors soon and the dust from the OEMs is terrible.

[admranger]

Centric rotors are good in my experience.

Akebono ceramic pads work just fine on my X5. Dust? What dust? Do front and rear at the same time though. Their friction characteristics aren't suited to different pads front to rear. BTDT, didn't like it.

[bcredliner]

The following thread may be helpful to you. http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...uys-use-8.html

I use EBC red stuff with Baar slotted and drilled rotors. Very pleased.

[four.8is]

After more than a year with this setup, I gotta say I really like it. Stoptech rotors and Carbotech pads. Best setup I ever ran. No dust, even after a month of driving there's barely any brake dust on the wheels. (Yes I've gone that long without washing my car).

Very very nice brake modulation, way better than OEM pads which used to lock the wheels way too soon. If I remember well, it took over 10 hard stops from 60-20 before I could begin to smell the brakes.

Couple months ago I put them to test without any intention of doing so.
Idiot cop decided to cross all 4 lanes like a wild animal would-straight across...I was going 65 miles/hr. Honestly I have no idea how the car stopped so soon but it did. There's more than brakes involved in all that. But you get the point...bottom line is , these pads are not gonna give you a soft pedal when you need a hard one.

Here's the thread I posted more than a year ago:

http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...iew-4-8is.html

[X53Jay4.8is]

Originally Posted by four.8is

After more than a year with this setup, I gotta say I really like it. Stoptech rotors and Carbotech pads. Best setup I ever ran. No dust, even after a month of driving there's barely any brake dust on the wheels. (Yes I've gone that long without washing my car).

Very very nice brake modulation, way better than OEM pads which used to lock the wheels way too soon. If I remember well, it took over 10 hard stops from 60-20 before I could begin to smell the brakes.

Couple months ago I put them to test without any intention of doing so.
Idiot cop decided to cross all 4 lanes like a wild animal would-straight across...I was going 65 miles/hr. Honestly I have no idea how the car stopped so soon but it did. There's more than brakes involved in all that. But you get the point...bottom line is , these pads are not gonna give you a soft pedal when you need a hard one.

Here's the thread I posted more than a year ago:

http://www.xoutpost.com/bmw-sav-foru...iew-4-8is.html

I Too am amazed by the carbotech pads. Bar none the best I've come across. I used my first set on my E39 M5 and then on the X and have just been amazed. They are not cheap but they definitely deliver and best of all no dust again.

[Ricky Bobby]

^Carbotech's looks pretty good, I just re-read Stephen's review, the price tag is up there (about $320 for 4.4/3.0 pads) but if they don't lock up as quick as the OE pads but dust almost to zero and whisper quiet, they look to be worth it!

[bcredliner]

As long as you can slam on the brakes and ABS engages and stays engaged, pad choice is not going to make a significant difference in stopping distance. Pedal pressure needed to stop within a particular distance can vary but that should not be a factor in a panic stop.

In track conditions or repeated stops, particularly from 'high speeds', there can be brake fade to the point that the ABS system will not engage. However, the correction to brake fade is largely solved with bigger pads, rotors that dissipate more heat and calipers that deliver longer sustained clamping power.

Over time we adjust to how much pedal pressure it takes to stop within a particular distance. I think the only sure benefit of pad choice is how much brake dust they will produce. Personally, I think pads that grab like OE pads are hardest to adjust to and are annoying to both me and any passengers. However, I would consider cold bite more if I lived in a very cold climate.

[SlickGT1]

I am running Axis deluxe, almost no dust. As a matter of fact, my rears are still OE, and the dust difference is insane. The rears are black, while the fronts are clean.

I also believe cross drilled rotors is bs, especially a road vehicle. OE rotors all the way.

[edogg]

Curious why you want drilled rotors...unless you're racing around a track, you won't notice a performance difference.

I've been happy with my Zimmermann rotors and Akebono pads.

[bcredliner]

Slotted and/or drilled rotors are intended to expel the gases and reduce heat buildup. Should be considered for track applications. For street use there is the racier look and as long as the reduction in the surface area does not result in the ABS system from engaging when it should I think they are a reasonable consideration.

If the goal is to reduce stopping distance, wider tires and/or softer tire compounds can reduce the stopping distance to the point that the ABS system will not engage. At the point, some aftermarket pads or a bigger brake 'kit' to bring the ABS system back in play will further reduce stopping distance.