CCB Brakes - Frequency of weighing rotors?

[Dryden]

Hi all,

For those with CCBs on your Grand Sport or Z06, how often (kms/time) are you pulling off your CCB rotors to weigh them to make sure they are above the min weights?

I have 14k kms on mine, including a bunch of track time at Calabogie and will be pulling mine off in a couple days when I change the pads (for the second time...).

Are there any other symptoms of the rotors starting to wear to their minimum weight/thickness other than measuring?

Thanks!

Adam

 

[Vegas1500]

Had/have a few vehicles with them....this never ever entered my mind...although I do not track mine. Don’t think this is something the average person has to worry about.

 

[Kev]

Hi all,

For those with CCBs on your Grand Sport or Z06, how often (kms/time) are you pulling off your CCB rotors to weigh them to make sure they are above the min weights?

I have 14k kms on mine, including a bunch of track time at Calabogie and will be pulling mine off in a couple days when I change the pads (for the second time...).

Are there any other symptoms of the rotors starting to wear to their minimum weight/thickness other than measuring?

Thanks!

Adam

Changing the pads at 14k kms ?? For the second time ??? Never heard of this. I'd qualify this as very unusual, unless you ride both the brake and the gas pedals at the same time ! But then I'm no expert. I've had them since 2018 with 12k kms on my car.

 

[ddgermann]

Hi all,

For those with CCBs on your Grand Sport or Z06, how often (kms/time) are you pulling off your CCB rotors to weigh them to make sure they are above the min weights?

I have 14k kms on mine, including a bunch of track time at Calabogie and will be pulling mine off in a couple days when I change the pads (for the second time...).

Are there any other symptoms of the rotors starting to wear to their minimum weight/thickness other than measuring?

Thanks!

Adam

I have never considered pull mine off to weigh but please let us know what you discover. Interesting topic for sure.

 

[EJChevy]

I'd weigh them every time you service your brakes. Should be done at least once a year.

 

[ddgermann]

I'd weigh them every time you service your brakes. Should be done at least once a year.

You mean if a person tracks the car regularly right Eric?

 

[EJChevy]

You mean if a person tracks the car regularly right Eric?

Brakes should be serviced once a year, regardless of how much they're driven. With the callipers removed, pulling the rotors off is a quick, simple task. It would give me some peace of mind.

If someone didn't want to do it so frequently, then I would say weigh them when the pads are replaced.

If a 'Vette is tracked with CCB, how they look will tell whether or not they're worn as they degrade faster than they wear.

 

[ddgermann]

Brakes should be serviced once a year, regardless of how much they're driven. With the callipers removed, pulling the rotors off is a quick, simple task. It would give me some peace of mind.

If someone didn't want to do it so frequently, then I would say weigh them when the pads are replaced.

If a 'Vette is tracked with CCB, how they look will tell whether or not they're worn as they degrade faster than they wear.

I don't see it happening frankly. That is why the car is serviced at the damn dealership. Fortunately, the service guys at mine know me and the car well and check every detail carefully every time.

 

[cdnrx1]

Hi all,

For those with CCBs on your Grand Sport or Z06, how often (kms/time) are you pulling off your CCB rotors to weigh them to make sure they are above the min weights?

I have 14k kms on mine, including a bunch of track time at Calabogie and will be pulling mine off in a couple days when I change the pads (for the second time...).

Are there any other symptoms of the rotors starting to wear to their minimum weight/thickness other than measuring?

Thanks!

Adam

The direct answer to this question is - the weight of each rotor should be checked after each track day, as recommended by Brembo, or, at a minimum, when replacing the break pads as per the owner's manual.

CCM (ceramic composite material) rotors are subject to 2 different types of wear. 1 - thermal wear and 2 - mechanical wear. With the former, particularly under track conditions, the carbon fibers will oxidize due to being subjected to constant high temperatures and this causes a reduction in mass resulting in weight loss. With the latter, the mechanical action of the pad causes a reduction in the thickness of the rotor. The total wear of the rotor is determined by the combination of these two factors and the predominance of one type or the other depends on the type of use the vehicle is subjected to. IE: daily driver, track and / or a combination of driving uses. However, if the vehicle is frequently tracked this would become the priority in determining the maintenance schedule because of the extreme conditions.

