SW17LS

These rotors are notorious for warpage. On my 2015 they were terribly warped within 15,000 miles. Nothing crazy about my use at all. The centric premium rotors and post-quiet ceramic pads were a huge upgrade.

Are you certain your rotors are OEM? How many miles are on them in general?

sha4000

iTrader: (1)

I had to go back and check the PO service history. This guy did EVERYTHING at the dealer up to the 75k service and I purchased it at 82k. Front and rear brakes were changed and the rotors cut in 2010 at 60k miles so it stands to reason that everything is OEM. That's the only time the brakes were serviced so I might just be at 90k on the original rotors unless the original owner changed them someplace else which is highly unlikely.

SW17LS

roadfrog

And turning rotors only means that he warpage will come on again sooner.

sha4000

iTrader: (1)

Yeah that seems to be the prevailing wisdom but it seems to have worked out. The PO did not drive the car a whole lot and was probably light footed since they lasted so long. I just rotated the tires after I changed the oil and the brakes still looked new.

FatherTo1

Certainly my mind has been playing tricks on me with the recent rear-ended incident. However, I recall a post that explained the OEM grabbiness was due to thicker and coarser/higher friction pads. Doesn't that suggest OEM pads will slow down rotors (and the car) faster? It could have also been the Goodyear RSA2 tires I had at the time with OEM brakes. The combo gave me a lot of confidece in the braking department. Has anyone paired OEM pads with more durable Centric or Akebono rotors? Perhaps I'll answer my own question and keep the Centric rotors. I figure I'll need to replace brake pads before rotors anyways.

SW17LS

Thats what my mechanic told me, but the goal was for longer pad life because customers were complaining of short life on the previous versions of the LS.

Remember the OEM pads are semi-metallic pads, the PosiQuiet pads you have and I had are ceramic. Different technologies. Ceramic pads are definately an upgrade all around. The feel is different I agree, especially after going back to the OEM setup myself but actual stopping distance is no longer with the ceramic pads.

1WILLY1

iTrader: (9)

I switched to akebonos and sometimes wondered if ive lost a noticeable amount of braking power , but I try to tell myself its all in my head

For regular driving they are amazing and they are very low dust which is also important for me in the spring-summer-fall seasons when I'm running aftermarket wheels.

But the grabbyness of the OEM's was extremely bad......even the brakes on my z06 didn't grab that hard with that much of a jolt.

I think I'm starting to get the rotor warpage now on the oem's, so that will be next on my list

Lexuslsguy

Just be glad you have options for your front rotors... Damn VW group has a patent on the fronts I guess for the 8 and you cannot find aftermarket. OEM range from $250 - $600 per rotor depending on the config.

LuvmyLS

Getting back to the original question of "How much of stopping power is due to brake pads versus tire grip?". Minimum stopping distance on a given road surface is not dependent on the rotors or brake pads as long as the brake system is operating properly. This is not to say that the brakes will feel the same. Some brake pad / rotors have higher or lower friction, which will change the amount of brake pedal force needed to slow the vehicle. However, if we are talking about minimum stopping distance, then the anti-lock brake system would be engaged bringing the tires to a state of "skid-pending". At a skid-pending situation, the only factor in the stopping distance is the friction between the tire and the road. Again, the brake pedal force from your leg to the brake pedal would likely be different for different rotors and pads, but the minimum stopping distance would be the same regardless of your brake pads or rotors.

yyymmm31

I followed the advice from folks on this forum and replaced my OE pads and rotors with Centrics Posi Quiet pads and premium rotors. The reason I replaced them was that my OE rotor and pad combo was touchy and over sensitive, and also the pads always gave a squeak when I backed out of garage in the morning. After the replacement, the Centrics combo feels so smooth, with what I'd say a true Lexus quality - quiet and smooth with assured stopping power. I didn't feel any increase in braking distance. For me, I couldn't be happier with the replacement. Although my old OE pads still had a lot of pad life left (the pads were less than 20% worn), I don't think that I would swap them back.

joedaddy1

iTrader: (1)

I prefer the "grabby" and performance of the OEM pads.. Once you get used to it, it's fine. It does dust a lot.

Centric keeps it clean, but the cold weather performance had me back to OEM.

With OEM, I live in fear of rotor warpage..

SW17LS

I never got used to the grabby brakes in my 2015...

superdenso

Every six months I write the following: it's uneven pad deposits not warped rotors. For some reason the 460 oem pads are prone to uneven pad deposits. There can be all manners of speculation about why it happens (i.e. Break in)

fb182

You guys do realize that there were three types of OEM pads offered, right?

1. ADVICS PV565H
2. PAGID 4668
3. TEXTAR T4146