Brian (bcrulifs@eos.ncsu.edu) was asking about cross drilled rotors
and any problems etc.
I once bought a set of cross drilled rotors for my '80 Honda Accord.
Seems the stock set up tends to overheat and warp under spirited
braking; the rotors did not have radial vents - you know the slots
along the outside edge the pass thru the middle of the rotor; later
models corrected this problem. Anyways, after warping my second set
of rotors (they would last about 40,000 miles), I got a set of cross
drilled rotors from a Honda racing parts place (Jackson Racing). They
were stock, OEM rotors, that had been drilled with a spiral series of
holes that promoted cooling. Worked with stock pads and everything;
as I said, they were OEM rotors. The brakes worked great, _no_ fade,
_no_ warping, and just a little more pedal effort. They did make a
neat buzzing sound when brakeing hard though...
Did I say they worked fine? Well they did, in normal around town
driving for about two years. Then I move to a house up in the
mountains of Southern California (near a ski resort). Daily commute
fifteen miles up and down the twisty road, about 5000 ft elevation
change. Fun road. New front brake pads every 4 - 6 weeks. After
about the fifth set of front pads, I replaced the front rotors with
stock. Pads lasted a least another year, and then I moved again...
Just had to learn to not stop quite so hard. ;-(
Note that the cross drilled rotors didn't actually make the car stop
any better, just cooled them better, and eliminated the over heating.
Actually, at times they were too cool, and weren't warm enough to be
effective. No problem though, just had to push harder for a moment to
warm them up - again, no problem... Results: if you are out for
ultimate performance - it probably won't hurt. Daily driver - you
will probably just add to the maintance requirements without gaining
any real benefit...
Tim Mullen mullent@ymv5.ymp.gov Chantilly, VA
72 Elan Sprint "For the few who know the difference"
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