The pad wear that you're experiencing is normal given the type of driving that you do. As for other wear indicators of the rotor, look for edge chipping (outer edge and vent holes ), surface cracks, particularly between the vent holes and excessive pad material transfer - this can clog vent holes and / or create excessive material build-up but it depends a lot on the brand / type of pad you're using. The weight of the rotors is marked on each one. Obviously, replace the rotor when at or below the minimum. Check the minimum thickness, should be engraved on the metallic bell or see the service manual.

Hope this helps.

Best regards
Ross

 

[tyho]

Interesting. I thought the CCB rotors outlast the iron rotors several times over under non track driving.

 

[Rruuff Day]

The direct answer to this question is - the weight of each rotor should be checked after each track day, as recommended by Brembo, or, at a minimum, when replacing the break pads as per the owner's manual.

CCM (ceramic composite material) rotors are subject to 2 different types of wear. 1 - thermal wear and 2 - mechanical wear. With the former, particularly under track conditions, the carbon fibers will oxidize due to being subjected to constant high temperatures and this causes a reduction in mass resulting in weight loss. With the latter, the mechanical action of the pad causes a reduction in the thickness of the rotor. The total wear of the rotor is determined by the combination of these two factors and the predominance of one type or the other depends on the type of use the vehicle is subjected to. IE: daily driver, track and / or a combination of driving uses. However, if the vehicle is frequently tracked this would become the priority in determining the maintenance schedule because of the extreme conditions.

The pad wear that you're experiencing is normal given the type of driving that you do. As for other wear indicators of the rotor, look for edge chipping (outer edge and vent holes ), surface cracks, particularly between the vent holes and excessive pad material transfer - this can clog vent holes and / or create excessive material build-up but it depends a lot on the brand / type of pad you're using. The weight of the rotors is marked on each one. Obviously, replace the rotor when at or below the minimum. Check the minimum thickness, should be engraved on the metallic bell or see the service manual.

Hope this helps.

Best regards
Ross

Good info Ross. So for someone who doesn't track their car or drive with one foot on the brake pedal, would there be enough high temperature oxidization for concern between pad changes? And in such case, would measuring thickness for mechanical wear be sufficient as an intermediate check? just curious.

 

[cdnrx1]

Under most, if not all, street driving conditions the Z07 brake rotors will reach optimal operating temperature and will demonstrate similar, possibly better, durability and longevity than their ferrous metal counterparts with very little mass degradation. However, the rotors still need to be weighed and measured at each pad change but, if cared for properly, they should last as long or longer than the Brembo cast iron rotors. The exception being lots of track time. When used under repeated, extreme conditions carbon brakes are almost considered " throw-away ". In competition they are often replaced after each race, depending on the length of the event, and several times during endurance races. Carbon rotors are also subject to chipping and cracking when removing wheels, calipers, etc. They are fragile and easily damaged, compared to cast iron, and must be treated carefully.

Where the carbon brakes really shine is in their braking performance under repeated, high stress conditions. Even for spirited street driving they provide exceptional braking ability and demonstrate little to no fade even under the most extreme conditions. The downside is, of course, the cost of replacement. However, the CCM brakes that come with our Z07 package offer fantastic breaking ability and excellent durability under normal driving conditions. They should give many thousands of miles of reliable, outstanding breaking performance - just what you'd expect from this car. Just be prepared for the exorbitant cost of replacing these rotors, particularly if you are a track enthusiast.

 

[Vegas1500]

Brakes should be serviced once a year, regardless of how much they're driven. With the callipers removed, pulling the rotors off is a quick, simple task. It would give me some peace of mind.

If someone didn't want to do it so frequently, then I would say weigh them when the pads are replaced.

