Where to buy OEM Rotors for Gen 1

[buckethead99]

From everything Ive read, ppl mostly go with the OEM rotors. I must admit the rotors that originally came with the car lasted for years.

I've had the front and rears done in the last year or two (I think the fronts were done by St. catharines Mazda and rears done by NAPA auto in St. Cathrines) and they're both warping very badly already.

Where do most people go to buy their OEM rotors (I plan to do the install myself) and which pads do guys prefer with OEM?

Theres so much to choose from at rockauto.com but I'm sure you guys have some suggestions.

I'm not too worried about price. I just want rotors that are going to last for a couple years and not warp and look all rusty in the mean time. (I would prefer if the hub part was painted black as i plan to pain my rotors at the same time.

[buckethead99]

not sure if this matters but looking for fronts and backs. and its a 2.3L.

[Johns 08 3 GT]

You get the OEM stuff from the dealer.

Front rotors $85 each. Rear $65 each.

Front Pads $148. Rear pads $126.

[buckethead99]

Isn't that pretty high ?

OEm rotos and pads from the dealership would be $730.

Thats why i was wondering if you can buy OEM from somewhere online. Rather than getting hosed at the Dealership parts desk.

[tmpz]

Isn't that pretty high ?

OEm rotos and pads from the dealership would be $730.

Thats why i was wondering if you can buy OEM from somewhere online. Rather than getting hosed at the Dealership parts desk.

2 years ago, I paid $400+tax for front and rear rotors and pads at MoT (with TM3 discount).

[Johns 08 3 GT]

The price of the pads went up. :bang

Hit up a sponsor dealer if you can for a TM3 discount.

[buckethead99]

You get the OEM stuff from the dealer.

Front rotors $85 each. Rear $65 each.

Front Pads $148. Rear pads $126.

Can this be right ? I already found a website showing OEM mazda rear pads for less than $90

http://www.gomazda3.com/gemarebrpa2.html

[buckethead99]

2 years ago, I paid $400+tax for front and rear rotors and pads at MoT (with TM3 discount).

How long did you rotors and pads last ?

I'm looking through my old mazda dealership receipts and mazda replaced my front rotors and pads just two years ago. and I've only put 25k on the car since. The front rotors must be warped as there is TERRIBLE vibration through the steering wheel under heavy breaking.

Front pads may have replaced by cheap pads - receipt says " B3YH-33-28ZA-MC " Pad set F. Maybe this is the source of my problem ? Crappy pads? Especially since you guys say OEM replacements should cost more and they only last two years and 25k. I am not a heavy breaker.

[tmpz]

How long did you rotors and pads last ?

I'm looking through my old mazda dealership receipts and mazda replaced my front rotors and pads just two years ago. and I've only put 25k on the car since. The front rotors must be warped as there is TERRIBLE vibration through the steering wheel under heavy breaking.

Front pads may have replaced by cheap pads - receipt says " B3YH-33-28ZA-MC " Pad set F. Maybe this is the source of my problem ? Crappy pads? Especially since you guys say OEM replacements should cost more and they only last two years and 25k. I am not a heavy breaker.

Mine lasted about 35k with almost pure city driving. The rotors that came with the car were terrible. I know a bunch of people with warped rotors and some were covered under warranty.

The replacement rotors seems to be much better. I did see a bunch of revisions in the part number. Maybe they fixed the issue?

[TheMAN]

OEM means buying from the dealer
anywhere else is not OEM

OEM means "original equipment manufacturer", it is synonymous with "stock" but it's still a separate meaning
"stock" can mean anywhere from buying OEM from a dealer or aftermarket.... ranging from OES (original equipment supplier... nearly or same thing as the OEM part from dealer, but their own box), to just some china crap

[SKYMP3]

MoT for additional 10% member savings. They can deliver to a garage close by their area if you pay upfront with yoru credit card.

I tried quote at Mazda at Buffalo area, and it wasn't cheaper. And not worth the hassle.

[Girds]

Rockauto.com

[stock3]

Personally, I would not waste my money on the dealer rotors or any other high end aftermarket rotor for that matter, unless the car was raced regularly or if I had a heavy vehicle with undersized brakes.
Fortunately Mazda 3 is pretty light with fairly big rotors for its size. My original front rotors and pads (bought the car brand new) lasted a bit over 100k kilometres. They had a noticeable groove and did vibrate a bit when slowing down from highway speeds.
I replaced the rotors with el-cheapo Chinese white boxes for a whopping $30 a piece with good quality pads. They are nearing 100k kilometres now, same as OEM but they are holding much better. There is less of a ridge on them and they are smooth as butter on high speed stops.
To me, the quality of installation is far more important than the price of rotors. Pads are different story IMO, and the cheapest of the cheap can cause a lot of problems.

To me, the best combo on the MZ3 is the cheapest rotors, good quality pads, OEM or ceramic and a good quality installation. I did my car over four years and almost 100k kilometres ago for roughly $200 for all four corners. OEM can't touch this on price and can only match the performance. So to me OEM rotors and pads are a waste of money.

[buckethead99]

That sounds very similar to the life I got of my originals (I bought the car new).

What pads do you recommend ?

[stock3]

The MZ3 has Bendix semi-metallic pads and they are great. They feel exactly like OEM pads, no squealing in the morning and they have great cold and hot bite, unfortunately they dust like OEMs as well. That's the only downside.

My Focus has Duralast Gold C-Max ceramic pads and these are simply the best pads that I ever used and they are about $50 from states. They have the same cold and hot bite as the semi-metallic pads, but dust very little and don’t squeal when cold like some other ceramic pads.
They dust so little that the unwashed for several months alloy wheels on my Focus look better than the alloy wheels on the MZ3 just after a week of being washed with Bendix pads. Both cars have same color wheels so the difference is very obvious in dusting.

So if you can get parts from States, I would highly recommend Duralast Gold C-max pads.

On other cars I had pretty good luck with Monroe Pads, but they are average to me at best, you can definitely get better pads for about the same price. I also had good luck with the cheapest pads Ct or Parts Source offers. I was in college and on a much tighter budget. They did well, but they ate through the rotors quickly, didn't last long and the performance was behind OEM. These cheap pads have their time and place, but you have to accept the pitfalls that comes with these cheap pads.