ART Rotors & Performance Friction Brake Pads

Brakes are probably the most important part of any vehicle. At

the same time, they are probably the most hated due to their

required upkeep. Also, due to the jackass, mentally-slow

mechanics who try to take your money for unnecessary

repairs. Sorry, but I can't imagine anyone reading this would

disagrre with that. Not that all mechanics are mentally

slooooow . . . . . just most of 'em! ;) Thankfully, I've now

learned to repair my own brakes.



The biggest problem with the F-350 brakes seemed to be the

rotors. They would warp and cause a pulsating feel when

braking. The solution was a rotor that would handle the heat-

stress of braking. Applied Rotor Technologies (ART) makes a

replacement rotor for many vehicles. The key to their rotors is

that they are cryogenically treated. This basically means that

the rotors are cooled in liquid nitrogen to over 300° below 0.

They are kept at this temperature for several hours and then,

gradually, brought back to room temperature. This process

helps the metal to absorb and sustain more heat. The end result

is brake rotors with a longer life span and increased stopping

ability.



ART ships their rotors with Performance Friction brake pads.

They make high performance brake pads they call Carbon

Metallic®.They are designed to withstand more heat than other

brake pads. Also, the compound making up the pads resists wear

and maintains a more firm brake pedal feel.



The installation of the new rotors and brake pads is very easy.

The hardest part, in most cases, is simply removing the very

tight bolts holding the brake calipers to the axle. In my case,

these were tight but not overly time consuming to remove. A

little penetrating oil or WD-40, the day before the install, will

do wonders. As far as step by step instructions, I'll leave that

to others who have done a tremendous job at documenting this

process. Thanks for your article! A great tutorial on replacing

your brakes can be found at fordexcursionsions.com, and was

written by E. Long.



The new rotors are slotted to help disperse heat while braking.

So far, their appearance has held up well. The braking

performance is difficult to notice with such a large and heavy

vehicle. But, I can say there is a distinct difference in the

firmness of the braking feel.