Which brand brake pads and rotors?

Bout to replace the front pads on the old '96 XJ and was wondering what brand pads to go for. Recently switched up to getting stuff from NAPA instead of the local O'Reiley's b/c of the quality factor. Would just whatever OEM brake pads NAPA carries be alright?

Also, the rotors are gonna have to be shaved (deeply gouged, didn't know it) and will reuse if I can. But if they turn out to be too worn a brand suggestion for replacing them would come in handy as well.

Thanks

Centric rotors are a good bet

Check out rock auto

I work as a sales rep for Napa so I'm going to give you a quick sales pitch.

Do yourself a favor and try the Adaptive one brake pads. I used them on everything before I even worked for Napa. I have tried plenty of other options when I was a service manager and Napa brakes always worked well for me. I have the Adaptives on my XJ and my ladies' 09 Civic and they are phenomenal. They are a hybrid ceramic (different inner and outer pad) and have tested better than any other OE style brake pad on the market. They also will leave no dust on your wheels and last forever. When I was a service manager I used them as a "problem solver" pad if I had a constant brake noise problem from a customer. As a sales rep, I have had 0 warranty issues with them. That says a lot. Limited Lifetime Warranty.

If you are looking for 100% OE go with the Ultra Premium pads. They are a little cheaper than the Adaptive Ones and are a limited lifetime warranty. If you want a 90% OE pad (Same chamfers, slots, hardware, etc with just a slightly different formulation) go with the Premium pads. These will be cheaper than the Ultra Premium and Adaptives and are 2 year warranty. Stay away from the cheap Napa Proformer pads. They are cheap for a reason. When it comes down to dollars, you won't remember how much you paid 60k+ miles from now for a good set of brakes. But you will remember how much you spent on a cheap set after 20k miles and they are gone.

As for rotors, if you want a top of the line set of rotors go with Napa Reactive one rotors. They are super high quality, slotted, and have a coating on them to prevent rust. They do come with a price tag though. Ultra Premium rotors are great and are coated but are a little pricey too. If you are looking for OE quality just go with the basic Premium line rotors. They won't let you down. I use ADO pads and Premium rotors on my XJ and the Civic and I use Ultra Premium Severe Duty Pads with Reactive One Rotors on my Cummins.

Gotta be confident in the products you sell, and I am because I use them myself. What better way to test them by using them on my own vehicles. Let me know if you have any questions.

I don't know if your jeep is stock or not, but if you want a performance upgrade, you want Black Magic brake pads on Centric rotors.

I second the Black Magic pads on Centric rotors. Blaine at Black Magic can get you set up.

One note of caution - follow the break-in / bedding instructions to the letter. If you do, you will be amazed at the performance improvement.

David Bricker / SYR

Big thanks for all the help. Forgot to mention I'm still stock everything and I'm a super easy driver. Always very light on the brakes. Would this make any difference for recommendations?

Centric rotors and black magic pads are a winning combo. Lots of cheaper options, but if the combo holds up to hundreds of miles and multiple seasons, performing like a champ on the road race Jeep, (Team Petty Cash) they'll be the bomb on your street/trail Jeep.

CumminsJeep,

Does this mean I should exchange the Performer brake shoes I bought for the set that costs $50 more?

I run Black Magic pads and Centric rotors, with a Vanco setup, and fully approve. Good cold performance and it just gets better when hot.

For a different choice, I have install the kit below, from Rock Auto, on two XJs and have liked the increased performance, hot and cold. If you need rotors, it's a good deal.
"POWER STOP Part # K2119 {#BK259345} Performance Brake Upgrade Kit; Incl. 11.02 in. Silver Zinc Plated Cross-Drilled And Slotted Rotors w/Z16 Ceramic Scorched Pads "
$144.79

David_Bricker said:

I second the Black Magic pads on Centric rotors. Blaine at Black Magic can get you set up.

One note of caution - follow the break-in / bedding instructions to the letter. If you do, you will be amazed at the performance improvement.

David Bricker / SYR

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also, don't drive like an old person.

if your braking style is a long, slow drag to get you to a stop, you will not see the benefit of the black magic pads, and you will glaze the rotors and end up needing to do a re-break frequently.

if you are like me and you actually get within a close distance of the intersection and actually using the brakes to stop you, the black magics will work like a charm.

md21722 said:

CumminsJeep,

Does this mean I should exchange the Performer brake shoes I bought for the set that costs $50 more?

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Proformer shoes are still great. Its the Proformer pads you have to look out for.

As for Centric, they are my biggest competitor when it comes to quality. I'll be the first to say that they make great brake products.

I run the Adaptive ones on 35s with an 8.8 with discs in the rear. stops on a dime.

I'll be the billionth to recommend Black Magic pads/Centric rotors. I've installed them on my stock and modified XJ. The previous pads were EBC Greenstuff and Yellowstuff - Black Magic pads win hands down.

I like the power slot rotors and have used Hawk HPS pads and liked them before switching to their LTS pads. The LTS pads seem to last a bit longer and as far as I can tell stop just as well. For the drums/shoes I just went with whatever higher end stuff at napa which is still fairly cheap and haven't had any issues.

I use EBC Green pads on another vehicle and like them well enough although they dust A lot.

I have 2 auto zones local to me so i use their lifetime replacment pads and a local mom n pop shop carry the front disc for 22.99 a pop basically what id pay to turn them to specs so i just get new discs and autozone replaces the pads when worn. Works well enough for my driving style.

Are EBC any good?

Re: Re: Which brand brake pads and rotors?

RRXJEEPER71 said:

Are EBC any good?

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They've got a few different options that are better than OEM but people who have run both have said the black magic pads are better still.

Ran ebc yellows on my.wj setup. They worked quite well.

Any opinion about the Power Stop daily driver rotor and pad set from Rock Auto, Power Stop part # KOE2119? This is not the high performance upgrade kit Power Stop part # K2119, I believe this is just OE. Looks like it includes the same 'Z16 Ceramic Scorched Pads' as the higher performance kit but without the drilled and slotted rotors.

Again, I'm a slow azz driver. For $82 bucks to my door this seems like a decent option unless there's something bad wrong with the included rotors.

I really liked my centric rotors with EBC Yellow. EBC Yellow has a little bit more braking power while cold than the EBC Greens. Brakein takes a while with Yellows though. It was a long time for me (about a thousand miles) before the noises stopped but overall I'm really happy. Next time I think I'm going with the Greens because of price.

Qban said:

I really liked my centric rotors with EBC Yellow. EBC Yellow has a little bit more braking power while cold than the EBC Greens.

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My Vanco brakes originally came with EBC Yellows and they were absolutely the best brakes ever on the XJ...when they were hot.
The hotter they got, the brakes became smoother and stronger but they almost didn't work at all when cruising down the freeway on a cold winter's morning. After almost running into a car because the brakes has little grab, the Yellows had to go.
Blaine had just started selling Black Magic pads and said they worked hot and cold so I took his suggestion and bought a set. I'm impressed, good grab hot or cold, just not as smooth as the EBC Yellows, when hot.
One bit of advice, they will glaze if you use the brake pedal lightly too much. A couple hard, high-speed stops will clean them up.