I'm over due for brakes on my car. Need to get new pads and rotors. As expensive as the OEM stuff is, I'm leaning toward aftermarket. I'd like to do a mild upgrade but still have something suitable for the street. I autocross the car a few times a year nothing real competitive but its still mainily a street car and my winter car as well. Found lots of info on the sort of pad im looking for, I'm going with the Hawk HPS. Looks like its a decent upgrade but good for what I want.

Question on rotors. Not seeing a whole lot of info on a mild rotor upgrade. Looks like the cheapest quality rotor is the Centric stuff through tire rack. Are these better/same/worse compared to the OEM stuff. Looks like the next upgrade to this would be the racing brake. Are these worth the extra money compared to the centric or OEM. Any advice other sugestions would be appreciated.

Thanks

 

From my experience rotors aren't as important as a good brake pad. Centric makes a lot of OEM replacement parts and are very trustworthy. Unless you require upgraded rotors specifically for the track, even the cheapest rotors + decent pads are okay.

For what its worth, Ive used cheapo rotors and Hawk HP+ for the track in most of my vehicles and they all held up fine.

 

I used Racingbrake.com rotors from a forum vendor.

Nice looking slotted rotors with coated curved vanes.
MAZDA : RX8 - RacingBrake.com

I chose Hawk Ceramic pads for street use and stainless lines for pedal feel...
Add synthetic DOT 4, speed bleeders and you have an upgrade from stock for less $$ than stock replacement.

 

Ive had very good luck with Centric rotors in the past on many cars. The painted "top hats" and cooling fins really help with rust prevention. Better than OE in my opinion.