i have a 09 S HB . im the 3rd owner but it has less than 50k on it. When i first got it i was truly impressed in the braking----welp----that was short lived. ive seen lips smaller on the hind end of a hefer cow than what i see on these rotors now...! [you all know us texans cant talk w/o colorful euphemisms riiiiite partner? HAHHHHhh] . That said im not gonna dis BMW (i'll save that one for later...*rim-shot*) . Thus here lies the rub.

1. yeppers....i drive rather aggressive but it's not like im doing trak-days / autocross 2-3 times a month ...
2. I cant stand all the frikn dust accumlate im getting...its nuts! [now for those that are already sayin 'ah here we go', " i wana make gold out of my own poop too"' *2nd rim shot slite crowd chuckle..*].
3. if we were to define my purpose avg. driving task to meet ---well-- lets call it "Evasion"! [nope im not a drug or gun runner...lets face it when one engages in high speed / racing / testing ones' auto performance or ones ability to enter/exit a short radius curve at higher than posted speed ...are we breaking the law?
NO! only if you get caught! ....and yes it's only a matter of time but when in a mini you only have one option "out maneuver" cause u get on a straight yer gonna get yer @$$ handed to yah + bigger fine for attempted ........ ..hmm..whats the word? oh ya Evasion!
4. im disabled literally and live alone no other source of income except for an occasional band gig from time to time...that said and the fact i live in a high humidity area // dont drive everyday (prolly more like once or twice a week) corrosion IS a factor thats a concern to me.

WHAT SHOULD I SETTLE ON?????
i.e. what some business call a 'race brake' would not be called such by many here. // also i dont want chatter noise. Noise / light are the enemy when one engages in evasion... BUT what pad grade do i compromise at to get less dust , fastest decel i can w/o going to rigid caliper & aggressive [again im trying to achieve gray here not black or white...] pads????

a. will it behoove me to goto 4 piston fronts and/or BIG Rotos? [i have a changeout set of tires with 17" rims so i could go oversize but depending again on the mfgr. how much im not sure.
b. regardless at this point im sold on changing rotors to slots ...if affordable enuff, modular [or whatever u pros call the alloy hub + rotor blade.]
c. would it be cost effective [based on my...end desire/ driving habits] to go with cryo treat or will the typical cost outweigh the pros??
d. I cant see spending 2k+ for going with a jcw conversion at this point unless i got lucky enuff to buy used and even then they are picked up so fast it would just be luck if i did..[and brother....luck is something i have even less than $ *rim rim rim shot kaboom!*]
e. SS lines obviously a must as well so moot for asking...[cha-ching - 125$].
f. are "red stuff" pads an even compromise or do they get yer shiz all dirty too?? [again all i have to compare at present is a frikn 07 dodge double cab and my mini.....uhm..amazingly the mini dirts up the frikn mags faasssst man way fast.. im more concerned with the corrosion in my sweltering hell hole area and rain then solar meltdown 30 minutes later and no garage to keep car out of weather too. Physical limits trying to get down there and buff them every time i go to Dr. & WallyWorld is a real life "aint gonna happen" situation for me.
g. I also like to ride the brake pedal just a tad in certain turns as well...dunno if thats a factor but hay...didnt you watch "Initial D" too? hahahahahaha..[*rimshot*].


my apologies for being so verbose...lonely old broke down farts do stuff like that from time to time
peace thanx for yer time / wisdom /tolerance :P

 

OK, I'm going to lay out some facts here which may be uncomfortable for some--and mix them with opinions too.

First: If your car can get into ABS (you know, the pulsing pedal) on all four wheels then you CANNOT SLOW ANY QUICKER than that. Period. You can go with eighteen-piston calipers and pads made of super-glue, and it won't matter a whiff. Why? Because the brakes only stop the wheels. the tires actually stop the car.

So, why big brake kits? A few reasons. One is appearance--a lot of people like the looks. Another is that people see big brakes on performance cars, and assume that they must be better than what they have. Bigger is always better, right? (Sorry, but not always.)

