GMC 1-ton Brakes

[TravelTiger]

Looking to get brake service done before heading to the mountains this winter. May need new brake-pads. We're considering an upgrade to a pad designed for towing, like Hawk or PowerStop (these have been recommended to us). This is for our 2004 GMC 3500 dually, towing a less-than-14K ElkRidge. Any thoughts?

Thanks, Erika

 

[JanAndBill]

Just replaced the rear brakes on our F350 and went back with a good grade pad, same as before. I've never noticed any fade or lack of stopping power, with a 14500# trailer. Are you going to replace the rotors as well with drilled and slotted?

 

[TravelTiger]

Just replaced the rear brakes on our F350 and went back with a good grade pad, same as before. I've never noticed any fade or lack of stopping power, with a 14500# trailer. Are you going to replace the rotors as well with drilled and slotted?

Duh, I don't know enough to know what's the best solution?


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[brianharrison]

Stick with the OEM quality pad and original rotor design. I am presuming they are rotors/pads on front and drums/shoes on back? The upgraded HAWK or Powerstop pads/shoes may be designed for severe applications which may be overkill for your application compared to OEM - more money which may not provide added performance and may actually give you reduced performance at normal driving conditions. Sometimes performance pads/shoes provide best performance (ie braking power) at elevated temperatures. Finally, HAWK or Powerstop may supply a model to perform as similar to OEM (at normal operating temps, etc), but then you are paying extra for the name only - why not stick to OEM in this case, if it is less money?

My 2 cents.

Brian

 

[jnbhobe]

Do what Brain said don't waste your money.

 

[TravelTiger]

OK, just for a little more information, We had the brakes done Nov 2010. They replaced pads and rotors. According to the paperwork, used Duralast Gold brake pads and Duralast rotors. Was charged $79.99 EACH for the pads. Rotors were $59.99 and $79.99 each + INSTALL ($225).

Currently, we don't have squeaking, but to me, I think we have a little brake fade and a little pulsing occasionally, when I drive in town, not towing.

We want to make sure we're safe to go to the mountains this winter.

The PowerStop pads are $66.99 for front, $67.99 rear, for the pair. Install from 4WheelParts in Dallas: $79 per axle.


If "Gold" was so expensive, why do we both not feel confident with them?

 

[Sumo]

I over heated my brake driving through Yosemite National Park. It's a scary feeling when you are headed down hill, hit the brakes and nothing happens. I know that it was my fault, I was on and off the brakes all the way through the park. I did keep my wits about me on the now steep decline down the hill. I pumped my brakes, hit my trailer brake, down shifted, and put the emergency brake on. We did get stopped, only took a mile.
Got home switched my OEM for ceramic brakes, drilled and slotted rotors.

Than I bought a Duramax, made the same brake switch.
Just my opinion.

 

[mobilcastle]

Ceramic will give you better stopping power as they are more aggressive. I had a set on a Honda accord a few years back-they would grind when stopping-I did not like that so I switched them back. On a truck towing they may be very good for more stopping power. Do you have an exhaust brake? If not you may want to look at one-Banks makes them. Good luck

 

[olcoon]

Exhaust brakes are well worth the money. Our Ram came with it when we bought it. Towing in the Rocky Mountains, & last year going across the Big Horn's from Gillette to Cody, I hardly touched the brakes, as a matter of fact most of the time I'd have to speed up because I was going too slow! This was while towing the 5er & in Tow-Haul mode.

 

[Invizatu]

Best buy for the buck.... Ceramic pads. JMHO
See ya'll next week!

 

[JanAndBill]

On mine I used the mid grade semi metallic Bendix pad. As said earlier a good grade pad is sufficient, and the addition of an exhaust brake would be money better spent. My personal opinion is that if you go to a ceramic pad you should change the rotors to slotted and drilled, otherwise you're putting to much heat load on the rotors. Rotors do not wear evenly and can warp due to excessive heat, causing lack of stopping power and pulsing. Also, you didn't mention the road conditions, but ABS sensors will pulse to keep your wheels from locking up when they lose traction.

 

[Dave49]

I would suggest not going to the Hawk pads as they are so hard that they wear the rotor and cause more heat which will eventually warp the rotor. The reason I know this is because I raced cars for 31 yrs. and have used the Hawk pads on the stock rotors as we were in this class required to use stock rotors. The stopping power wasn't all that better but in a half of a season we had to replace the rotors. Stay with the stock type pads and you will be just fine. I also went with the stock type pads offered by Auto Zone and Advanced Auto that gave a lifetime warranty and was getting them replaced every month on the race car. And they replaced them......Dave

 

[porthole]

I did almost 20 years working on new cars, Chrysler Class A tech. Owned nothing but Dodge and Plymouth products.
Since leaving that field I have owned nothing but GM and Ford products.

When I had my Tahoe I went with aftermarket brake pad and rotors several times.
The brake issues I had with aftermarket pads and rotors related to where they came from.

