Now Shipping: Custom Tesla Roadster 2-Piece Slotted Rotors

[strider]

It all depends on what you're going to do with the car. If you're not going to track it don't put track pads on it as they won't work when cold. Putting track pads on your street car (or motorcycle) does not make you cool, it will result in you rear-ending someone. I'm running the Carbotech 1521 (Bobcat) pads on my Roadster. I am thrilled with them but I only daily drive my Roadster and that is on 101. My typical commute is tooling around at 75mph on a cool morning and then traffic stops dead. I need a pad that will work in that scenario every time. The Bobcats work great for that. They have worked well in cold rain too. They also don't dust at all that I can tell. When I wash my car the wheels have dirt on them from the road but there's no dust (I assume there's a little but I can't tell). It doesn't get very cold here so the AX-6's work fine too as wiztecy can attest and they have more aggressive bite (wiztecy's commute is way more "fun" than mine assuming traffic is flowing so he has more use for the brakes).

Brake pads are like tires and other parts. There are so many variables it's hard to predict what you'll like and most everyone's profile is different. Read what you can but above all else be realistic about how you're going to use the car. Don't get high performance pads because you "might go to the track someday."

 

[bonnie]

I put myself on the list . How do I make sure that the brake pads that I'm ordering are the CarboTech (instead of the AX-6)?

 

[wiztecy]

I put myself on the list . How do I make sure that the brake pads that I'm ordering are the CarboTech (instead of the AX-6)?

I talked to Bonnie about this, what she's saying is that she would like to pick up the CarboTech BobCat 1521 brake pads instead of the CarboTech AX6s. We talked about it, pros/cons, and with the help of Strider's feedback the 1521s are best suited for her.

 

[wiztecy]

I wanted to give a little comparison between the stock rotors and brake setup vs. the CRF 2 piece rotors and Carbotech pads. I have the AX6 pads, so they dig into the rotor more (The 1521 pads will too) vs. the stock Brembo pads. At 6k miles on my Roadster I had found many issues with the stock brake setup. 1) Rear pad cracked off (due to stress and heat). 2) The rear rotors were warped which was found when I had them turned. Also I could see significant wear and grooves on the rear disc. (Again a sign of stress and heat). I've never seen brake pads or rotors show such significant wear in my life with only 6k miles. Very bad. Not to mention the poor braking response and performance from the entire braking system. Hence all the upgrades I ended up doing to the brake system.... I'm constantly hearing from Roadster owners having the same issue, so its a real problem and a design flaw.

With that, adding the CarboTech brakes was offered a significant improvement. However I was still feeling brake fade when hammering on the brakes from high speeds. So that's where I started looking in having custom rotors made. Carbotechs paired with the CRF rotors eliminated the brake fade I had experienced, hence why I'm happy with the CRF rotor + Carbotech combination.

With that, I have about 54k miles on my Carbotech AX6 brakes, and about 12-15k miles on my CRF rotors. When I put my CRF rotors on the Roadster last year which the pads then had about 40k or so miles, the pads looked great. No cracking, crumbling, or any signs of stress or fatigue from heat. Just the other day I did a very close inspection of the CRF discs, I ran my finger across the wear plane and transitioned to the non-wear plane. I felt no lip! Also there are no grooves or imperfections with any of the discs both front and back. So with that the braking system based upon wear conditions is working optimally. So I'm very happy with the results and wanted to share.

With that, can the braking system still be improved upon? Yes! Bigger brakes and more braking is always a positive thing to add to your high performance vehicle. However, for my daily street driving which I push this car to its limits, its performing and outperforming my expectations having these two modifications done to the braking system.

As a reminder, its always good practice to bleed the entire brake fluid out of the system every 2 or so years. The brake fluid needs to be a clearish light yellow color. When it starts turning a darker, orangish shade, moisture had entered the system though humidity in the air and it needs to be flushed. Another key part of the braking system that you can't ignore. Corrosion in the brake system is bad and you can't see it so you need to be proactive with your brake flushes and observation on the color change.

 

[jasona]

March 2016 Roadster Rotors Group Buy

6 orders in 14 to go.

