Initial review of Zimmermann rotors -PICS-

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Dec 8, 2006
Messages
3,431
Location
USA
The Zimmermann rotors for the back of the Beetle arrived today. I can’t judge the performance, but my initial impressions are they look good.

For those who aren’t familiar, Zimmermann is a German aftermarket brake company that still makes rotors in Germany. I went with them because I wanted to avoid the made-in-China rotors that are sold by many brands.

These rotors were quite affordable at $25 shipped each from Amazon.

They’re made in Germany. They have a zinc coating. The instructions are clear that you shouldn’t clean off the zinc coating. I guess you just run the pads right on the coating and it is rubbed off by the pads.

I’ll add more info on my impressions when I install them.

ZR1_zps2c8bba37.jpg


ZR2_zpsece07807.jpg


ZR3_zps75007529.jpg


ZR4_zps43352a4a.jpg


ZR5_zpscc46a300.jpg


ZR6_zps273e7205.jpg


ZR7_zps9f4ba7bb.jpg
 
Last edited:
Yup, the Germans showing us how not to outsource to China. Again. This sickens and delights me at the same time (see my BMW parts: made in Germany thread for more details) because what you've done here is given me yet another example of how we have sold our souls down the river in North America. Yet provided me with another brand of German parts that I can shop for. Thanks for that
thumbsup2.gif
 
Balo is the other big European brake company.

I'd be curious to see the cooling vein design versus OEM. I know that's where the non-OEM ones sometimes cut corners (fewer fins, less surface area, etc).
 
Originally Posted By: OVERKILL
Yup, the Germans showing us how not to outsource to China. Again. This sickens and delights me at the same time (see my BMW parts: made in Germany thread for more details) because what you've done here is given me yet another example of how we have sold our souls down the river in North America. Yet provided me with another brand of German parts that I can shop for. Thanks for that
thumbsup2.gif



Yep, amazing how us here in the USA, with so many resources, lower social costs, etc. cant seem to be competitive, yet corporations in expensive and overly progressive industrialized Europe can be.

Im all for profit and all that, but it this being the reality isnt a prime example of greed or stupidity on some level, I dont know what is.

OP, thanks for posting that. Very interesting that they are completely coated. Looking forward to your impressions!
 
Made in Germany $25 ea what more could you ask for?
Now the big question if the Germans can do it and even Export it at that price why cant it be made to the same high standard down the street?
 
Originally Posted By: Trav
Made in Germany $25 ea what more could you ask for?
Now the big question if the Germans can do it and even Export it at that price why cant it be made to the same high standard down the street?


What disgusts me is that I can buy two German air filters for my M5 for half the price of a freakin' OEM Mexican air filter for my Expedition
mad.gif
 
We had ordered a set of these for a MB several years ago and had to re-order them 3 times IIRC before we got a set that were not badly rusted right out of the box. I am all for not supporting Chinese ANYTHING and prefer US, Canadian or EU made but come on, the QC sleeping? And no, they were not used rotors, my guess was the coating had not been applied properly. Prefer ATE rotors but the Zimmermann were priced right. Just my 2c.
 
I was told by an indy shop that a lot of rotors are cast in China, but the final machining is done in the US. If that were true I do not know what the label would say. Maybe "Made in the USA from parts from other countries"?
 
Originally Posted By: LT4 Vette

But how do you know for sure these were made in Germany and not fakes ?



How do you truly know anything is made where it says it is unless you watch it roll off the assembly line?

What makes you think they're fakes?

If you follow the link I posted above, their website says they're made in Germany:
http://www.otto-zimmermann.de/en/

I purchased them from a reputable source (Amazon). And they were a normal price. There are multiple websites selling them for this price, I didn't get some super low-priced deal that would lead you to ask questions.
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: Donald
I was told by an indy shop that a lot of rotors are cast in China, but the final machining is done in the US. If that were true I do not know what the label would say. Maybe "Made in the USA from parts from other countries"?


Given how the vast majority of rotors I've seen from "American" companies still say "Made in China" on the box, I'm thinking the label says "Made in China".

Germany has some rather interesting laws about out-sourcing and "Germany" branded products. Essentially, the rules and regulations they have in place don't encourage companies to off-shore like ours do over here.
 
The pattern should be non directional,not circular like a phonograph record.Bet they dont seat in well with the pads at all.
 
The chinese rotors are almost exact in weight, vanes and spacing, and rotor face thickness. Ive been comparing Zimmerman and Textar rotors lately to try and see the difference. Textar is "engineered in Germany" but made in china, but are coated and hold up well, I saw a 2 year old set I installed and looked very good. My only issue so far has been with squealing when cheaper rotors were matched with Pagid/TRW pads. They also dont machine the hat smooth, theyll leave them rough.
A great tip with the Audi/VAG rear brakes is you dont need to remove the caliper carrier to take the rotors off, you can sneak them out with the bracket installed.
 
Last edited:
I've used Zimmermann rotors in the past and did not care for them. They pulsated shortly after install. I have learned that often times the aftermarket component will not have the final thermal stress relief step that OEM rotors receive.

I specify Balo, ATE or Textar compenents when available.
 
Originally Posted By: NHGUY
The pattern should be non directional,not circular like a phonograph record.Bet they dont seat in well with the pads at all.


I would generally agree with this, however, my recent purchase of Raybestos Advanced Technology rotors did not come with a cross-hatch finish. They had the same finish as the close up of the rotors in this thread; they bedded in faster and felt better than the previous Centric Premiums which had the cross-hatch finish. The directional finish, strangely enough, was also quieter than the cross hatch finish during initial bedding/low-speed braking. I'd be more inclined take a flat, true and parallel 'directional' finish any day over a non-directional finish that wasn't true. I believe the finish also has to do with how it is machined, some processes like blanchard grinding or double-disc grinding I would assume inherently leave a non-directional finish.
 
Originally Posted By: ChrisW
Originally Posted By: NHGUY
The pattern should be non directional,not circular like a phonograph record.Bet they dont seat in well with the pads at all.


I would generally agree with this, however, my recent purchase of Raybestos Advanced Technology rotors did not come with a cross-hatch finish. They had the same finish as the close up of the rotors in this thread;


Interesting you should mention this, Chris.

I was doing a little googling before you posted this and found that at least some Raybestos AT rotors (their top-end no-drilled/non-slotted rotor) have a finish like these rotors. You can see it in this doc:
http://www.raysbestbrakes.com/Images/uploads/Raybestos_Rotors_Broch.pdf

So, I guess just because it's a type of finish that appears different than some other finishes doesn't necessarily make it bad.

We will see how they perform. I'm going to try to give an honest review, so if they perform poorly, I'll let you all know.

Just a guess, I wonder if it's machined in a way where the rings are concentric, not spiraling like a record? There's really not any way to tell from looking at them, at least to my untrained eye. I watched a video a while ago about rotor machining that showed that rotors machined with concentric rings don't affect stopping performance, while spiral grooves can affect it.
 
I bought a pair for my Audi A6. OEM and Zimmermann are both made in Germany, but are not created equal! Zimmermann's rotors started rusting within a week while the Audi OEM never rusted after 6 years!

Zimmermann's rotors are well made, they are even balanced like the OEMs, but just not as good as the Audi OEM's.
 
Rotors installed and the car is back on the road.

You can also see the Beck/Arnley pads I installed (you can read more about them in this thread ).

I took it out on the road and did a few stops from 45 or 60 mph to get the bedding started. As advertised, the zinc coating rubbed off and the car is stopping fine.

So far, so good.

ZR10_zps73d4be9e.jpg
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top