Hi RX-ers!

Since my rotors warped and got my brake pads used to the metall at 10k miles I just had them replaced.

I got free replacement of the rotors and the dealer offered to drill tham as they did with their race cars. Since those cars ran through the season without a problem I accepted this option.

The brakes needed some break in to be balanced and have the best possible bite but now they work and look just amazing.

I'm a bit hard on the car and on the brakes so I look forvard how this setup performs over a longer period of time however I expect increased pad wear.

Tamas

p.s. the rotors are now 2lbs lighter per side

 

I didn't even know you could do this?
Doesn't it affect the structural integrity of the standard rotor?

BTW, both your brakes and your car look great.

 

Looks NEATO!!! My hero Gord has discussed this before. I accepted his advice and suggest others to the same.....

https://www.rx8club.com/showthread.p...drilled+rotors

 

They look awsome!

For those that are thinking RICE, so what. They look good, was performed on the dealer so I am assuming NO waranty problems. Also if cast drilled and sloted rotors crack anyway, then what the hell, If he likes them HORAY.

I like them, but here in Puerto Rico I am lamost shure that dealers will laugh at only asking them if they would do such modification (if they even understand what you are talking about) and most certainly void my warranty.

 

I have a really good brake feel to this new setup however not yet tested on the track.

Since this is a _free_ replacement from mazda and my dealership covers it under warranty (I just paid for the new pads) I'm pretty much optimistic about the future :D

What is NEATO? (I really tried the search, but no explanation)

 

I have always read that drilling rotors is a no-no. They are more prone to cracking if not done properly from the factory.

 

Don't ever assume that. If the dealership is doing warranty work to factory specs with factory parts, then the warranty stays. But, if the dealership did something outside of that, then you have no more factory coverage than if "Joe's rice shop" did it. In other words, if you had your dealership put in a Borla exhaust system, it won't carry any more warranty than if you put it in yourself (unless the dealership gave their own warranty), and it would void as much of the warranty as if you put it in yourself.

That being said, crossdrilled rotors aren't going to void the warranty of other items. And rotors are considered a "wear" item, so they aren't covered by the factory warranty to begin with. Unless Tamas got a separate warranty on the side from the dealership, the dealership wasn't really obligated to replace those rotors for free.

All cross-drilled rotors are more prone to cracking than solid rotors. Rotors cast with the holes are less prone to those where the holes are drilled (very rare). Rotors with the holes chamfered are less prone than those straight drilled. And that's all considering that they had proper patterns. It doesn't matter where they are drilled, as long as they are drilled properly. If he does it carefully with the right pattern, your neighbor down the street can do it with a drill press in his garage.

---jps

 

Actually a friend of mine just had his rotors replaced under mazda's bumper to bumper warranty.

I think they may actually be covered under the full 4 yrs, 48,000 mile warranty, and not just the 12,000 mile everything warranty.

Either that or the dealership was in the mood to be extremely nice .

 

When I was at the Racing Beat openhouse a little while back, the Powerslot Brake rep. was there and he said cross drilling stock rotors was not a good idea. It will weaken the structural integrity of the rotors as they were made to be non-crossdrilled/solid. It is different if you go to a Brembo setup, as they have taken the crossdrilling into account, and designed the brake rotor appropriately. I hope they don't crack on you, especially if you are hard on them. If you go back to the same dealer they might honor your warranty, but if you go to other Mazda dealerships they may very well turn you down if you run into issues with them, as they are altered from factory stock.

 

Thought so.

 

Still looks nice nevertheless!
Hmm..... they actually look bigger than stock??

 

As I said: this setup was tested on race cars for last season. No cracking, no abnormal wear shows on them. Several sets of brake pads were used to the metall on them through out the season.

OK, in theory they are weaker but still can endure a racing season. I'm used to replace my brake parts frequently so doing this once ine a while wont bother me much.

It's still surprising to me that most on this board buy a $30,000 car and are worried about the replacement of a $200 part...

Now the setup is broken in nicely, I have a better brake feel and the wobbling at high speed braking (100 - 0 mph, several times) is gone.

I'm quite satisfied with the setup!

 

Since the part is the primary surface involved in stopping your vehicle...everyone has every right to be concerned. (This is of course ignoring the whole fact that its the tire that stops the car, and the brakes that stop the wheel)

Cross-drilled rotors are damaged quickly in race situations. Thats why they are usually replaced after every race. I don't think anyone is saying your going to have any problems...just that those with racing experience want to make sure nobody is under the impression that the cross-drilled rotors have any benefits over a slotted or vented rotor (ignoring sports bikes).

 

Damn, that's a "hot" looking 6!

 

are you sure they are using the "cross drilled factory brake rotors" to compete in races? i dont think so mate

 

Yes, been there seen that:D
The car finished 2nd in the national touring car championships (1600 / 2000 ccm cat). One set of these rotors lasted the whole season (10 races 2 days each).

 

okay then... you win :D

hope you have the mazda warranty for their corss drilled "factory" rotors in black and white

 

No offense, but i highly doubt that Mazda used off the shelf stock rotors and handed them to a guy in the back of the shop to drill them for their race cars. I can't find specific specs on the Speedsource RX8 right now, but I'd be willing to bet they are not crossdrilled rotors either.

Your brake rotors will most likely be fine for the street, but I would not recommend using them at a roadcourse track for any amount of time, or you'll be replacing them again when they crack. If you continue to test them on the street doing 100-0 stops, I'd check them often for cracks as well.

 

cross drilling is for bling factor only.

True competition cars use slotted rotors with venting. Every race car that I have driven and seen have had slotted rotors.