Brake and Rotor upgrades vs Oem

Whats the best Rotor & Pad upgrades? Truck is very heavy running 285/75/17"s. Just about to hit 55,000 miles checked pads recently and they are getting very thin should i stick with stock or upgrade could use some better stopping power! Whats the best options?

 

If you didn't know already, autoanything.com has a good selection of rotors and pads to choose from.

 

Most all stock size rotors are not upgrades over OEM, but there are a couple available. Tons of info here:
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/brake-upgrade-stoptech-rotors-trd-performance-pads.523829/

 

Changing your fluid to DOT-4 helps prevent the boiling effect that @crashnburn80 mentions when defending hills and trails with weight. I’ve experienced this and it isn’t fun.
My brake pedal was to the floor and the truck was still rolling. I went with EBS rotors and Greenstuff pads. I’m not a huge fan of the pads and will likely go the TRD pads next go.

 

What they said above. There’s a lot of shit aftermarket pads and rotors out there that are nowhere near OEM.

 

I’m running a shit ton of weight and just upgraded to the wilwoods. I have good stopping power now, but they are pricey.

 

Dot3 vs Dot4
The dry boiling point of DOT 3 fluid is 205°C and its wet boiling point is 140°C.

The dry boiling point of DOT 4 fluid is 230°C and its wet boiling point is 155°C.

As you can see Dot4 offers a higher boiling point, when the fluid boils your brakes fade, which is not an exciting experience. But what is more important than upgrading your fluid, is to change your brake fluid every 2 years. Brake fluid absorbs water, the ‘Dry Boiling point’ is brand new uncontaminated fluid, the ‘wet boiling point’ is with a little over 3% water absorption which is typical of 2 years of service. Meaning over 2 years the brake fluid has dropped in fade performance by about 32%.

 

I wonder if the trd pads are offered for 3rd Gen.

I'm really considering a big brake upgrade.

But also need to price/source the pads and rotors of the stop tech kit here in Canada as I don't want to need to order from the US for every brake job.

 

Aside from doing this or going with another big brake kit (dunno whats available for third gens) theres really no stock size pad+rotor combo that gets you more stopping power than oem imo. Sure, you can get fancy rotors with holes in them but if their stock size it wont matter. If at 55k you find yourself needing rotors Id go with brembo blanks or oem. Then a ceramic pad of your choice, I like Akebono. Follow up with a good flush and bleed of the fluid.

 

Thanks good info I didnt know about fluids!

 

https://youtu.be/V5NLEmm5zas

 

Whats the fuss over stamping the reservoir cap with the fluid type then, just a minimum requirement?

 

The water absorption part is real. That is why it’s important not to leave the brake fluid cap off for too long especially on foggy mornings when you are trying to get it done before the day begins

 

The TRD pads in the earlier linked thread thread are confirmed to fit 3rd Gen. A member in the thread is running them on his 3rd Gen.

Stock size rotors don’t increase stopping power per say, but a few rotors (like StopTech Sport and DBA) are designed with improved cooling and more mass which reduces heat and offers better resistance to fade.

 

Frome what I have read. You can Use DOT 3, DOT 4 and DOT 5.1 in a vehicle calling for DOT 3. Bit not DOT 5 as DOT 5 is a silicone based and the vehicle needs the proper seals for DOT 5 where there other 3 are glycerin based and are all comparable.

If anyone knows this to be false or accurate can they jump in. Thinking of putting 5.1 into my truck when it is due for a fluid flush.

 

I'm running the stop tech and TRD pads that crashnburn detailed in his post on the third gen for a couple weeks now. Break in of the ceramics was a fun experience