new discs and pads

[HOT-ROD]

I'm looking at replacing both front and rear discs and pads in the near future. I was wondering what people recommended? Looking to keep the standard 2.0 setup for now (possibly upgrading to 288's and retiring the standard fronts to the "hotrod" when I eventually get that running ).
Can pick up drilled and grooved fronts and rears off ebay for around £100 mark but not sure if these are any good. I also see LMF do some but they're over £100 just for the fronts.

Any help with this would be much appreciated.

Cheers.

[rips]

I've recently seen a similar question on the Elan forum. They are well into their brake upgrades on there because the standard ones (from an Astra GSi) are terrible.

Grooves don't produce any noticeable improvement even though hey should give the dust & rust another escape path. I've read elsewhere that holes can weaken the discs.
Greenstuff pads are common because they are the cheapest upgrade, but they can be variable. They seem to have gone through several compounds, some of which are ok, others are dangerously poor when cold.
Redstuff are better. Pagid Blue S4.2 are supposed to be really good.
I cooked a set of front discs to the point of cracking them on my old 2.0 Cav with standard discs & pads. Upgraded pads generate more heat so this will be more possible.

If you are thinking of going for bigger discs then go for it. You will notice the difference.
Bigger discs provide more braking force (because the pads are further away from the centre, like using an extension bar on your wheel brace) & their bigger size allows them to dissipate heat more effectively.

[v6 steve]

iv got 308mm grooved with green stuff pads on the LE they are good but its more about tyres and grip on the road, if you can lock the brakes up at speed its the tyres that have to transfer it to the road, iv got 155mm on the Drain with s**t pads but thats all just for looks lol

[HOT-ROD]

I wouldn't say I drive the car that hard that I'll cook the brakes. The only reason I'm changing is because after standing for a couple of years all the discs are pitted which is giving me vibration through the pedal.

[rips]

If you can lock the brakes up at speed its the tyres that have to transfer it to the road

That's a poor illustration.

Firstly, how would you lock a Calibra? They all have ABS.
Being able to lock your wheels means very little. You can lock up almost anything if you slam your foot on the brake pedal hard enough. You won't stop anywhere near as well as you would if you kept the tyre rolling because dynamic (skidding) friction is not as high as static friction (wheels rolling) & you'll have next to no control either.
The purpose of friction brakes is to turn kinetic energy into heat. They then have to dissipate it.

What about if you've just descended a twisty road on a long, steep hill & have slowed into a village? If your brakes don't dissipate heat well enough, they will be well above their normal working temperature & you won't be able to stop when that someone pulls out in front of you without checking the road properly.
Also, if you are having to hit the pedal hard, it is harder to judge than if you have a soft, progressive response.