I seek the wisdom of the forum Sages.

My 2004 Disco "needs" new brakes. I'm not going to pass the safety and emissions test here in Utah without replacing my front rotors. The calipers are so rusty that I just can't stand to put them back on. So I've made the decision to replace everything (just rotors, pads, calipers - my brake lines are fairly new, Master cylinder is doing just fine).

So anyway I go on to British Parts of Utah (bputah.com) and I wasn't impressed. I'm kind of looking for an upgrade since stopping the rotating mass of 35 in tires is hard work and my Disco doesn't exactly stop on a dime. So I went to Rockauto.com and found these for the rotors. And these for the calipers and pads.

Anybody have experience with "upgraded" rotors. Am I throwing my money away?

 

Do you run in mud at all? Probably not a whole lot of it in Utah, but you'll want to avoid drilled/slotted rotors in a lot of mud. They will not break quicker, but they will dissipate heat faster and not fade as quickly.

 

rotor are always open to debate, do you need drilled and slot or don't you, your desertion to make. Me I went with D&S but I'm not out in the sipping hole all weekend.
For Brake pads I would suggest Akebono Euro ceramic pads, the fact that they are ceramic helps with fewer ABS problems caused by dust.
I have never replaced a caliper because it was rusty, but A-1 Cardine is one of the leading remanufactures in the states.

 

How many miles on your truck, have the rotors ever been replace. have you measured them to see if they need replacement.
As for pads, Akebono ceramic pads are real up grade, stop faster, last longer, no brake dust to set of the 3 Amigos.
Front pads are EUR676
Rear pads are a EUR493
Amazon and E-Bay are the 2 better places to buy your replacements.
As for the rotors, they are all pretty much the same when looking for stock rotors, if you really want an up grade for much better stopping power, slotted and drilled like the ones on BPoU, which come out of the UK are the best, and don't believe they fill up with mud, my DBA rotors are 10 plus years old, still with in specs and have never had any issues with mud.
By the way, make sure you do a full 2 quart DOT 4 for a firmer pedal.

 

You don't have real mud in Colorado. Drilled and slotted, vented rotors do fill up with mud.

A different way you could have said that, was, "I have not yet experienced them filling with mud". Instead you make the assumption, as usual, that it is not possible.

 

123k - Doesn't look like they have ever been replaced. The front rotors will not pass safety. The rear rotors can be turned.

I am a little worried about mud. Although rare, we do get mud. I had occasion to romp through some this last weekend in the La Sal Mountains.

 

I wouldn't worry about mud like that, I was suggesting mud more like what I've gotten myself into. Just not good for anything... Well actually judging by the mud on the side of your truck that's a lot of mud haha.

 

So what slotted and drilled rotors have you run and plugged up, I am assuming you are speaking from first hand experience , not the usual hear save that you hear from 3rd or 4th hand stories.
I have run slotted and drilled rotors for nearly 20 years on 3 different vehicles, both here, California and Arizona. Granted they are not the muddiest states, but I have seen my fair share and am very comfortable in saying for the most part the holes don't plug up.

 

Terrafirma's set. But I assume it'd be the same with all brands.

 

Just for information, Rover rotors have very little meat on them when first installed and because of that if you do the typical 2 cut re-surface, you will be way under spec and prone to warpage.