Brake Pads

[BLUEDUCE]

Yesterday I posted this to the wrong forum. Sooo now I'll start again in the right forum. Brake pads. The stock pads are playing havoc with the wheels. Cleaned them two weeks ago with Simple Green and a brush. Worked on them again tonight. I was told the ceramic pads do not produce much brake dust. What brand etc. Would like some help with this. Know there is a lot of experience out there and would like some imput. We are going to Fun Fest at Mid-America and wondered if anyone has had experience buying their brake pads.

Thanks,

Donna

 

[c4c5specialist]

HI there,
02=04 ZO6 pads all produced alot of brake dust.
This is due to the aggressive formulation of the pad itself.
A solution may be coupe brake pads. The formulation was much better for those who do not drive as enthusiastically as others. You will not have the same level of braking when driving very fast and braking hard, but some Z owners do not.
Allthebest, c4c5

 

[Patrick]

Donna,
I'll second what C4C5 Specialist said- I get prodigious quantities of break dust from my Z06. The hardest part about keeping my Z06 clean has become the break dust itself, falling down over the wheels. I can wash the car on a Saturday morning, have a week with no rain, and wheels look awful by Thursday.


-Patrick

 

[tlong]

Ceramic pads are the remedy with great performance. I switched from pig-pen EBC Greenstuff to Raybestos and it's now a non issue. Hear PFC are good too.

 

[Hitman1]

Donna, like you I got fed up with the brake dust on my wheels. I did some research and found out that alot of people tried the GM Ceramic brake pads and they like them so much on their Zs. They reported that the front wheels stayed clean with them. The ceramic pads however loose a bit of braking power according to those who tried them.

I ordered a set of Front GM ceramic brake pads from gmpartsdirect. here are the part numbers for them.
88909667 front disc brake ceramic pad kit.
88909668 rear disc brake ceramic pad kit.











You can go to http://www.gmpartsdirect.com

 

[Irv]

Yesterday I posted this to the wrong forum. Sooo now I'll start again in the right forum. Brake pads. The stock pads are playing havoc with the wheels. Cleaned them two weeks ago with Simple Green and a brush. Worked on them again tonight. I was told the ceramic pads do not produce much brake dust. What brand etc. Would like some help with this. Know there is a lot of experience out there and would like some imput. We are going to Fun Fest at Mid-America and wondered if anyone has had experience buying their brake pads.

I got a set a Hawk ceramics from The Tire Rack. The dust problem is completely solved, the wheels stay clean for a week of driving, but they do squeal a bit when they're cold. Braking performance for the street is unchanged. Highly recommended.

http://www.tirerack.com/brakes/brakes.jsp?autoMake=Chevrolet&autoModel=Corvette+Z06&autoYear=2003&autoModClar=&make=Hawk&model=Performance+Ceramic+Pads&perfCode=P

 

[tlong]

I can't tell much difference, maybe a little less when stone cold but they get better than regular when warmed up. Ceramics should be less noisey too. I thought all the late C5s and C6s had factory ceramic. True?

 

[Irv]

I thought all the late C5s and C6s had factory ceramic. True?

Z06 definitely don't come with ceramics. In fact, they seem equivalent to German OEM pads. Lots of carbon.

 

[c4c5specialist]

Z06 definitely don't come with ceramics. In fact, they seem equivalent to German OEM pads. Lots of carbon.

Hi there,
This is because ceramics will also wear out brake rotors faster than standard resin composition pads.
Allthebest, c4c5

 

[slapshot]

Just a word of wisdom, and by finding out the hard way years ago....
be very careful when using Simple Green on wheels. make sure it is very diluted and no where near full strength. it can leave permanent stains/marks on wheels, especially clear coated ones. don't let it sit on the wheels very long.

I'll also cast another vote for ceramic pads, they are much cleaner than standard pads, let alone Z06 pads. The first few Z's I saw I always wondered why the car was so clean and the wheels so dirty, then an owner told me about the pads.

 

[BLUEDUCE]

Thanks for all your imput. I haven't been diluting the Simple Green but do rinse off immediately. Will dilute from now on. Has anyone bought the ceramic pads from Mid-America? We are going again this year and thought about looking in to the ceramic pads they have in their catalog.

Donna

 

[dwjz06]

Thanks for all your imput. I haven't been diluting the Simple Green but do rinse off immediately. Will dilute from now on. Has anyone bought the ceramic pads from Mid-America? We are going again this year and thought about looking in to the ceramic pads they have in their catalog.

Donna

Donna,

No experience with the Mid America pads, but the GM ones work really well. I changed over to these when I changed to drilled and slotted rotors last year. I have an 02 Z06. Car stops well and like everyone has said very little dust. Don

 

[Jays Z06]

The wheels might be a little bit more difficult to clean...but the added insurance of the pads ability to stop well is worth it to me. A little sprayway glass cleaner or a soap/water mix can clean the wheels quickly without having to re-wash the car.

My car was spotless before the e-town trip on Saturday...including the wheels.....I didn't push it too hard on the way down or back and there is definitely a bit of dust on the wheels. You know what they say about compromise right? ? ?

 

[TODD L GRIFFITH]

I found a product sold at Auto Zone that works real nice. It comes in a blue can with a yellow cap called Michelin Brake Dust Repellent. After you apply it, the next time you wash your car, the brake dust just falls off with water. It is a spray type foam that you leave on for 15 sec. then wipe off. The result is like a wax like smoothness that lasts. I apply it every 5 washes or so. It makes cleaning the rims a breeze.