If a 'Vette is tracked with CCB, how they look will tell whether or not they're worn as they degrade faster than they wear.

For a “street driven” vehicle corvette or not, servicing brakes once a year seems to be overkill. I’ll confess I’ve never read my manual front to back but pretty sure that wouldn’t be in the maintenance section. Now at pad replacement, yes.

 

[EJChevy]

For a “street driven” vehicle corvette or not, servicing brakes once a year seems to be overkill. I’ll confess I’ve never read my manual front to back but pretty sure that wouldn’t be in the maintenance section. Now at pad replacement, yes.

The owner's manual says to 'inspect' the brakes every 12,000 km (which would typically result in every 6 months for a vehicle driven regularly).

Any good mechanic I've ever spoken to would, at this time, disassemble the callipers and lubricate all of the sliding surfaces. Keeps everything in tip-top shape and prevents the risk of anything binding or corroding.

The only mechanics who won't are dealership mechanics that only do exactly what you ask - and pay for.

 

[Dryden]

Wow, thank you all for such detailed and helpful replies! (especially cdnrx1)

I finally have a couple days off work this week and will do my brake servicing then and will report my rotor weights and thickness then.

My practice up until now has been to visually inspect when putting my track tires on and taking them off (and when putting my winter tires on/off) mostly to make sure that there is no gross damage to them, knowing that the rotors are fragile and more prone to physical damage as others have said. I pull the pads off twice a year, lubricate and reinstall while checking for pad wear.

It is definitely simple/quick to take the rotors off and weigh them each time and do a more complete brake servicing each time I swap tires/go to the track (4 to 5 days/year)... But I always seem to fill my time with other things! Perhaps I'll have to be more vigilant!

And I can definitely attest to the braking performance, and the cost of this brake set up. I have been lucky enough to purchase a few sets of OEM pads/rotors from the US forum members so I should be covered for a couple more years.

 

[Dryden]

Finally got a chance to get out there and do the brake servicing.

For reference, my car has 14500 kms on it - 2017 Grand Sport 3LT w/Z07 and the most aggressive aero package. I have tracked at HPDE style events (Calabogie - I do the onemorelap, HPDE and have done a few of the CC days). Probably 10 full days at the track, about 3 hours each day of tracking. The rest of the kms are as my daily driver (all four seasons).

I have now gone through two full sets of front pads. New (third) ones just placed.
I have a bit left on my first set of rear pads.

Rotor thicknesses are all well over spec listed on the rotors.

Weights:

Rotor	Min Weight	Actual	Difference
L Rear	8068​	8144​	76​
R Rear	8084​	8168​	84​
L Front	5962​	6022​	60​
R Front	5990​	6060​	70​

This seems to be in line with what others have said on the US forum. About 4 sets of pads per front rotor. About 2:1 front to rear pad and rotor wear. Based on other posts, I believe new front rotors have a bigger difference between "new weight" and "min weight" than the rears. Any theories on why the lefts seem more worn than the rights? Coincidence? More trail braking one direction than the other?

I blew out the rotors with compressed air, removed all foreign material, wiped them down with a damp cloth until the cloth was clean. Then blew them out again. I was (pleasantly) surprised to find out how much life I still have in these rotors.

I will be sure to do this twice a year from now on!

Oh, and on a side note, 162 lb-ft of torque is a lot of torque.

Thanks again all!

 

[Hotshoe]

If you're looking to replace your front CCB rotors or want to grab a pair at a good price, Amazon Canada has them at half price compared to GM right now. I priced them at a dealer this week at $3600/rotor jobber cost...$4300 ea to the guy off the street. $1840 ea on Amazon.

 

[Afterimage]

Link on Amazon for these CCB rotors??

edit: just checked on A.ca

 

[Hotshoe]

If you search under 177-1120 they'll come up. Lol I'm not tech savvy enough to post a link.

GM also has a 177-1175 front rotor which is interchangeable. I'm led to believe the only difference between the two is the set screw that holds the rotor on the hub which isn't a necessity.

 

[Hotshoe]