Best Place to Buy Brakes

[Cephas]

I'm getting the car ready for my first track day and want to know - where do you all go to get your brake pads/rotors?

I'm going to be picking up the PFC01 or PFC08's and Brembo blanks.

Also, do you guys who run on the track/street keep a dedicated set of rotors for the track as well?

[jlevie]

I get my PFC pads from Bimmerworld and my rotors from the cheapest place I can find. While you can get away with using one set of rotors, the differing pad compounds can result in poorer performance for a while after a pad swap. The deposits of the rotors from the differing pads may not be compatible and until the old is scrubbed off and a new layer put down performance may suffer.

[TimKninja]

Partsgeek and tire rack.

[Cephas]

Thanks guys. Had my first track event a week ago and LOVED it. Going back on the 17th, but this time I'll have the pfc08's and new blanks.

[markseven]

Why Brembo rotors? Like jlevie wrote, cheap rotors work! I was using the OP Parts rotors from BMA.

[Wanganstyle]

because better quality metal does matter? the cheap-o ones will trend to shatter if ran with really aggressive track pads. China steel does come in many grades

[markseven]

because better quality metal does matter? the cheap-o ones will trend to shatter if ran with really aggressive track pads. China steel does come in many grades

Not true with the OP Parts units.

For HPDEs on stock brakes, you are wasting your money on expensive rotors, IMO.

[nrubenstein]

The number one rule is to avoid drilled/slotted rotors. They add cost and increase the chance of failure. Cheap rotors are fine, and since the "Brembos" are about as cheap as anything else, why not?

If you are using one set of rotors, change pads at home. Scrubbing the rotors before and after the track weekend with cold track pads will clean off most/all of the deposits.

[markseven]

The number one rule is to avoid drilled/slotted rotors. They add cost and increase the chance of failure. Cheap rotors are fine, and since the "Brembos" are about as cheap as anything else, why not?

If you are using one set of rotors, change pads at home. Scrubbing the rotors before and after the track weekend with cold track pads will clean off most/all of the deposits.

IIRC OPs are half the price of Brembos.

[Cephas]

Hmmm, just ordered the brembos. The OP brand is really freaking cheap from bma parts, but there has to be a reason for that, right?

Well, maybe I'll pick up a set of the OP brand for street use and keep the brembos for use with my pfc08's.

I just don't want to be spending money unnecessarily. There are plenty of other things I could use the $90 difference between the OP and Brembo rotors for on this car!

[markseven]

Hmmm, just ordered the brembos. The OP brand is really freaking cheap from bma parts, but there has to be a reason for that, right?

Well, maybe I'll pick up a set of the OP brand for street use and keep the brembos for use with my pfc08's.

I just don't want to be spending money unnecessarily. There are plenty of other things I could use the $90 difference between the OP and Brembo rotors for on this car!

I used to get mine from BMA. I used them for a bunch of DE weekends.

[Wanganstyle]

I have local friends shattering cheaper brand rotors with high end pads.

Everyone likes to save money yes, but really really cheap rotors may be just that.

Different grades of steel come out of china; some cheap ones def. may be better than other cheap ones.

Stock calipers are quite good and can take extremely aggressive pads if in perfect shape. Bmw has damn good stock brakes compared to other makes;

[10Toes]

I have local friends shattering cheaper brand rotors with high end pads.

Everyone likes to save money yes, but really really cheap rotors may be just that.

Different grades of steel come out of china; some cheap ones def. may be better than other cheap ones.

Stock calipers are quite good and can take extremely aggressive pads if in perfect shape. Bmw has damn good stock brakes compared to other makes;

What kind of car?

All the stock type rotors will crack on an E30 with race pads, you just have to watch them and replace the rotors when the cracks start to get too big.

[seatown88]

No reason to over pay for Brembo rotors. They are just as likely to crack as OP Parts rotors, which are the rotors of choice for my PRO3 car. These rotors have seen sustained high temperatures with maximums of over 1300F. No issues at all with them.

[James Crivellone]

I'm running Centric Cryo treated rotors on the Pro3 car with Hawk DTC-60 pads with no issues.

They still crack, but not nearly as bad as my Brembo's did.