Winterhawk

Big brake kits and slotted and drilled rotors will not shorten braking distance because that is limited by the friction between the road surface and tires. However, they can reduce brake fade after initial stops and can give you better modulation and feel during braking. I'll try and find a white paper on this subject which will give you a better understanding.

hyperbolical

How about the OEM Mopar 4778058AC? - I heard the OEM brake pads from Mopar were ceramic. Are they as good as the Hawk?

IJM

As good fade resistance and friction coefficient as the Hawks? I doubt it since the Hawks are designed to be more grippy and take more heat at the expense of dust and some pad life. The Hawks I mentioned above are semi-metallic. IIRC, just about all Hawk pads are semi-metallic.

cruiser54

Convert the rear to disc brakes. That improves overall braking.

oldnslow

In the Off Road dirt bike world, if it was going to be a muddy race, solid rotors were the smart choice. Slots and holes will fill with mud, acting like 36 grit sandpaper, causing very fast wear on the pads, like so fast the pads would be gone in a two hour race. I would imagine the same for cars.

UKXJ

There can't be many 4 wheeled vehicles that have a choice of solid or ventilated rotors, holes on the other hand are a different matter.

There's just something about drilled ventilated rotors I'm not comfortable with, grooves & dimples, maybe - but holes? Not for me, thanks!

peteinpeb

If I were to do it over again after buying a powerstop slotted and drilled brake kit, I would have just stuck with normal calipers and use a performance pad. I get stuck calipers from time to time if I don't drive the XJ because it cleans the rust off but jams the brake up a bit. It's happened twice but IMO the braking isn't good anyway so a rotor that can be resurfaced and is cheaper is the way to go. I am on 32 inch tires.

XJlimitedx99

I didn't see it mentioned in here, but I've always heard the benefit of slotting rotors is to give space for outgassing from the pads which will reduce brake fade. Note you can also buy rotors that are just slotted and not drilled.

IMO you would never see the performance benefit on these vehicles and money would be much better spent on a big brake upgrade. They do look cool though...

The other day I saw a picture of the PowerStop rear disc kit with non-ventilated drilled and slotted rotors and a red caliper. I couldn't help but think how ridiculous it looked because the tiny caliper was painted red and the solid non-ventilated drilled and slotted rotors.

vroomvroom

The problem with big brake kits for XJs is the amount of work involved.

cruiser54

correct. Outgassing.

Just convert to rear discs from a Grand Cherokee or Liberty.

IJM

That was true 50 years ago, but modern pad compounds no longer behave that way.

4.3L XJ

But really worth it especially if you are running tall tires

UKXJ

I've had a few "moments" stopping XJ's as quickly as I'd like, but the problem has always been not stopping the wheels turning - but stopping the Jeep carrying on, even though the wheels aren't turning. That's why I no longer use MT's in the winter.

IJM

Not to be a dick, but MT tires are notoriously crap in the snow/ice. Not race slick bad, but still pretty ****ty.

UKXJ

Snow/ice? I'm talking about wet tarmac! Maybe I've learned to drive within the MT's limitations, but I had far more problems with the Grabber AT's on my previous XJ's. Still glad I managed to sort out a set of Winter tyres though.