When we ride a car, we often marvel at the mechanisms that makes it run at a hundred miles per hour, but think nothing of the brake system that goes to stop the car running at such a speed. Though we often tend to forget it and tend to discount the value of the brilliant braking system that works against the momentum of a heavy car to bring it to halt in a matter of a few seconds, brake rotors are actually a very important part of your car. People who have ever tried to stop a bicycle without using the brakes know how difficult the job can be. In fact, the truth of the matter is that the mechanisms that goes beyond stopping the car is extremely intricate and deserves appreciation. It is a technology that converts the kinetic energy into heat energy in a safe and secure, imperceptible manner.

The mechanism that goes behind stopping a car that has a weight in hundreds of kilograms is controlled the brake pads and brake rotors that look seemingly insignificant but are actually very efficient. Rotors are the brake discs attached to the wheel with the brake calipers surrounding them. The brake pads and the rotors are tightly pressed on to each other, so that the friction generates an immense amount of heat energy between their surfaces slowing down the car with every turn of the wheel. These brake rotors and brake pads are made of tough resilient material so that they can withstand an immense amount of heat.

Unlike the materials that were used in the past, several metal alloys are available in today’s industry that are hardened previously and can withstand thousands of degrees in temperature. However, for safety reasons and to improve performance of the braking system as a whole, brake rotors are made with slots or holes, more known as cross drilled and slotted rotors that can allow additional pathways for heat to escape from time to time. Particularly, when cars are driven for long periods of time where heat energy produced between the rotors and the pads have to be dissipated in some way. These slots and cross drilled holes help air to pass and the heat to be dissipated gradually.

Depending on the make, brake rotors consist of two types, slotted rotors and drilled rotors. The first type, slotted rotors, is popular for used on performance vehicles, where there is a great need for precision braking. The heat on slotted rotors is channelled through the slots. Because there are no holes on slotted rotors, there is maximum contact with the brake pads and friction produced between the surfaces is greater. On the other hand, drilled rotorshave holes in them for the dissipation of heat. They leave gaps in the surface contact area with the brake pads and are hence, easier on them.