Why You Should Know More About Brake Rotors

Having the right set of brakes is an essential and primordial part of safe and efficient driving. After all, your car's brakes are the ones which dictate how smoothly you can reduce your speed, or how you will be able to put it to a full stop without any glitches whatsoever.

Now, when brakes are mentioned the first thing that comes to mind is the brake pads. Unfortunately, this mistake of most drivers can cost them some problems in the end. Why? Because they are forgetting another aspect of an efficient braking system that should always be considered. And this is the performance brake rotors or brake rotors.

So what is it? Here are some pieces of information that you might want to know:

How Brake Rotors Are Used

As a rule, braking involves friction for the purpose of reducing the speed of a vehicle or to put it to a full stop. In order to makes this possible, a specifically designed friction material called brake pads, are mounted or placed on a brake component referred to as a brake caliper, to mechanically force the said pads unto the friction surface, aka, brake rotors.

However, because of this use of friction, a significant amount of heat will result. And the greater the heat the less effective brakes become. Hence, there is the need to address this problem as much as possible.

Materials And Durability Of Performance Brake Rotors

Brake rotors are usually made from cast iron. However, in order to resolve issues with heat and in order to reinforce durability, certain materials for performance brake rotors have now been introduced accordingly, such as carbon, ceramic and other composites.

It must be noted, however, that the reliability, efficiency or durability will be relative to the type of driving or specific use that your chosen brake rotors will be undergoing on a regular basis.

Kinds Of Performance Brake Rotors

There are two main types of performance rotors. The first is the slotted rotors while the second is the cross drilled rotors.

Slotted rotors are used mainly by racecar drivers and those that heavily apply their brakes, such as towing, and occasionally, street use. This is because of its slotted design which dispels water a lot faster, making it perfect for wet weathers and for protection against waterlogged brakes. This type of rotors also offers more bite for every application of the brakes. However, it must be noted that this slotted type of rotors tend to wear brake pads a lot quicker than the other type of rotors.

Cross Drilled rotors, on the other hand, are performance brakes that can be perfect for street use and conventional driving that do not need the heavy application of brakes. In addition, its holed design will dispel heat a lot faster - providing it with a higher coefficient of friction. However, it is also because of its design that it tends to crack, break or depreciate at a quicker pace, most especially when brakes are heavily used on a constant basis.

Presently, there have also been introduced new innovations that combine both the slotted and cross drilled designs for performance rotors. But before deciding to make use of them, it is always advisable to take into account the specific use that you will utilize them for.

These are just some of the aspect of Brake Rotors that you might find useful. In the end, what is important is that you are able to know as much about this topic as possible to have a more efficient driving experience.