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Best crossed drilled LS400 Front Rotors for my sc400

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Old 10-06-16, 03:46 PM
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iceman400
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Default Best crossed drilled LS400 Front Rotors for my sc400

Hello all..

Its been a while, but I'm getting back in to my sc400. I have the BBK and now I want to do some crossed drilled rotors up front. Post up with any ideas. Thanks
Old 10-06-16, 09:32 PM
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KahnBB6
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Non-drilled rotors are best actually. Brembo blank rotors or Centric blank rotors. The LS400 brakes with quality non-drilled rotors and a good set of pads are night and day from stock. For pads, one of the most common for street is Hawk HPS which should be available for the LS400 calipers.

If you're set on slotted rotors no matter what I'd definitely recommend Brembo or any other top tier brand.

OEM braking systems with drilled factory rotors (or aftermarket big brake kits that come with drilled rotors) are different and will be less prone to stress cracking after repeated heating and cooling.

Last edited by KahnBB6; 10-06-16 at 09:49 PM.
Old 10-07-16, 07:43 AM
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Blkexcoupe
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Originally Posted by KahnBB6
Non-drilled rotors are best actually. Brembo blank rotors or Centric blank rotors. The LS400 brakes with quality non-drilled rotors and a good set of pads are night and day from stock. For pads, one of the most common for street is Hawk HPS which should be available for the LS400 calipers.

If you're set on slotted rotors no matter what I'd definitely recommend Brembo or any other top tier brand.

OEM braking systems with drilled factory rotors (or aftermarket big brake kits that come with drilled rotors) are different and will be less prone to stress cracking after repeated heating and cooling.
Hawk HPS isn't available for the LS400 caliper. EBC red pads are the only high performance street pad available. My only complaint about them is they create a lot of brake dust, but other than that I enjoyed them in the LS400 calipers. I eventually switched to the supra tt calipers and bought the same pad.

For rotors I would recommend the stoptech rotors if you're set on getting cross drilled, but I agree with Kahn, blanks are the best.
Old 10-07-16, 02:16 PM
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KahnBB6
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^^ Hawk *still* doesn't make a pad for 95-2000 LS400's? I'm surprised.

EBC is a good company through. Their Redstuff pads are supposed to be good. To be fair, the OEM Supra TT brake pads also produce a lot of brake dust.
Old 10-07-16, 03:18 PM
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Blkexcoupe
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Originally Posted by KahnBB6
^^ Hawk *still* doesn't make a pad for 95-2000 LS400's? I'm surprised.

EBC is a good company through. Their Redstuff pads are supposed to be good. To be fair, the OEM Supra TT brake pads also produce a lot of brake dust.
I'm surprised too. I reached out to a few companies about producing a high performance street pad, but none of them were willing to do it.

There are racing options available from Porterfield and Carbotech. I've had positive experiences with both companies in the past, but I lean towards porterfield mainly because they're local to me and have always provided me with great service.
Old 10-07-16, 04:11 PM
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Thanks guys. I'll stick with oem blanks.
Old 10-08-16, 03:21 AM
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KahnBB6
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Originally Posted by iceman400
Thanks guys. I'll stick with oem blanks.
Glad to help

Originally Posted by Blkexcoupe
For rotors I would recommend the stoptech rotors if you're set on getting cross drilled, but I agree with Kahn, blanks are the best.
^^ I forgot about StopTech. That's a brand with a very good reputation. I still say blank rotors rather than drilled though. The LS400 calipers with EBC Redstuff pads and a good set of rotors will make a huge difference already. The Brembo 4-piston and 6-piston kits with huge rotors, similar big brake kits from Baer Brakes, StopTech or those off a Corvette sometimes come with drilled rotors. But all of those are pricey compared to the LS400 or the TT calipers.

Originally Posted by Blkexcoupe
I'm surprised too. I reached out to a few companies about producing a high performance street pad, but none of them were willing to do it.

There are racing options available from Porterfield and Carbotech. I've had positive experiences with both companies in the past, but I lean towards porterfield mainly because they're local to me and have always provided me with great service.
That's a shame. I get it... what percentage of Lexus SC and Supra MKIV NA owners outside of enthusiast circles and forums even know about this brake swap? Still... enough people modify 95+ LS400's that you'd think there would be some more sporty pad offerings.

