EPISODE 1: Power Stop Brake Kit

Level of Difficulty: Easy
Tools Required: Basic Hand Tools-air tools and a lift optional
Installed By: OC Motorsports
Install Time: Approximately 75 minutes

Our JK’s bone stock brakes were perfectly serviceable on the road, quiet and soft with a little more pedal travel than expected. After our first off-road adventure courtesy of Dan Fresh and the OC Motorsports Trail Team I figured we were going to need a brake upgrade since much of my brief trail ride experience revolved around slow speed braking and balancing power-on against the brakes. When we talked with our friends at Power Stop we learned that they offered a JK two axle kit with their heavy duty Z36 formula pads and a sharp looking slotted and cross drilled rotor upgrade. The Power Stop slogan “one click brake kit” is really true-as you can see here they make a complete brake job very easy with all of the components required.

With the Jeep on a lift and the wheels off you can see this is a basic install. Daniel at OC Motorsports was assigned to our install and he has more than 6 years of experience specializing in Jeeps so our install is in good hands.

Starting at the rear of the Jeep Daniel removes the caliper sliding bolts and caliper bracket to access the rotor, which comes right off the hub.

With the stock rotor free the new rotor goes on and the caliper bracket is reattached to the backing plate. The new heavy duty pads are loaded with the provided mounting hardware. Power Stop includes brake lube to apply to the pad backing and ears to ensure squeak free operation.

Here’s what the combo looks like assembled:

Daniel repeated the process on the rear passenger side then continued to the front axle.

With the rotors and new pads in place and all fasteners torqued to Jeep’s specifications Daniel put our wheels back on and followed the Power Stop break-in procedure outlined in the supplied instructions. After the test drive he remarked that pedal feel was more positive than stock. Power Stop has built a kit that’s easy to install and includes all of the required parts in one box for maximum convenience. We are looking forward to seeing those slotted and cross drilled rotors peeking out behind our new wheels-come back to see them soon. In the mean time we will be putting our new brakes to the test on the next OC Motorsports trail ride.

Brands featured in this episode:

• Powerstop