1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

louis

Well-Known Member
Legendary 10 Years
hi guys,

any idea what are the advantages and disadvantages of the above type of rotors?

had my heart set on a wilwood BBK until i realised that the 2-piece rotors offered by them is not of a floating design. this puzzled me greatly as i always assumed that the terms 2-piece and floating are interchangeable....

i know stoptechs and brembo 2-piece rotors are floating...

any input would be appreciated.

cheers

Louis
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

Bro, 1 pc are rotors that are ground from 1 solid pc of steel. The 2 pc type have an aluminium hat that saves weight. The floating type are also 2 pc but the mounting is not as fixed as a bolt through hole. They use pins to locate the discs so that it allows for a little more expansion when the heat builds up. This will allow for the different expansion rates.

Cheers
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

Louis
If u plan to do more tracking cum keeping your car bit longer , go for AP or ST, u won't regret it...
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

TripleM said:
Louis
If u plan to do more tracking cum keeping your car bit longer , go for AP or ST, u won't regret it...

erm, so you mean wilwoods are not good for track use?

louis

p.s. you've got PM, need to ask you something!
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

Wilwood is good but there are better ones.
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

louis said:
hi guys,

any idea what are the advantages and disadvantages of the above type of rotors?

had my heart set on a wilwood BBK until i realised that the 2-piece rotors offered by them is not of a floating design. this puzzled me greatly as i always assumed that the terms 2-piece and floating are interchangeable....

i know stoptechs and brembo 2-piece rotors are floating...

any input would be appreciated.

cheers

Louis

eh?
I thought floating means that hydraulics only "squeeze" ONE side of the brake pad (i.e. only 1 piston/pot) cos the other side is spring loaded (hence described as "floating")
Hence floating calipers are not as good
ST & AP are 4 pots & hydraulics "squeeze" both sides? hence more effective...
hence ST & AP are not floating calipers
I think OEM only use 4 pot for cars >200bhp

Correct me if I'm wrong...
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

hmm, i was referring to floating rotors, not calipers. but i'm no expert at this so i may just be confusing myself
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

That is caliper but the discussion above was bout the rotors being either one piece or 2 piece or 2 piece floating
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

Louis,

Go with the proven routes.

At least we all know that StopTech and AP works.

For AP, i know that the floating 2 piece rotor is about half the weight of a standard 330 rotor. that is how light it is.

Also, the caliper is also pretty light compare to the original. No point u get a BBK and increases the unsprung weight of the car. U get more braking torque but have to lug a heavier nose round the bend... LPPL
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

guys,

thanks for the input so far!! you chaps are the best, but also the worst influence sia....keke, after one track day and the mod bug has bitten already...

my mum kenna bitten also. she's thinking of the full nismo kit..brakes, exhaust, bodykit, the works.... steam

back to brake discussion:

thus far, the learning points are:

1) get a proven brand if possible
2) weight is my enemy
3) 2-piece is lighter than 1-piece

BUT: is 2-piece floating significantly better than 2-piece non-floating? how does giving greater allowance for different rates of expansion provide an advantage on track?

cheers
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

my mum kenna bitten also. she's thinking of the full nismo kit..brakes, exhaust, bodykit, the works.... steam

Make sure u get urself entitled to a fair share of mod funds:)
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

louis said:
guys,

back to brake discussion:

thus far, the learning points are:

1) get a proven brand if possible
2) weight is my enemy
3) 2-piece is lighter than 1-piece

BUT: is 2-piece floating significantly better than 2-piece non-floating? how does giving greater allowance for different rates of expansion provide an advantage on track?

cheers

1. Absolutely

2. Definitely (Piggy's comment abv) . Generally speaking, BBK with floating rotors shave some weights over the stock brakes. The weight savings come from the attachment of aluminium hats which are bolted inside the rotors and the use of aluminum material on the main body of the calipers. Some calipers are monobloc, some are built from two-piece joined together. And typically, they are forged.

