Plain brake disks vs grooved/drilled - any real advantages?

[andrewrx7]

Hi,

What are people’s views on the efficacy of plain disks vs drilled vs grooved? Are the holes and grooves just a piece of marketing hype, or do they actually help under certain conditions? I’ve just bought a cheap run around and will be doing a few fun track days with it, but was advised to stay clear of the grooved/drilled options because they do little to improve braking but eat the pads much faster. Just thought I’d ask for other opinions â€" but I guess I’ll get a mixture! I understand the points about de-glazing and better air flow to aid cooling etc, and the concerns about drilled holes fracturing due to heat stress, but do the advantages actually exist or is it better to go with plain disks?

Cheers!

[boosted]

my 2 pennies worth...id go with a branded disc manufacturer for sure and branded pads...on any car i take to the track i remove the dust shields from the front to aid cooling....i dont like drilled discs as had 1 fractured.
i use brembo vented plain discs with ebc green stuff pads on my colt gti track car never warped never faded! lots of noise and dust but stops on a sixpence!
 
braided brake lines are a very cost effective braking mod and gives you the excuse to renew brake fluid....middle pedal just as important as right pedal.

[billybobbooth]

Groved discs clean the serface of the pad slightly when braking helps stop them fromg getting that really glazeing

Drilled discs help vent the heat away when braking from the area the pad is in contact with.

You dont what hundreds of groves otherwise it turns the disc into a razor and cuts the pad too much about 6-8 is plenty
Same with holes too many and the brakes stay too cold and wont keep heat in needed for race pads ect to work there best.

Best combination is normal a 6-8 grove and vented disc provided you keep the pads hot enought if too cold just go for groved as they do vent some heat away but there main design is to stop glazing on good quality pads they shouldnt glaze

[4packet]

Not so convinced on the theory that drilled holes help vent away heat. Metal is a good conductor, air a good insulator. There won\'t be any significant air flow underneath the pad as it passes over the holes. The more holes you have the less thermal capacity the disc has so the peak disc temperature will be higher. I believe the holes are for aesthetic and weight reducing reasons. They will crack after a number of decent heat cycles.
 
I agree on the grooves. I personally favour having more metal on the disc and minimising pad wear.