so, i have the opportunity to trade the stock rotors on my 2004 3s five-door for a set of powerslot rotors, straight up. does anyone have any input on the powerslots? thanks.

 

Iwould say go for it.

I have heard they are pretty good.

I plan on getting some BP ones,I know alot people that run them

 

I've read that slotted rotors are not good for the street and not really necessary on anything but a high powered or heavy car.
They "shave" the pad material every time you brake.
The plus side? This translates into a fresh pad facing whenever you brake.
The minus side. Much shorter pad life and not practical on a 2500~2800lb, 150~160hp street car. They are also said to clog w/hardened dust after a time.

Go w/cross-drilled rotors and save your pads.

 

thanks for your input guys.

virgin1: from where did you get your information? i have heard some different things than what you had mentioned.

ive heard from people who have used powerslot rotors that they offer much of an improvement in both performance and wear over the OEM setup.
ive also heard from the same person that slotted rotors will NOT wear pads any faster than solid rotors. The slots release the gasses that build between the pads and the rotors, which improve pad/rotor contact and reduces heat as well.

also, i understand that slotted rotors a far better than drilled rotors. drilled rotors are ALL prone to cracking at the holes. Some are better than others, but it is just how a drilled rotor responds to multiple heat cycles over 15-30K. Slotted rotors on the other hand are not prone to cracking.

the ^above^ information i came across on mazda3forums.

as for break pads, i use Hawk HP Plus Sport Pads for the front, and for the rear i have Hawk HPS Street Pads. however, i dont know whether or not these pads will react differently to the rotors than stock pads...

on PowerSlot's website, they recommend the use of Hawk pads with their rotors. are they part of the same company?

 

No one source, but a collection of them from over the yearsand yes I've heard all those arguments before too. I am aware of that thread on the Mz3forums and read it as well. I even began to believe it myself for a while, but mechanically, it just didn't make sense to me.
But when Porsche, Ferrari, BMW, Peugeotand many other heavy hitters in the car biz use drilled, not slottedrotors for their street cars, that speaks volumes to me.
As far as cracking is concerned, yes, when stressed hard for over a number of heat/cool cycles (such as in racing,) or over many miles they may show signs of stress cracking around the holes. Much of it seems to depend on the quality of the steel, how well thought out and how well the holes were champhered in the first place. For a street car, driving @ normal speeds and conditions, I would think the cross-drilled rotors would be the way to go. They too will release the gasses and will not shave the pads as slotted rotors areintended, nay, designed to do.
And I'm sure your Hawk pads will hold up much better than others, no matter what rotors you are using. They are well known as an excellent street performance pad.
It's largely a matter of debate and opinion. This is only my opinion. I don't expect you to follow it unless you are convinced to think otherwise. It's just my opinion based on what I know and think.

 

If you're going to upgrade the brakes, why not think about skipping the whole drilled/slotted stuff and use the Speed3 brakes if they will fit your axles and wheels ( I don't know). Stock Speed3 brakes are adequate for pretty hard Road Course running, which is wayharder than any street or autocross driving will cause, and they give the 3 one of the shortest stopping distances in the market.