3. Correct. 1 piece rotor is made entirely of cast iron. While 2 piece rotor has aluminium hat attached to it, whether it's the fixed type or floating type.
The floating type allows for better expansion(due to heat) and this will also lead to improved heat dissipation.

One of the other advantages of the floating type is that in the event if your disc warped, you can just buy the disc rotor and use back the old alu hat. The non-floating 2 piece rotors dont allow this, ie u must change the entire piece.

Hv a look at this web link..
http://www.zeckhausen.com/Brembo/Rotor_Replacement.htm
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

TripleM said:
Make sure u get urself entitled to a fair share of mod funds:)

cannot... no pride. big boy liao still use mummy's money? i use what little i get from my car grooming business and returns from my ladbrokes account (haha) to fund my mods. hence my super tight budget.

and thanks for the link!! dave has such a wealth of knowledge!

cheers
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

louis said:
guys,

thanks for the input so far!! you chaps are the best, but also the worst influence sia....keke, after one track day and the mod bug has bitten already...

my mum kenna bitten also. she's thinking of the full nismo kit..brakes, exhaust, bodykit, the works.... steam

back to brake discussion:

thus far, the learning points are:

1) get a proven brand if possible
2) weight is my enemy
3) 2-piece is lighter than 1-piece

BUT: is 2-piece floating significantly better than 2-piece non-floating? how does giving greater allowance for different rates of expansion provide an advantage on track?

cheers


Hi,

Brembo has been the frontiers in the development of the 2 piece floating rotors.

I quote with references from a brembo website:

There are several reasons that a two-piece floating disc assembly is of benefit.

First, by using an aluminum bell for the hub section of the disc saves a great deal of weight. Since this is both rotating and unsprung, it benefits the acceleration, braking, and handling of the vehicle.

Secondly, it is better able to handle the large temperature changes that a brake disc experiences. During severe use, temperature variances become present in a one-piece disc and generally cause warping of the disc. This not only results in vibration of the vehicle, and pulsing of the brake pedal, but also pushes the pistons farther away from the disc. In a two-piece floating disc assembly, the iron disc heats up more uniformly, and the controlled float which is present allows for the differential expansion of the very hot brake disc, and the relatively cool aluminum bell. This allows the disc to be used under severe conditions without having a detrimental effect.

You are right to compare the 3 basic variants.

1 piece solid - slightly heavier compared to 2 piece rotors
2 piece rotors - joint by securing nuts from bell to rotors hence slightly lighter
2 piece 'floating' rotors - lighter, allow expansion during high heat (extremely useful for trackdays)

It all depends on your application.

Cheers bro.
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

Thanks Bravo for the insightful reference
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

bravo said:
Hi,

Brembo has been the frontiers in the development of the 2 piece floating rotors.

hi, being a brembo dealer yourself, i'm not surprised that you're saying this. but i'm sure your input is appreciated nonetheless by others reading this thread.
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

Hi all,

I have been pondering over Brembo vs Stoptech as well....
Stoptech seems to have a few good patents while Brembo is a long established brand...
If 1 have budget for both brands, which one over the 2 would be recommanded?

Cheers
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

EPOH said:
Hi all,

I have been pondering over Brembo vs Stoptech as well....
Stoptech seems to have a few good patents while Brembo is a long established brand...
If 1 have budget for both brands, which one over the 2 would be recommanded?

Cheers

Definitely StopTech. It's better and cheaper too for the same class.
 
Re: 1-piece rotors vs 2-piece rotors vs 2-piece floating rotors

I agree with Triple M

Look for the lightest calipers and discs for the same size. Thereafter if you can afford it go for floating rotors. Last look for availability of replacement pads. You dun want to get a brake set that uses only their own pads. That's gonna push the running costs through the roof.

IMHO, if you are gonna track often, go for the floating rotors as the differences in thermal expansion rates may become quite apparent on the track.

Good luck
 

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