I'm looking to start with new front brakes. I'm looking to go slotted/vented rotors and performance pads.

Any recommendations for my 03 lx sport?

 

Upgrading the brakes is something that a lot of people neglect and over look, so good for you for wanting to upgrade them!

There are a few things you can do to inprove the performance of your brakes before even changing the pad and rotors.

After long periods of time, moisture and air can get into the lines/calipers and causes poor brake response and mushy pedal feel. By bleeding the brakes (all four corners, starting with the rears) until you see clear/clean fuid coming out will help get rid of the water and air that may be trapped in the lines/calipers. Doing this can make a big difference in brake feel and performance.

Onto rotors...a little history for ya: slotted/drilled rotors came from racing technology back in the day when brake pad material was not what it is today. They found that the severe heat and friction from the pad on rotor contact, while under heavy braking, gasses were being released from the brake pads at such a rate that it would create a gas cusion or layer between the pad and rotor, thus, less friction and less stopping power. The holes and slots were initally used to vent the gasses/dust created as well as keep the rotors cooler. The down side is technically there is less contact surface area for the pad to contact the rotor and more surface area for rust to form. There is also less material to heat up, preventing warping, but cracking has been a possible on-going issue with some cross-drilled rotors (seen it happen myself). Mainly on rotors made from cheaper materials.

Today, brake pads are better than they were and produce much less gas/dust. For street and even track applications, cross-drilled/slotted rotors are not entirely necessary.

My suggestion is to use the best quality rotor you can buy. This will help prevent against warping, rust and will last longer. Along with that, use cheaper/softer pads. Using harder, ceramic premium pads is what wears down rotors and warps them quicker. By using a softer pad, you'll get the same amount of bite, but not eat into the rotor as much. You'll be able to go through several sets of $20 pads before ever needed to replace the rotors.

For my 00 SiR I bough a set of ATe grooved premium rotors from canadian tire and a cheap set of $20 pads. The combination is extremely good and responsive. The grooves allow the dust to clear while keeping the pad 'fresh' (preventing pad glazing/hardening).

I may go through pads a little quicker, but the cost will be saved by not having to replace the rotors so often.

There are lots of different rotors and pads to choose, from...just make sure you get a very good quality rotor and softer pads for the best braking performance.

 

Thanks, i appreciate all the info. I figured going with the best rotor was the way to go, i was a bit unsure of pad selection, so thanks for the clarification. I'll be researching best quality for least dollars for sure!

Now whats the concensus on rear drum to disc conversion? i know drums require less servicing, so is converting to disc simply for street use just a waste of cash or is there a benefit in the long run?

 

thats kinda funny..i have the opposite theory. Cheap rotors with mid grade pads. Even with putting ~40,000 kms a year mostly city driving i still only have to change my pads once every 2 years and rotors every 4 years, but thats not on a civic..my breaks are expensive. For the price of cheap blank rotors i can get ATE grooved rotors for the civic.

 

Imho, rear drums on the street is fine. People might make fun (especially if you paint them...lol), but there's nothing wrong with them. Just keep them serviced and working well.

If you plan to track your car, you may want to upgrade to disc.

 

Different people will have different opinions what what's best.

In my experience with racing and street setups, I've found that cheaper rotors tend to warp very quickly, especially when using harder/more expensive pads.

The Ate grooved rotors are pre-heated and warped before they are machined and grooved. That way, when they get really hot, they will not warp.

 

I should note that my opinion is strictly street use, no racing at all. When i put the brakes on my civic i'll likely go with the ATE grooved just because their very cheap compared to my impala.

 

I had Ate grooved on my Bonneville it weighed like 2900lbs and i was hard on braking, they held up through anytype of punishment i dished out!
I'll be looking at Ate most likely!

Thanks to everyone for the help it's greatly appreciated!

I'll start posting some pics and keep updating on new mods and improvements!

 

Im a good example of cheap rotors and good pads. I got the hawk HP pads i beleive they were with some cheap $40 dollar rotors and the rotors got warped the next year. It didnt last a whole 365 days. lol

 

Also, on the street where a car may not see very much aggressive driving/braking, you may be just fine with the cheaper rotors. They may never warp for a long time.

It's very case sensitive, strongly depending on the use of the vehicle.

I just know with EVERY previous set of brakes on my civic, whenever I used the cheaper rotors, they would warp very quickly (even without track use) and I would have to replace the pads and rotors more often because of it.

Generally, cheaper rotors are made with lower quality materials and are not pre-heated/warped before the machining process. Though some will be better than others.

 

 

Mike though i agree with your theory, lower quality pads that are semi-metallic will be more noisy than the more expensive ceramic ones.
though ceramic pads do generate more heat, OP has a street car where he will not be stomping on the brakes before every turn every minute or so. so with quality rotors i dont see any problems.

I used Wagner quick stop ceramic pads, installed them on my moms subaru also, and i am very satisfied with their performance. Even driving the car hard every day, have not had any problems yet and they brake very nice and firm without any extra sounds.

 

i have to comment on the noise issue...every cheap set of pads ive ever gotten have squeaked since day one and my god is it ever annoying. When im driving my impala i can just keep my windows closed and i cant hear it, but in my 4 door civic i can still hear the squeak.

 

I was running the Ate grooved rotors with a higher line ceramic pad with my bonneville and i had no sound or warping issues, i figure the same setup with a car that weighs half as much should be just fine!

 

I agree, that's generally true.

For daily driving, if you want run higher quality pads, you should run the best quality rotors and that should last you a long time. Especially if the car is standard.

The cheap pads I have used over the years have always been quiet from my experience. That's why I didn't mention noise. Was never an issue with my car. Glad you brought that up though.

 

Brembo blanks and a good set of cermaic pads especially if you hate cleaning brake dust on your rims