autoxer6

I am planning on running a couple of track days with my C5 Z. The "cheap" NAPA rotors are now about $220 per set. Not the $100 others have said on the forum.

Are their other, more reliable, brands around this price range?

thanks,
Chris

Aardwolf

I don't have a Z06 but I've been using the Centric rotors from racepages.com, free shipping.

DRKCYDE

Just heard Autozone has then in the $25 range!
Have a local smaller place that has them in the 30-35 range, and they did last at least one whole track day.

bb69

Alex, it's Advance/Auto Value/Kragen that has them for <$25 online. When I looked last week, they were offering free shipping for any order over $75 if no item were heavier than 20 lbs.

Ken

MungoZ06

There are a bunch of threads on C5 rotors.
FWIW ... I just took off a set of chinese made "AC Delco Premium" from RockAuto that were 28 each. ... HORRIBLE! ... lasted 4 days ... and I'm not hard on rotors (my Cdn made rotors lasted at least 10 track days, with same pads and similar use).
I have a set of Raybestos from Rockauto @ 34 each ( they look more "finished" with milled faces) waiting to go on when I finish off the OE brazilian ones I put back on ...

0Vector Vette

Chris,
I don't have any cheap rotors. If you get tired of braking rotors and losing track time, I do have real 2 piece racing rotors. I use Coleman Racing rotors made to our specs and machine our own aluminum hats. They are slotted, no holes, directionaly vented, American made, and weigh 3.5 pounds less then a stock rotor. If you are going to be running at Road America, and are pushing the car hard, you will be braking any cheap rotors. Combine these with a set of Cobalt Friction brake pads for stopping power you will not believe. Give me a call if you are interested, 630-844-0089.
Robert Finlayson
Performance AFX Motorsports

John Shiels

what do the fronts weight? thanks!

how cheaper is a cheap rotor if it explodes?

0Vector Vette

Exactly! At the NCM event at Road America there was a guy pitted 3 spots away from me with a C5 Z05 who broke a rotor in his second session on Saturday. Went to local Chevy dealer and Napa, no rotors. Someone told him I had rotors on Sunday afternoon and I was able to get him out for his last session. $500 to enter the event, hotels, travel, meals and he missed most of the event. Brakes are not the place to cut costs.

volk

How much are your rotors?

rbl

Cost per track hour your rotors are probably 10-20x the cost. An easy solution is to just carry a spare set which most folks do. For HPDE this rotor business is 95% hype and 5% need.

I see people driving as hard as any (2:08's at VIR) and they can run a day or two on a set of cheap NAPA rotors if they are properly cooled down. Expensive rotors are not the solution.

vms4evr

I see I can be gone for a few months and come back right into the same old arguments. Too fun... I agree Rex.

Last time we had this argument as I recall. The vendor made all the bugaboo about not using the NAPA rotors. They are junk, they'll explode on track, you'll die, blah blah.... Their prices are 10-20x. When put to the test to back up their talk and guarantee the product for any reasonable amount of time compared to the NAPA blanks. No takers...

gkmccready

It's been a couple of months, but my local NAPA was still getting a full set of four to me for ~$100. Have you tried going to the store rather than online? My local store also offers a 15% discount if I go in on Sunday to buy...

RedLS6

Exactly.

The nice 2-piece rotors will last longer.......however, they will crack, unless you're driving like a grandma When the expensive rotors crack, and have to be replaced, your rotor cost-per-event suddenly skyrockets over simply using the lower-cost NAPA rotors. If you don't mind paying 5-10-20X the cost for double-triple the rotor life, then the high-end rotors might be for you. The economics don't add up, though.

I use the NAPA rotors, and normally go through a set every weekend or two. I carry 2 spare sets to the track, and have never missed a session.

gkmccready

My biggest fear about going with a 2pc rotor is the down time if I do crack a friction ring. Mounting a new ring on top of the usual rotor swap time is going to be significant. A better man might find the cracked rotor well before needing to rush... I'm not always so lucky. I'd still be carrying a spare set of NAPAs in case I didn't have time to mess with putting a new friction ring on the hat...

0Vector Vette

Front rotors for a C5 are $320 each. Replacement rings are $155 each and bolt kits are $18 each. Once you own the hats, you only replace the rings and bolts. Last I heard, Napa Chinese rotors are more like $50 each.

0Vector Vette

This is where I would disaggree with you completely. By your own admission, you can run a day or two on Napa rotors. I have run a full season and most of the next on one set of rotors in a car that runs better then 2:08 at VIR. Not only did I do this, the rotors never did break. They were getting chewed up by the pads I was testing so I replaced them and went to to Cobalt Friction brake pads.

Recently I was at an SCCA event at the Autobahn. There was a father and son team, Mike and Michael Tracy, running two T1 Corvettes. I wish I had the forethought to take a picture of the pile of junk rotors laying on the ground beside their trailor. There had to be 6 to 8 rotors (2 cars) from one weekend! It is almost September and I have run the entire season in the car pictured in my avatar on the same set of rotors, so has my brother. I would gladly stack our bills for rotors for the year next to the Tracy's and I guarantee that ours will be smaller. Not only that, which ones are less work? Which ones are safer?

Well made 2 piece racing rotors are a better solution. Initial investment is higher. Cost per track hour is less.

gkmccready

How long does it take to change out a friction ring if you do crack a rotor? Do your rotors require safety wire?

RedLS6

When you ran a full season + most of the next one, could you detail how many events this included, the number of sessions per event, type of pads and a rough estimate of "how hard" you were using the brakes? Also, how much $$ will it be to replace your rotors?

I'm one of the guys with a stack of NAPA rotors.......haven't found a lower cost alternative yet, but am always looking.

.

0Vector Vette

I have never timed putting them together but it is time consuming. I would estimate that it takes me about 20 to 30 minutes. My rotors do not use safety wire, we use aircraft quality stainless steel "jet nuts". They won't back off on their own. The nuts do have to be torqued to a specific value.

I understand your concerns about changing them at the track. With everything you have to do to get them off and then having to take the old ones apart and re-assemble. I doubt this could be done at an HPDE event without losing a session. The guys who are racing all have two sets of hats so they avoid this. This would be a large expense to run HPDE events. My advise would be to carry a cheap set as a backup so you can get back on the track quicker. You could then change the hats between sessions or after the day is done. Honestly though, if you put these rotors on your car and run Cobalt Friction brake pads, you simply won't have the kind of problems you have been having. If you are interested, give me a call at 630-844-0089.
Robert Finlayson
Performance AFX Motorsports

0Vector Vette

Chris,
I race my car in SCCA and NASA mostly in the TCC series. We usually run 6 or 7 events a season. All are 2 day race weekends. With SCCA we normally run two sessions per day, with NASA it is usually 3 sessions per day. I use Cobalt Friction XR2 brake pads, they are the best pads out there. Unbelievable stopping power, no brake fade, last far longer then any other pad, and are not abusive on the rotors. This is a racecar, I dont claim to be the next Michael Schumacher. However, my car is consistantly at the front of the pack. Our rotors for a C5 are $320 each, replacement rings are $155 each, bolt kit is $18.

Without knowing what you are doing with the car, it is impossible for me to tell you how much longer our rotors will last. If you are stacking up rotors it is safe to say you are pushing the car pretty hard. I think you will be a lot happier with our setup. There is a large initial investment, but in the end it will be cheaper.