I haven't used Porterfield or Carbotech yet but I have heard great things about both. I also lean toward Porterfield from my research. I don't recall offhand but they make one street type pad that can be used for DDing but up from that there they are pretty much track pads with different operating temperature ratings and compounds. The kind of offerings you want to use some Motul RBF600 brake fluid with on the track. I've read some good threads on SF contrasting the OEM Supra TT pads, Hawk HPS pads and Porterfield street pads. Porterfield generally came out on top but I think the Hawk pads and OEM TT pads fared better for everyday use, especially with no warmup from cold. Once warmed up... no contest.
Old 10-08-16, 08:19 AM
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Iceman,
One thing to think about is rust in the future. I used OEM blanks for my TT upgrade and have the rust rings around the hat, outside edge and the face doesn't look as shiny/clean as I have seen on some aftermarket setups. Pretty picky I know, but I have 19" Rays wheels so the brakes are very visible. Doing it again, I would look into aftermarket or at least paint them prior to installation.
Old 10-08-16, 08:47 AM
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Originally Posted by KahnBB6
I haven't used Porterfield or Carbotech yet but I have heard great things about both. I also lean toward Porterfield from my research. I don't recall offhand but they make one street type pad that can be used for DDing but up from that there they are pretty much track pads with different operating temperature ratings and compounds. The kind of offerings you want to use some Motul RBF600 brake fluid with on the track. I've read some good threads on SF contrasting the OEM Supra TT pads, Hawk HPS pads and Porterfield street pads. Porterfield generally came out on top but I think the Hawk pads and OEM TT pads fared better for everyday use, especially with no warmup from cold. Once warmed up... no contest.
You are correct. Porterfield offers the R4-S pad for street use and R4 (and other variations of the R4 depending on your racing style) track pad. I've driven with the R4-S and R4 pad in a Honda S2000. The R4-S is a little better than stock, but cost twice as much. The R4 is great on the track and a little loud on the street when its cold. When I asked Porterfield about making custom brake pads they had a catalog of compounds for me to choose from, but none of them were meant for street use.

Motul RBF600 or 660 is a nice brake fluid, but a cheaper alternative would be ATE Type200. For a street car that doesn't have its brake fluid changed frequently the additional cost for Motul is negligible, but if you go to the track often and change your brake fluid multiple times a year the Motul adds up really fast. I've had plenty of friends do endurance racing using ATE with no problems at all. ATE is around $20 for 1L vs $15 for 500mL of RBF600.

The last time I checked the OEM supra TT brake pads have been discontinued for the front. There are still places that have it in stock, but it is going to become harder to find in the future.

Originally Posted by duster
Iceman,
One thing to think about is rust in the future. I used OEM blanks for my TT upgrade and have the rust rings around the hat, outside edge and the face doesn't look as shiny/clean as I have seen on some aftermarket setups. Pretty picky I know, but I have 19" Rays wheels so the brakes are very visible. Doing it again, I would look into aftermarket or at least paint them prior to installation.
The aftermarket rotors that have the coating/painted centers well wear off and rust with time too. I ended up painting the center of my rotors, but its a very detailed process that involves scuffing up the rotor, primer, and then paint. The paint has to fully cure (which takes a few days) or it'll just flake off once the rims are mounted.

It's worth the effort in my opinion.
Old 10-08-16, 05:24 PM
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Duck05
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I went back and forth for the LS400 upgrade and went with slotted rotors with black painted top hats... These are StopTech.

For the pads, decided to go with the Akebono ceramics to keep the dust down; the down side of these pads is they have to warm up to get decent stopping.....

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Post pictures of your decision.....
Old 10-09-16, 04:41 AM
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Take it from a guy that races with these calipers on the car. I go through brake pads, rotors quite often. So here is my take:

Rotors:
Just buy the Advance or AutoZone rotor. For the street, the drilled rotors will make a whizzing sound you probably won't like. If you are dead set on something over stock, go with the Stop Tech slotted rotors. You can buy them from AutoAnything usually at 20% off and ends up being around $80 each.

