New brakes not feeling like it's braking much

Seraphitia102

will post boobie pics for a supercharger

Oct 11, 2004

737

1

16

California

Jul 28, 2005

#1

• Jul 28, 2005

• #1

I just got new Performance Friction brake pads and it still feels like it's braking worse than stock OEM pads. The guy at the brake shop told me to let them "break-in." How long is this "break-in" period? or could something be wrong with my brakes?

 

timeless2

Vi Veri Veni Versum Vicus Vici

Admin Dude

Nov 29, 1999

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Jul 28, 2005

#2

• Jul 28, 2005

• #2

Are the pads ceramic or another type?

 

BLKVERT

New Member

Jan 19, 2004

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SATX

Jul 28, 2005

#3

• Jul 28, 2005

• #3

Did you get new rotors with the new pads?

 

Seraphitia102

will post boobie pics for a supercharger

Oct 11, 2004

737

1

16

California

Jul 28, 2005

#4

• Jul 28, 2005

• #4

I didn't get new rotors. They are carbon metallic pads (which supposedly are considered top of the line by the brake shop). I just wanted something that will have better stopping power than OEM pads but without doing a Cobra brake upgrade. I don't need super improved braking power like with the 13" upgrade, just something better than stock. But yeah, is there a break-in period with my new brake pads? They don't feel like they brake super good as the brake shop said and they told me it needs like a 2 day or so break-in period.

 

W

Will Smith

New Member

Aug 8, 2004

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Cape Coral, FL

Jul 28, 2005

#5

• Jul 28, 2005

• #5

did u have ur rotors resurfaced?

 

KronicRacer

Member

Jun 23, 2004

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puttering around Ft Lauderdale, FL

Jul 28, 2005

#6

• Jul 28, 2005

• #6

yes there is and usually you need to drive around and do varied hard stops and soft long distance stops here and there. theres no exac science to it (thee might be somewhere on the net). so give it a day or two. but also vary how you stop.

like everyone is asking, did they resurface your rotors? and have you check the level of the brake fluids?

 

Seraphitia102

will post boobie pics for a supercharger

Oct 11, 2004

737

1

16

California

Jul 28, 2005

#7

• Jul 28, 2005

• #7

Yes i have my rotors machined if that's what you mean. The brake fluid level is up to max.

 

timeless2

Vi Veri Veni Versum Vicus Vici

Admin Dude

Nov 29, 1999

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Jul 28, 2005

#8

• Jul 28, 2005

• #8

Seraphitia102 said:

Yes i have my rotors machined if that's what you mean. The brake fluid level is up to max.

Click to expand...

Give it until Saturday and then let us know if you feel anything different. It might be unlikely you'll "feel" anything, as you might be acclimated to a slow change.

You could have measured or timed your 60 to 0 before and after.......

 

Q

Q88-GT

New Member

Jun 4, 2003

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Jul 28, 2005

#9

• Jul 28, 2005

• #9

If your looking for performance brake pads I would recommend Hawk pads.

http://www.hawkperformance.com/

I use them on the street and track. They tend to leave lots of dust on your wheels though

 

Seraphitia102

will post boobie pics for a supercharger

Oct 11, 2004

737

1

16

California

Jul 28, 2005

#10

• Jul 28, 2005

• #10

I have a lot of dust on my brake pads already with the stock pads. They especially show because I have white wheels. The carbon metallics and ceramics I hear hardly leave any dust, so which is one reason why I went with carbon metallic. But I do know that Hawk Performance pads are good though, the brake shop I went to just doesn't stock them and I needed brakes pretty fast.

 

AmBo

Active Member

Feb 3, 2004

1,027

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New Jersey

Jul 28, 2005

#11

• Jul 28, 2005

• #11

Awww Sera you shoulda got the 13" kit! I did, I love em except for the amount of RUST on my rotors...the calipers don't grab the whole 13" and the portion NOT grabbed just rusts...so UGLY! :\

 

R

rjstaaf

Founding Member

May 31, 2002

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Somewhere

Jul 28, 2005

#12

• Jul 28, 2005

• #12

How exactly do they "feel" worse? Is it pedal feel or do they physically not stop the car like the OEM pads did?

 

COBRA90GT

Mustang Master

Sep 22, 2001

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HOCKEYTOWN ® , MI

Jul 28, 2005

#13

• Jul 28, 2005

• #13

Did you get the Performance Friction "Z-rated" pads or the regular ones?

BTW - The Z-rated ones are pretty good, as are the Hawk street pads.

 

2

2001sleeper

New Member

Nov 22, 2004

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Jul 28, 2005

#14

• Jul 28, 2005

• #14

If your rotors got turned down then you will need to re-season them, and anytime you get new pads you need to bed them. Check out the Baer website for their instructions.

 

Seraphitia102

will post boobie pics for a supercharger

Oct 11, 2004

737

1

16

California

Jul 28, 2005

#15

• Jul 28, 2005

• #15

2001sleeper said:

If your rotors got turned down then you will need to re-season them, and anytime you get new pads you need to bed them. Check out the Baer website for their instructions.

Click to expand...

I just got my rotors machined as for as I know. The brake shop didn't tell me if they did anything else. There's more to changing pads than just machining the rotors?

 

Seraphitia102

will post boobie pics for a supercharger

Oct 11, 2004

737

1

16

California

Jul 28, 2005

#16

• Jul 28, 2005

• #16

COBRA90GT said:

Did you get the Performance Friction "Z-rated" pads or the regular ones?

BTW - The Z-rated ones are pretty good, as are the Hawk street pads.

Click to expand...

I only got the carbon metallic ones, not the Z-rated I was told by the brake shop that the carbon metallics are top-of-the-line brake pads. It was probably just top-of-the-line in their inventory though.

 

squares98

Member

Aug 20, 2004

852

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17

Orange,ca

Jul 28, 2005

#17

• Jul 28, 2005

• #17

performance friction sucks. Shoulda got Hawks. Ive had both on the same brakes, and there is a huge difference

 

Seraphitia102

will post boobie pics for a supercharger

Oct 11, 2004

737

1

16

California

Jul 28, 2005

#18

• Jul 28, 2005

• #18

rjstaaf said:

How exactly do they "feel" worse? Is it pedal feel or do they physically not stop the car like the OEM pads did?

Click to expand...

They feel worse in terms of stopping distance. When I step on the pedal, I have to step on it harder than before just to stop.

 

N

n0v8or

10 Year Member

Aug 23, 2003

604

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Rhode Island

Jul 29, 2005

#19

• Jul 29, 2005

• #19

Brake pads, much like tires, represent a compromise. Just as racing slicks won't be great for street driving, racing pads sacrifice street performance for less fade at high temperatures.

See this article for a better explanation:
http://www.stoptech.com/whitepapers/warped_rotors_myth.htm

Start at the paragraph with the heading "The nature of braking friction".

OEM pads are engineered for shortest braking distance at moderate pedal force and are good choice for cars not used on a track or drag strip.