The main actual reason for big brakes is to get rid of heat. Your brakes take the kinetic energy of the car's movement, and through friction between the rotors and pads, turn it into heat. The heat goes into the rotors, into the pads, and makes its way into the calipers. If you have bigger rotors, that is more mass to sink the heat into, and more area to radiate it out. Similarly, big calipers offer more heat sink and more radiating area. But here's the deal--if you aren't braking down from triple-digit speeds ever minute, you almost certainly aren't overheating your brakes in the first place! So why pay for the big brakes?

I have seen a magazine test where a "tuner" car with big brakes actually had longer stopping distances than the stock car (even with the same wheels and tires!) because the very-large brakes weighed so much more than stock!

If heat really is a problem for your brakes, it is generally more effective to duct air to them than to just upgrade to big brakes. You are increasing the capability to get rid of heat, rather than just giving a larger heat sink and slightly more radiating area.

So what about slotted and drilled rotors? A waste in most circumstances. The theory is that the slots or holes give you a little more surface area for radiating heat away, plus they give an "escape path" for gases emitted by the brake pads when they are used. But most pads today don't outgas noticeably under use. It takes some really serious abuse to make any modern pad compounds get into "pad fade".

Drilled rotors will all crack, it's just a question of when. If you're lucky, the cracks don't start until after the rotor needs to be replaced. If you're not lucky... Let's just say that you should be inspecting your rotors monthly or so if you have drilled rotors.

Slots are less bad, but frankly they don't do a lot. They may help slightly in your initial brake application if you are driving through deep water, but you probably shouldn't be going from nothing to leaning hard on your brakes in deep water anyway. There is also some question about them acting as "cheese graters" and wearing your pads down quicker...


So, what do I recommend? The Akebono ceramic pads seem to have a good following around here. They are supposed to make tons less dust than the stock pads. I only have them on the rears of my car so far, but they've been fine to this point.

For rotors, the Zimmerman ones that are available pretty commonly are decent. I don't think there is much you can do in the way of improvement to a rotor, though. They are pretty simple things, and as long as you don't get things pretty wrong with them they should all work pretty well.

So that's my two cents.

 

UPDATE: welp couldnt stand it no more and too many choices so hopefully i hit middle ground // i did NOT go broke at least [got 130$ price break buying the way i did..].

here's list of what i got and for end price ---- considering what costs i was looking at 1st [and ya that also included koolio lookn stuff but i challenged its functionality as well...] i literally cut the cost in 1/2 !!!! [actually LESS than 50% i.e. for set of front and back component kit was gonna cost me 2100 or greater, regardless of rotor layout!] i couldnt warrant a decrease of 7 pounds for that sorta cash worthwhile...

here be the list:

Wilwood WLW1408423 DynaPro Radial 4-Piston (Front) Big Brake Kit - 12.19 in. Disc Diameter, Black Anodized Caliper * these are the modular breaks and have aluminum hub*
wish i could have done same in back but couldnt swing the price. i.e. for some reason it appears they like to double the price on the "rear gear" haah...prolly figure if they gonna stick it to you there may as well charge a fine price toooo
hahahahaha

TRW Brake Fluid dot 4 synth 1 gallon
Meguiars Plastic Care 16 oz.( 1)
Mothers Glass Cleaner 16 oz.( 1)
* note the above was bought with credits contingent on spending 60 and you could get back credit/points of 30$ so in a nutshell got it for 50% and the last 2 detail chems i needed to finish out my detailer array.

- 2 Rear Drilled and Slotted Zinc Plated Rotors
- 1 Rear Premium Ceramic Pad Set
- Rear Pad Wear Sensors (if applicable

4 SS brake cables [RED dyed}

Total Cost= $ 978.17

not shabby i think but i encourage the exp. , informed to critique [i.e. the best lessons learned are those you acquire a great loss ...thus PAIN do make one remember..heheh]

 

here for the 4 year update!

 

I wouldn't be too optimistic....