changing Front Brake Pads For Towing TT

I bought EBC slotted rotors and yellow stuff pads for the front and the same slotted rotors and green stuff for the rear of my suburban. It is big, heavy and has 33" tires. I needed better brakes because the factory stuff was warped.
Shop around, got mine on ebay for not much more than a full set of factory replacements. Best money I ever spent. I tow in the mountains and have not (since the replacement) experienced any situation that I never felt in full control.
Are they NECESSARY? No, but I know my vehicle and how it performs and felt that I wanted better braking in the case that the trailer brakes ever went out especially towing in the mountains. Been there with my 5er and Dodge CTD, 7-way cable somehow came unplugged and I didn't realize it until I was headed down a hill and needed to stop......good thing I had upgraded my brakes......

Brake pad outgassing is a non issue these days with modern brake pads. Most manufacturers claim that their pads produce gas minimally under heavy braking. If ceramic pads are used then outgassing is a complete non issue since the pads don't outgas. Brake pads these days are engineered with materials that reduce outgassing under heavy braking. One of the reasons larger pads typically have slots cut into them is to vent heat and what little gas they produce. Now the asbestos pads from days of yonder are a different story. All vehicles have to comply with FMVSS which tests hot performance, cooling, and recovery all at GVWR which is why I find specialized rotors unnecessary. If the trailer's brakes are setup correctly, regular pads and brakes are more than sufficient to stop the combo.

trailer brakes are to stop the trailer weight

tow vehicle brakes are to stop the tow vehicle and the momentum of both.

you want the trailer brakes to help keep the tow vehicle straight under hard stopping.

best place to start on better braking... it tow vehicle Tires... second it trailer brakes to Disc.... third is hydraulic control of trailer brakes..

do a test.. if you can LOCK tow vehicle brakes and NOT the trailer brakes at the same time.. you have to much tow vehicle brakes OR To Little trailer brakes.

my opinion.. you want the trailer to TRACK behind the Tow vehicle under braking.

and vented brake rotors are great... for heat removal. not holes.
remember as the brake pads get HOT, they GAS... and MUST be removed from the face of the rotors... End of Story. and my opinion only .. so START reading books on the subject...

justafordguy wrote:
I replaced front and rear pads on my F250 with Hawk Performance LTS pads and the difference was night and day.It stops better than it did when new. I would recommend them even if you didn't tow.

I put these on my Tundra, which already had great brakes (just time to replace) and wowza they were awesome when towing. I am thinking of getting some for my new ram. The hotter they got the better they stopped.

Acdii wrote:
As someone else pointed out, there really isn't such a thing as a warped rotor, but an uneven rotor from pad deposits.

Just because you have never seen it doesn't mean that it doesn't happen......ever.

I quite assure you that warped rotors DO happen.

Not just out of the blue, mind you, and not nearly as often as it happened say 30 years or so ago but under extreme conditions or with inferior parts it still does happen.

Now, having said that, other things cause brake pulsation much more frequently than mis-shapen rotors and I learned LONG ago to not routinely authorize "turning" rotors as a routine service proceedure. If they really are bad, replace them. Once damaged to the point or warping, the metal is damaged and will just warp again.

I use semi-metallic pads as well, but be aware that they tend to squeak more than some of the ceramic pads.

Do this. Go to the dealer's lot of any of the big 3. Find one of the 14,000 GVWR trucks and tell them you want to see what's behind the wheels. What do you see?

Appreciate the comments form the last two posters. I don't have the training but was advised by someone who does. Nice to have someone comment on knowledge based facts instead of opinionated ignorance.

Acdii, X2 on the slotted rotors. To say they are a waste of money is short sited. For flatlander's they may be a waste of money. But if you do a lot of towing in the mountains, the extra cost could be justified.

If you know and understand how braking works from the perspective of the pad and rotor, then you wouldn't be chastising people who use slotted rotors. As someone else pointed out, there really isn't such a thing as a warped rotor, but an uneven rotor from pad deposits. I have ASE level training on brakes(among other things), and can tell you that slotted rotors, not dimpled or drilled, but just plain slotted rotors increase braking under extreme conditions, such as going down a grade with steady braking. Those slots allow gasses from the pads to be evacuated so they don't build up under the pads and cause brake fade.

As for racing, there would be no way you would use these for racing, you would use purpose built rotors and pads.

As for the OP, a good set of pads, EBC, or Powerstop. I have used EBC pads and they bed quickly and they do stop very well. Well worth the price. Rotors are rotors, whether very expensive, or cheap, as long as they meet specs, they will work, but put cheap pads on, get them hot and hold them against any rotor, and eventually you will have "warped" disks.

Never use cross drilled rotors, they tend to crack under hard use, dimples dont do much, they carry a tiny bit of gas out, its the slots that do the most work as they are wider than the pads so gasses can escape as the slot moves across the pads.

When it comes to towing, it is ALWAYS a good idea to have more braking power than you need.