Anyone ever use ATE PremiumOne slotted rotors?

[Meghan54]

Just to follow up....bought a pair of AC Delco Durastop rotors. They're what came on the Blazer originally, did work well for about 100K miles, and the ones I got were American made. Waiting on the brake pads (bought a pair of Hawk HP Superduty pads...semi-metallics) to be delivered today....then brakes are on the schedule for this afternoon.

Bought the semi-mets over replacement ceramics because the semi-mets seem to bite initially better than the ceramics out there, which can make a bit of a difference, esp. in my case.

I've always noticed with ceramics, and my Blazer came stock with Akebono pads, the initial "bite" from them is not quite as good as some semi-met pads. Almost like the ceramic pads need some heat in them before they start to perform well.....and with towing, I need every foot sometimes, esp. when the village idiot cuts in front of you then hits his brakes....hard.

I switched to ceramics just to avoid the brake dust. Hope I don't regret not splurging for the Akebono ProACTs (got the Raybestos AT instead).

From what I've been able to glean from reading on various sites, Akebono was the originator of the ceramic pad....mostly made in response to requests from OEM's for lower dusting pads that would provide less wear on rotors and less noise while braking. And from what I've read, and take this for what it's worth, the Akebono pads tend to have more ceramic components as compared to other brands.

 

[mikeagri]

I put ATE slotted\ventilated rotors on a Town & Country mini-van that is used as a work vehicle and is always heavily loaded. I also installed ATE premium ceramic pads. I've been through two winters and summers with them, and here's what I can tell you for sure:

-The brakes don't overheat OR fade - ever.
-The rotors don't warp [I had a front caliper sieze on me over a year ago, while on the highway, and I didn't know until I got home and saw the smoke coming from the right front wheel.]
- The hubs don't seem to corrode [there is a factory coating on the entire part that STAYS on when the rotors are installed.]
- This combination emits no sound and no dust that I can see on polished, chrome rims.

However:

- Stopping requires significantly more pedal effort than OEM pads.
- On a dry road, it seems impossible to stop hard enough to engage the ABS. The fact that the van's normal load is arounf 1000-1500 pounds may have something to do with these issues. ()

I have a Mercury Sable wagon that my lead footed daughter drives on occasion. It took her about a month to warp the hell out of a pair of standard aftermarket AutoZone] rotors. I ran accross this question while pricing ATEs for the wagon.

I also noticed some threads on drilled rotors. IMHO, unless you have an overriding reason to fit drilled rotors on your vehicle, don't. They have a tendenct to crack around the holes, and cannot be properly re-surfaced.