Choopster

I am in need of a good 4Runner brake upgrade. I have read that some folks like the Tundra conversion while others use Brembo standard rotors and Hawk pads. I need help in determining what is the best way to go. In less than 10,000 miles I have warped my new NAPA rotors, I even purchased the premium ones. I have tried to keep my rear brakes adjusted using the e-brake in reverse. Any advise would be much appreciated...

Rock Slide

iTrader: (1)

I've really enjoyed my Tundra upgrade. I went with the brembo blanks, oem pads, and new reman Tundra calipers from Advanced Auto. I also upgraded my front brake lines to stainless steel lines. I hope to get pics up soon. A big thanks to WabFab Offroad for all their help!

seanz0rz

i will be performing the tundra upgrade soon, probably with x-mas money.

what ive read its the only way to prevent the mass warping of the stock 4runner brakes.

in my research I've found that the best combo is tundra swap with standard blank rotors (drilled and slotted fill with mud and debris and lessen brake effectiveness, though it doesn't look like you wheel all that hard) with pads of your choice. i haven't been able to research pads as of yet. im sure someone will chime in on the "correct" pad choice.

if you dont want to swap calipers, you can stick with standard rotors, just find some with a life time warranty or the like.

MTL_4runner

Do the Tundra upgrade and say goodbye to warped rotors.
I still think it was one of the best mods I've done.

Midget96

Tundra brakes are perfect for towing but not much else.

To remedy "warped" rotors, you need to learn how to torque your wheels properly and bed new pads correctly. I guarantee 90% of the bandwagoners on here that blew money on Tundra brakes didn't do either of these correctly. Try correcting the problem at the source instead of throwing money away on unnecessary parts, unless you do actually tow regularly.

And I have a 183K on stock rotors. Drive through the mountains all the time, too. But I never use an impact wrench to tighten my lugs and I only use the best pads money can buy (Hawk). And I have 255/85/16s...

Whitey13

I use Brembo blanks and OEM pads with no problems to report...95% city driving.

Choopster

Thanks for all the feedback guys...

waskillywabbit

iTrader: (-1)

A side by side comparision of stock 3rd gen 4Runner brakes to the Tundra brake upgrade brakes is quite noticeable as I installed this upgrade on Rock Slide's 3rd gen 4Runner a couple weeks ago.

The Tundra rotor dwarfs the 4Runner rotor in thickness, thus much more heat dissipation surface area, thus more stopping power and much less likeliness to warp. The calipers, pads, lines and bolts are practically the same, if not the same part number, except for the wider gap of the Tundra calipers to accomodate the wider Tundra rotor.

If it is time to replace your rotors/calipers this upgrade is money well spent IMO. Complete bolt on mod...bleed the brakes and you are done.

Gerdo

The first question is... Are your rotors actualy warped? When they are cold do they pulse the same as when you have been hard on the brakes? If they are fine when cool but pulse when hot then they are not warped. I have heard that ceramic pads will retain heat and will cause rotors to pulse. Ceramic pads were OEM because they are low dust. Mine are fine 95% of the time. Mine will pulse after I'm hard on them, usualy coming down the Colorado mountains when trailering. I'm still running my original rotors and pads and I have 162,000 miles on them!

MadCityRich

I'm happy with my Tundra upgrade. I compared the weight of my 4runner original rotors with about 95K on them with the new Tundra rotors/calipers/etc. There was about 10 lbs of difference in weight, with the 4runner rotors being only 10 lbs themselves. This tells me that there is a difference in the volume and type of material.

I had badly warped rotors on my 2002 Ltd, soon after buying it at 86k miles. The 199mm Tundra rotors were about the same diameter as the 4Runner rotors, but with much more material. Half the reason I did the upgrade was just to do it.

I'm curious about folks that have had good luck with their 4Runner rotors. I wonder if it's the type of braking people do that warps the rotors. I found mine got warped after having to do some very hard stopping in town when I was forced to come to a rapid and complete stop from about 45 mph. I speculate that more gradual braking may not have the same negative effect. My thinking is that rapid increases in rotor heat cause the warping as opposed to more gradual heat increases. In my mind, trailering would tend to lead to overall high heat, but a more gradual rise in heat. Is it possible it's the rate of change of heat rather than the total heat that matters?

MadCityRich
2002 4Runner Ltd.

Midget96

There's a huge difference between "warped" and "glazed".

You won't "warp" a rotor by simply using the brakes in normal day to day driving. It's all but impossible, unless you rapidly cool them by driving through a huge puddle. And even then, you're more likely to crack them.

You can "warp" a rotor a few ways. The easiest being lots of heavy braking (i.e. coming down a mountain) then stopping for an extended period with your foot on the brake. This creates a huge hot spot where the pad is contacting the rotor while the rest of the rotor is cooling through exposure to ambient air temp. This is why you don't use your e-brake after a road racing session, because it destroys your rotors through uneven cool down; I would always just leave the car in gear to hold it.

The other way is to improperly torque your lugs, and given the 4Runners oddball lug centric lugs and highly offset and relatively thin rotor hats, this is probably pretty easy to do as well.

All other braking issues are simply glazed rotors. Remember, you can feel a 0.0004" deposit of glazed pad material on the rotor surface through the brake pedal. Overworking cheap pads or contaminants on the surface of the rotor are primary causes. A few solutions here are to either buy a new, more aggressive pad and bed them properly (which may clean up the surface to do the higher coefficient of friction of the hotter pad) or have the rotors turned and use a pad more inline with your driving needs.

Choopster

Thanks again for the good information. The feeling that I am getting is a wheel wobble when applying the brakes normally. When I apply them really hard I feel less wobble but the vehicle does not slow down very well in these situations. When I replaced the rotors originally with the premium NAPA brand with premium pads the braking wheel wobble went away completely, for a while. I have come close to rear ending someone a few times as a result of poor braking even when the new parts were installed. If the Tundra setup will provide more braking power then this is the way I want to go. Can someone give me appropriate part #'s to go after. Is Brembo the best rotor to go with and is Hawk pads the best? Also, I need to know what year parts do I go after. I appreciate all the help.

Rock Slide

iTrader: (1)

Here's where I got all my info:

http://www.ultimateyota.com/index.ph...=26&topic=54.0

Choopster

Thanks very much Rock Slide. I will put a plan in action...

4unner4life

I assume us 15 inch wheel guys are out of luck with this, right?

DoubleZero4x4

Unfortunately, 15" wheels wont work for the Tundra upgrade.

cackalak han

Yes, but you can easily pick up some 16" 4Runner wheels for cheap. I've seen quite a bit on sale on the local classifieds, so keep an eye out.

I was going to do the Tundra upgrade, as I do think it is a great upgrade and best bang-for-buck. But I cheaped out and when my rotors finally warped after 90k miles, I just decided to replace them with Autozone Duralast blanks and ceramic pads. I've put on a couple thousand miles since then, so we'll see how it holds up. I keep my wheels properly torqued, so that's not an issue. If I have troubles with this set up, I will be going with the Tundra set up.

Bottom line: If you have the funds and the time, do the Tundra upgrade and fuggetboutit.