Front brake pad decision

[riversidedan]

DOING THE FRONT pads and have 3 choices so needing some advice which ones to get, thanx
ceramic
semi-metallic
Kevlar metalic

 

[G Winter]

I like the ceramics, no dirty wheels from them. They do work better warmed up and have to be careful if they get wet when they are cold, first time you brake they don't hold as well.
Never tried the kevlar

 

[WhalePirot]

For street use, I am not sure these hard pads that require warmup are an intelligent choice. It's hardly a nice surprise to have minimal brakes when you need them.

Having run ceramics on two other cars, I don't see the big deal, for performance or wear. When one rubbing piece is harder than what it replaces, what do you think will wear out faster? Stock rotors, in this case. Semi metallic and ceramics are both harder and probably perform better because of their component materials.. when HOT.

I saw great street performance and wear with the stock pads and now have Hawks on the Vette with no complaints and little dust.

 

[riversidedan]

For street use, I am not sure these hard pads that require warmup are an intelligent choice. It's hardly a nice surprise to have minimal brakes when you need them.

Having run ceramics on two other cars, I don't see the big deal, for performance or wear. When one rubbing piece is harder than what it replaces, what do you think will wear out faster? Stock rotors, in this case. Semi metallic and ceramics are both harder and probably perform better because of their component materials.. when HOT.

I saw great street performance and wear with the stock pads and now have Hawks on the Vette with no complaints and little dust.

thanx partner so what would the majority on this forum say a decent pad is for everyday street use, or I should say mostly weekends.

 

[LLC5]

thanx partner so what would the majority on this forum say a decent pad is for everyday street use, or I should say mostly weekends.

Here is what I noticed with my own vehicle. I switched to Z06 pads (semi-metallic) about two years ago, and noticed that the brake pad dust was much darker than the previous ceramics. I went to thoroughly clean my chrome wheels that are clear coated also as most chrome wheels are now and noticed that there was some very fine particles that would not come off the wheels. The particles have embedded themselves into the clear coat. I have since switched to ceramics again and noticed immediately that brake dust was still there but a much lighter color and hardly noticeable. I also noticed that when applying the brakes the ceramics didn't bite as quickly as the Z06's, I had to apply slightly (not much) more pedal pressure to do the same thing. The ceramics stop just as good as the Z06 pads, but just a little more pedal pressure is required to achieve the same results. I have had the ceramics on for a couple of months now and don't even notice a difference. Ceramics and semi-metallic both dust the wheels, but the ceramic dust is a lot lighter in color and should not damage clear coated wheels. For street use I would choose the ceramics, for track use I think the semi-metallic would give more feed back when braking initially. Good luck with your choice.

 

[windrider50]

I replaced the stock pads on my 96 with hawk Ceramic's. After 500 miles, I've also noticed that there is less dust on the wheels, and its much less noticeable. Braking effort has increased slightly. I recommend them..

 

[riversidedan]

After reading some stuff on here did go with ceramic,just waiting for them to show up so I can fianally get the car in for a brake/shock install..thanx for the info.