A few weeks ago we previewed upgrading your brakes when you add larger tires, more lift, and other parts that make your vehicle weigh more. You can read that article here.
The ProGrip brake system is a mid level upgrade. It includes larger rotors, new caliper brackets, and brake pads to round out the system. Some of the other kits on the market don’t include brake pads and of course there are full replacements kits that include new calipers.
The nice thing about the kits without calipers is no need to bleed the brake lines. Naturally you don’t get the finite braking performance of a full caliper upgrade, and it may not be necessary in all situations.
Install
In the world of accessory installs this is one of the easiest there is. The total install took less than an hour and other than taking off the wheel was only 4 bolts to deal with.
Because the kit comes with new pads it also includes new pad sliders. We aren’t going to break down the entire install here, there is plenty of information how to change your brakes and the directions supplied are very detailed.
Performance
When you install any upgrade the information that really matters is how does it perform. With many upgrades quantifying that upgrade is very difficult. With brakes the question of how do they performs a whole lot easier to answer. It all comes down to stopping distance and control. With that in mind we found a controlled area to test how much better these brakes stopped our 4 door JK than the factory brakes.
For our test we chose a speed of only 30 miles per hour. While faster is sexier this controlled and easily attainable speed meant we could do our testing safely and locally.
Our initial test runs netted an average stopping distance of 39 feet. From 30 MPH that is a long way when you are trying to avoid an accident. You can see in the video how far past the light post we were.
Once we installed the brakes and did a several hundred mile break in we went back and did the exact same testing and stopped in 19 feet from 30 MPH. For those who don’t want to do math that is 20 feet shorter at the low speed of 30 MPH! To put that further in perspective that’s roughly the length a full size pickup. Instead of that “Oh shit” feeling trying to stop in a panic situation, you are left relaxed and safe.
Information
The test vehicle is a 2015 Jeep Wrangler 4 door with 37 inch tires and 30,000 miles on the odometer. That mileage does contribute to some of the distance gained stopping as the pads and rotors did have wear. They were well within the factory specs and had years worth of use still available.
Factory replacement rotors are around $120 per rotor from the dealer. Quadratic sells them for $84.00 a piece. At $480 just for rotors that price tag of $995 for the brackets, pads, and rotors doesn’t seem as bad a pill to swallow, especially considering the performance upgrade.
One install note. Many wheels may not fit with the upgraded rotor size. Dynatrac has a handy printout that you can use to check your wheels before you order. Fitment template.
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