Pads:
For racing, Porterfield can make a Raybestos ST43 compound race pad to fit the LS400 caliper. This is by far the top pad material for endurance racing. I can run 2 races at 8 hours long and have pad left when I run the ST43. They have to cut them from a larger pad, so it's not cheap, usually around $250/set. I have tried all the EBC stuff including Yellows and they won't hang. They fade quickly and also don't last. I have tried the CarboTech XP8's and XP10's and they are much better than the EBC in performance in that they will not fade but not up to par with the ST43 in longevity. All that to say, that is what's best for racing, which I should say these pads would all be bad for street driving because they will never come up to temp and would just wear your rotors prematurely. For street driving, with the LS400 caliper/rotor combination being so large, I have yet to see a pad that doesn't work well. Just buy something that is lifetime so you can go swap them out when they wear out.

Last edited by RXRodger; 10-09-16 at 09:57 AM.
Old 10-11-16, 11:43 AM
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Thats a great looking set up Duck. I just ordered a set of Cryo treated cross drilled for the fronts on my LS400, haven't decided on pads yet.
Old 10-11-16, 08:28 PM
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Originally Posted by RXRodger
Pads:
For racing, Porterfield can make a Raybestos ST43 compound race pad to fit the LS400 caliper. This is by far the top pad material for endurance racing. I can run 2 races at 8 hours long and have pad left when I run the ST43. They have to cut them from a larger pad, so it's not cheap, usually around $250/set. I have tried all the EBC stuff including Yellows and they won't hang. They fade quickly and also don't last. I have tried the CarboTech XP8's and XP10's and they are much better than the EBC in performance in that they will not fade but not up to par with the ST43 in longevity. All that to say, that is what's best for racing, which I should say these pads would all be bad for street driving because they will never come up to temp and would just wear your rotors prematurely. For street driving, with the LS400 caliper/rotor combination being so large, I have yet to see a pad that doesn't work well. Just buy something that is lifetime so you can go swap them out when they wear out.
Out of curiosity, have you ever tried Performance Friction pads? If so, how do they compare to the Raybestos ST43?
Old 10-12-16, 03:07 AM
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Originally Posted by Blkexcoupe
Motul RBF600 or 660 is a nice brake fluid, but a cheaper alternative would be ATE Type200. For a street car that doesn't have its brake fluid changed frequently the additional cost for Motul is negligible, but if you go to the track often and change your brake fluid multiple times a year the Motul adds up really fast. I've had plenty of friends do endurance racing using ATE with no problems at all. ATE is around $20 for 1L vs $15 for 500mL of RBF600.
I will look into the ATE Type 200 also, thank you Blkexcoupe!

Originally Posted by Blkexcoupe
The last time I checked the OEM supra TT brake pads have been discontinued for the front. There are still places that have it in stock, but it is going to become harder to find in the future.
Wait, what?? I bought a set of front OEM TT pads about three months ago. I have to check into this with my Toyota parts guy now. I should also try to order a set of TT rear pads now rather than later. Looks like after my next brake job I'll have to switch to Hawk HPS.

I'm continually amazed at what Toyota will discontinue for the MKIV Supra just the same as a garden variety Corolla. Now brake pads of all things...

Last edited by KahnBB6; 10-12-16 at 03:11 AM.
Old 10-12-16, 08:15 AM
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Originally Posted by KahnBB6
I will look into the ATE Type 200 also, thank you Blkexcoupe!



Wait, what?? I bought a set of front OEM TT pads about three months ago. I have to check into this with my Toyota parts guy now. I should also try to order a set of TT rear pads now rather than later. Looks like after my next brake job I'll have to switch to Hawk HPS.

I'm continually amazed at what Toyota will discontinue for the MKIV Supra just the same as a garden variety Corolla. Now brake pads of all things...
I was ordering new retaining clips and sliding pins for my calipers about 2 months ago, and I noticed the front pads were discontinued when I looked it up. The part number was 04465-14150. I checked on other sites that I use for Toyota parts and they also said it was discontinued.


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