In the end I would recommend OEM pads, even if it means buying them from the dealer.

I think I can say with confidence, Ford, GM and Dodge do not supply their trucks with inferior brake products.

and put the emergency brake on.

"Parking brake" Really not an emergency brake. They are designed to hold a stopped vehicle.

 

[Lynn1130]

I assume from your signature that the vehicle is a Duramax. If I am wrong this may not apply, but it is pretty well known that the Duramax will pull just about any load. Getting it stopped with that load on is another story. With that in mind sticking with OEM may just leave you with the same stopping issues while upgrading to pads and rotors with more stamina may be the way to go. I am just over 80K on the originals and the norm for these vehicles has been around 90K for break replacement so I am looking too. What it will be I don't know yet but probably not OEM. And exhaust brakes are WONDERFUL.

 

[Sumo]

I was driving a Tahoe pulling a 24 ft trailer. The duramax up-grade was made 60 days after my down hill driving mistake.

I know what a parking is for, But desperate times call for desperate measures.

I do use the Tow mode when towing with the truck, it was not an option on my 99 Tahoe.

As far as an exhaust brake, when finances permit.

 

[TravelTiger]

OK, here are the specific pads we'd consider, seem to be marketed to what we want:

http://powerstoponly.com/p-850-power-stop-z36-truck-and-tow-brake-pads.aspx

http://www.hawkperformance.com/truck/superduty.php

 

[brianharrison]

OK, here are the specific pads we'd consider, seem to be marketed to what we want:

http://powerstoponly.com/p-850-power-stop-z36-truck-and-tow-brake-pads.aspx

http://www.hawkperformance.com/truck/superduty.php

Thanks for the links - helps frame my comments. I think you touched on the crux of the matter - they are "marketed" to what you want.....

If you need upgraded, aftermarket brake pads to provide a sense of security, then by all means purchase the aftermarket pads. IMHO, the OEM are as good if not better, and the costs are probably comparable. The choice of a rotor is as important, as aftermarket rotors are not all created equal (as Duane pointed out). Pads and rotors are integral on the performance of each other. That is the reasoning to recommend OEM rotors and pads - you know they are "matched" for each other, wrt quality to provide matched performance and longevity.

Both links you provided indicate the "towing" pads are high carbon - to help with preventing fade at higher operating temperatures - they do this by removing heat from the mating surface quickly (high carbon content) and more aggressive biting surface (how they lay down the metal in the pad manufacturing process, I think). High carbon pads do create higher levels of brake dust (ie black powder on rims).

Regarding your current set up, the Duragold pads may have ceramic? in them which does not dissipate heat well, allowing the mating surface to heat up, reducing friction forces at higher temps - ie fade. Slotted/drilled rotors do not help cool the mating face (that's the fins inside the mating surfaces of the rotors) Drilled/slotted rotors remove gas buildups at the mating surface, which also creates fade (the buildup of gases, that is). Can't comment any more on your existing setup.

Most importantly, the appropriate bedding in of the brakes will ensure good stopping power.

The installation cost is irrelevant in my opinion - I would pay top dollar for the best installer, for the best pads/rotors are poor performers if the installation is screwed up. Duallys are always complex jobs if you are replacing rotors - axle shafts need to be removed and reinserted, and the appropriate parts replaced - I personally have replaced all the seals, small clips, etc when I have done duallys. Here is a link with some pictures for changing rear rotors on a dually. Interesting stuff.

Hope this helps some,
Brian

 

[Lynn1130]

For what it is worth I asked my truck/car mechanic about brakes for the truck while the car was in for an oil change. He said that OEM brake pads for the truck were, in his thoughts, the best and cross-drilled and slotted brake rotors were the best at preventing fade and holding temps down.

 

[Gary521]

Little background, I race a sports car during the summer. Brakes are just as important as the engine in this case. Drilled and Slotted rotors will do nothing to help cool the brakes. The the purpose for drilling and slotting is for relieving gas pressure generated from the pads. However, driving an RV is not going to generate any gas pressure as we just ain't going that fast and not generating the heat loads found in racing. These fancy rotors are not necessary on a RV. In the sports car, to cool the brakes, we duct air to blow into the center of the rotor. However there is a rotor that will help the warping situation due to overheating. These are Cryo treated rotors. I believe you can get them from Powerslot. Hawk and Powerslot pads are good if you get the right formulation. With the right pads, rotor wear is not an issue also. I use Performance Friction pads in the sports car with a formulation designed for racing and they have very little rotor wear. Hawk makes a pad designed for heavy duty truck use.

 

[TravelTiger]

I knew I'd get some knowledgeable opinions here. It sounds like OEM would be the way to go. But if going with aftermarket, we probably should consider the kit by PowerStop, that has rotors and pads, mated to each other, like this: http://powerstoponly.com/p-896-power-stop-1-click-heavy-duty-truck-and-tow-brake-kit.aspx