 

[wiztecy]

I think we need to break this thread out for the new group buy. I need to put a micrometer on my brake rotors, however I can feel more wear on the front of the brake rotor material than the rear. For me, that's optimal for what I'm looking in brake performance. Before, stock rotors even with the AX6 pads, I had more wear on the rear rotors which is what is not optimal. This is based upon having my rotors cut down and then when the Ax6 pads were initially put on. 6k miles. Now 60k miles.

Moderators, could we please create a new thread. Good for tracking how wear/production is going per release bases.

Thank you.

 

[tvuolo]

I must have missed the post on the price, and didn't see it when I went back through. Does anyone have the final cost?

 

[wiztecy]

Latest mail from David:

The prices will be the same as last year, we need to get 20 cars worth of
Set of 4 rotors, $1595.
Carbotech Bobcat pads cost is $320.
Friction discs only $1195(replacement set)
Rotors only $1595
Rotors and pads $1915
The sooner we get $ the sooner we can deliver.
Thanks and let me know how I can help.

 

[matt_in_ca]

Latest mail from David:

The prices will be the same as last year, we need to get 20 cars worth of
Set of 4 rotors, $1595.
Carbotech Bobcat pads cost is $320.
Friction discs only $1195(replacement set)
Rotors only $1595
Rotors and pads $1915
The sooner we get $ the sooner we can deliver.
Thanks and let me know how I can help.

I'm in for 4 rotors and Bobcat pads

 

[jasona]

March 2016 Roadster Rotors Group Buy

8 orders in 12 to go.

 

[jaanton]

I don't have time to lead on this, but would be interested in a second production round.

 

[wiztecy]

I don't have time to lead on this, but would be interested in a second production round.

You may want to PM/contact Matt who offered to be backup, and then he can either state he's the lead or looking for a lead while he keeps things rolling.

 

[matt_in_ca]

You may want to PM/contact Matt who offered to be backup, and then he can either state he's the lead or looking for a lead while he keeps things rolling.

I'm actually strapped for bandwidth at the moment, given tax season and a wad of business issues to deal with. So I'm probably not the best person to push this along at the moment. I apologize for that.

 

[jasona]

I'm actually strapped for bandwidth at the moment, given tax season and a wad of business issues to deal with. So I'm probably not the best person to push this along at the moment. I apologize for that.

I have an order already going
March 2016 Roadster Rotors Group Buy

8 orders in 12 to go.

 

[slcasner]

I have an order already going
March 2016 Roadster Rotors Group Buy

8 orders in 12 to go.

When I added my name to the list earlier, I was unsure whether a set was 2 or 4 rotors, so I wrote "2 sets (4 rotors total)". If a set is 4 rotors, as wiztecy's mail from David implies, then I hope I'm counted as one order on your list.

 

[jasona]

When I added my name to the list earlier, I was unsure whether a set was 2 or 4 rotors, so I wrote "2 sets (4 rotors total)". If a set is 4 rotors, as wiztecy's mail from David implies, then I hope I'm counted as one order on your list.

I agree it was not super clear, but I understand what you're going for.

 

[asgard]

I would go in on the buy but I have nobody to install it since Rob Dietsch moved to Sonoma. I am not good with repairs and general tweaking.
If I could find someone reliable to install it in the Bay Area, I'd be in.

 

[wiztecy]

I would go in on the buy but I have nobody to install it since Rob Dietsch moved to Sonoma. I am not good with repairs and general tweaking.
If I could find someone reliable to install it in the Bay Area, I'd be in.

There's someone in the South Bay who knew/worked with Rob who also specializes and is concomitant with the Lotus Elise/Exige, I forget his name off the top of my head, but a member mentioned that's who they take their Roadster now since Rob moved and he's quite pleased. Sure he'd install the rotors/pads without issue.

 

[wiztecy]

Giving this thread a BUMP so that those who want these rotors might have a chance and those who don't even know that there's a 2nd group buy are informed.

 

[RobsJester]

Giving this thread a BUMP so that those who want these rotors might have a chance and those who don't even know that there's a 2nd group buy are informed.

How much less is the group price for rotors and pads ($1915) vs purchasing directly?
I really want the best for the group, and I'd love to save some money in the process, but after 10 weeks we are at only 40% of the goal, there may simply not be enough active Roasters owners on TMC that need new pads and rotors.
Thoughts?