The Best Car Brakes (Review & Buying Guide) in 2023 | Autance

There are a number of very useful looking features and design points on this product from PowerStop. First there is the disc rotor itself. It is both drilled and slotted to enable effective off gassing and fast cooling. That is really going to help keep the operating temperature down and keep the brakes functioning at their optimum. The rotor discs also boast silver zinc plating to help prevent rust and corrosion – and as a side effect they really make them look great and stay looking great.

The kit also comes with brake pads that are of ceramic carbon-fiber construction. They are off a dust-free construction and also designed to minimize brake noise. The fact they achieve all of this without affecting stopping power is testament to some excellent design and engineering by PowerStop.

Don’t overlook the fact that this is a complete kit. We have discs calibrated for front and rear axels as well as a very helpful bottle of High-Temperature lube to keep everything working nicely.

Overall this is a really well designed kit from PowerStop, who with this product are very much looking to live up to their name.

This is another complete kit, though it is missing some extras, such as a high temperature lube. That does mean the price is a little lower, and you are still getting a new brake set that is crammed full of useful design points.

The rotor discs are the eye-catching centerpiece. They are cross-drilled and slotted to allow excellent off gassing and quick temperature cool off and also give the brake pads extra bite. Speaking of which, the pads are of ceramic construction, always a good feature if you are looking for everyday use brakes that won’t be putting out clouds of brake dust or ear shredding shrieks.

They are all ready to be installed too with no modifications required, making this a very well-designed and economical brake kit that, while it is missing some of the bells and whistles of truly premium products, is great value for money.

If you drive a Jeep then you know those rugged vehicles are packing more power (and weight) than a typical car. For that reason, R1 Concepts created this product specifically for Jeep vehicles.

In the design you see a lot of the features that make up one of the best car brakes on the market. We have a rotor disc design with pre-drilled holes and a diamond slotted surface. This keeps the brakes cooler while giving those ceramic pads something to really get their (figurative) teeth into.

Construction is nice and rugged as you would expect for something designed to stop a Jeep, and it’s a nice feature to see that the discs are silver zinc plated. That will help to avoid rusting and corrosion and is not normally a feature you always find on disc brakes kits from the lower end of the price range.

If you drive a Jeep and want to install high quality, bespoke designed brakes then you should take a look at this offering.

This kit has been especially designed for trucks. Not just any trucks, however – trucks that tow and/or haul. What we have here is drilled and slotted rotors with silver zinc plating to prevent corrosion. We have ceramic pads for outstanding stopping ability with no dust or noise. We even have hi-temp lubricant bundled into the kit.

When you tow or haul anything behind your vehicle it is going to affect the braking performance. You have all that weight being towed, so when the vehicle brakes, that weight is pushing against the vehicle, pushing its momentum against the braking direction and making stopping that much harder.

In those instances you need the extra stopping power that a product like this can provide. If you ever tow or haul loads you should take a close look at this specialist brake kit.

This is something of a more basic brake design from Callahan. That means that while it may be missing some of the bells and whistles that you find on premium models, it’s also missing that premium price tag. In fact, this product offers phenomenal value for money.

For the money you are getting a basic but robust rotor disc design. You’ll notice no slots or drilled holes here, though this is a rotor rather than solid design so it will still do a good job at heat dissipation. The included pads in this kit are metallic, so they are not the premium organic or ceramic pads you’ll find elsewhere.

It’s also worth noting that this is not a complete kit – these are front axel brakes only. Still, while it may not be the flashiest item on the list, and it may employ some more basic components, it is still a very well designed and engineered set of disc brakes with a very attractive price tag.

This is not a basic model by any stretch of the imagination, but it is quite clearly not a complete brake kit either. You should take note therefore that this product is sold as a solitary disc – not even a pair – and does not come with any pads. It should also be noted that it for the front axel brake system.

So now we know what it’s not, lets look at what it is – and it is a pretty premium product. It has been machine finished for smoother operation during braking – that clean surface is also designed to keep braking noise to a minimum. While it lacks drilled holes, it has a center split casting design that allows air through the disc for cooling.

The Black Electro-Coating is also pretty impressive, and it can survive up to 400 hours of saltwater submersion without rusting. That design feature is the cherry atop a very well designed and very well built brake disc. It’s also relatively good value, though of course do remember that you are only buying the disc itself.

This is our third entry from Power Stop, which really highlights its dominance of this sector of products. After a premium level brake kit and truck & towing specialized kit, just what is it coming to the market with here?

Well, what we have here is more of an entry level brake kit, making it a little bit cheaper than the other products from this company. Don’t think that you’re getting ripped off here however, as this is still a great set of car brakes that are bristling with useful features.

The standout features are the drilled and slotted rotor and the ceramic pads that combine for a brake system designed to provide plenty of bite with little dust and noise. This kit is designed to be a serious upgrade on your typical, factory installed car brakes that your vehicle rolled out the factory with. There are not quite the high-end details of the premium products, but you also stand to save quite a bit of cash by selecting this brake kit.

One of the big features of this product is the fact that each rotor is individually X-Ray inspected before it leaves the factory. That, Max Advanced claims, leads to an industry leading less than one-percrent defect rate – that’s very impressive.

In terms of design and construction we have a number of useful features. Its constructed with tough grey iron. We have drilled holes to help get rid of excess heat, while rounded edge slots are carved into the rotor face to assist with pad biting.

All in all this is a very well designed, very well constructed set of brake discs. With none of the extras you get in other kits like high-temp lubricant, this is certainly toward the higher end of the price range. It’s hard to deny you’re getting a very premium product for your money, however.

Once again we have a complete kit that boasts a wide range of impressive features. It also has a price tag a little below some of the products from the premium end of the price range. So just what do you get?

There is a set of very nicely designed rotors that boast both drilled holes and slots. The kit also comes complete with a set of ceramic brake pads. It’s always great to see these in most kits, especially when they are bundled with brakes designed for everyday use.

The silver zinc finish to the rotor is also a nice design point, which will help to prolong product life span and stave off rust and corrosion. All in all, they may not quite boast the high-end styling or top-end build quality of the most premium models on the list – but they are very good examples that decent quality brake kits can still be picked up at the lower end of the price spectrum.

This kit boasts the features of premium Power Stop products. The rotors are drilled and slotted, it comes with ceramic pads, and it’s ready to install. The brakes are designed for everyday use, so they are a little different from products that are truck tow specific.

One difference with this kit is the fact that it is only a two disc set for front axle installation. That means that the price is significantly lower than a full kit, making this the better option for anyone who wants to invest in Power Stop quality without smashing a big old dent in their back account.