# brakes?



## Blank (Aug 21, 2003)

okay, i just hit 14500 on the odometer on my spec, now my front brakes are making noise... is this a little premature? ive never owned a car with less then 50 k before, so they have always needed brakes when i got them, but 14500 seend kinda low to me...


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## Zac (Mar 10, 2004)

How hard do you brake? I'm nearly at 16k and I threshold brake rather hard and they are still kickin.


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## chimmike (Oct 17, 2002)

do you downshift or just put it neutral and use the brakes........................if you just throw it in neutral it can really make them wear fast.


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## Blank (Aug 21, 2003)

i downshift like a MF'er


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## Bror Jace (Apr 26, 2003)

Riding your brakes, even gently, can wear them out as they build up heat too fast and they can't cool down quick enough.

Lots of panic stops will do the same thing.

Pacing traffic more carefully will be easier on your brakes, clutch and gas mileage. Right now, I'm getting bout 31mpg. :thumbup:

I make my brakes last a long, long time. My previous Honda could have gone over 100,000 miles on the original front pads. My SpecV is at 21,000 miles and they're still fine. I'll check them again in November/December when I switch to snow tires. 

I'll be surprised if I get less than 40,000 miles out of my original pads. Not sure what I'll go with ... Hawks or something else? :wtf:


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## Blank (Aug 21, 2003)

ok new question, i just noticed when my friend drove, its just the front passenger wheel... i hope i dont have a stuck caliper or something... what is a good pad to go with, i can get labor hella cheap, just buty the pads... im not really comfortable doing this myself yet, maybe after this change ill try, i only did discs once... on my max, and i really just watched...


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## sr20dem0n (Mar 19, 2003)

chimmike said:


> do you downshift or just put it neutral and use the brakes........................if you just throw it in neutral it can really make them wear fast.



I always go to neutral and use the brakes, so far I have 46k miles on the stockers and they're still going very strong. Then again I very rarely panic stop and for the most part I drive pretty conservatively.


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## Silvspec86 (Apr 4, 2003)

i just changed my front brake pads to EBC's GreenStuff road/sport pads today. my car just hit 13 grand on the OD and the stock pads that i took off today had plenty of life to go and i only engine brake from time to time, mostly, i'm pretty hard on my brakes. my buddy who helped me put the brake pads in told me that he was pretty suprised to see that much life still in the pads knowing how i drive and knowing that i AutoX. changing brake pads is really simple, its just two bolts, and the caliper comes off. take the old ones out and the the new ones pop right in, bolt the caliper back on and your done, thats it, its that easy. i like these EBC Greenstuff pads, they have a higher coefficient of friction and have a better bite, and they feel much more efficient. plus, they are non-mettalic, unlike the stock semi-mettalic ones so they are more rotor friendly. i got my set at www.Tirerack.com for $57 shipped, front pads only. Hawk also makes sport pads for the Spec-V tho theirs is a semi-mettalic formula compound. tirerack sells those too. they get to most places 4 days, i got mine in one day, pretty cool.


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## Zac (Mar 10, 2004)

Silvspec86 said:


> i just changed my front brake pads to EBC's GreenStuff road/sport pads today. my car just hit 13 grand on the OD and the stock pads that i took off today had plenty of life to go and i only engine brake from time to time, mostly, i'm pretty hard on my brakes. my buddy who helped me put the brake pads in told me that he was pretty suprised to see that much life still in the pads knowing how i drive and knowing that i AutoX. changing brake pads is really simple, its just two bolts, and the caliper comes off. take the old ones out and the the new ones pop right in, bolt the caliper back on and your done, thats it, its that easy. i like these EBC Greenstuff pads, they have a higher coefficient of friction and have a better bite, and they feel much more efficient. plus, they are non-mettalic, unlike the stock semi-mettalic ones so they are more rotor friendly. i got my set at www.Tirerack.com for $57 shipped, front pads only. Hawk also makes sport pads for the Spec-V tho theirs is a semi-mettalic formula compound. tirerack sells those too. they get to most places 4 days, i got mine in one day, pretty cool.


I've heard good things about GreenStuffs. Keep me updated.


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## Silvspec86 (Apr 4, 2003)

oh yeah, these suckers stop hard, they have real bite to them. i got the chance to test them out today and i must say i was pleased. but one thing that baffled me was that today i took a 50mile round trip on the highway and did a good deal of local driving and after i came back, i noticed my wheels were covered with brake dust, they looked like they hadnt been washed for months. These pads are supposed to be cleaner and have LESS dust...whats up? are new pads supposed to have alot of dust while breaking in? anybody have any ideas? i mean they look like they've seated nicely on the rotors, cuz the rotors seem smoother but why is it having so much dust?


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## sr20dem0n (Mar 19, 2003)

I've heard the greenstuff pads put off a LOT of brake dust, and that they also leave deposits on the rotors that ruin them over time. I heard some rumors about this, so I just ran a search on google, and found TONS of people who experienced this on all sorts of different cars.


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## Silvspec86 (Apr 4, 2003)

i'm hoping its just because of the brake-in period. i emailed EBC last night so hopefully they can give me a good answer. cuz they are supposed to have F*cking half the dust as normal pads! i'm also hoping that the leaving deposits thing isnt true either...


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

I drive like a maniac, and although I downshift, my pads last about 15k, I guess. It's no biggie for me, I jus change them myself. As for the NX2000 brakes, I haven't had them long enough to see how long the pads last.


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## chimmike (Oct 17, 2002)

sr20dem0n said:


> I've heard the greenstuff pads put off a LOT of brake dust, and that they also leave deposits on the rotors that ruin them over time. I heard some rumors about this, so I just ran a search on google, and found TONS of people who experienced this on all sorts of different cars.



any good pads dump a ton of dust 

I had hawk hps pads and they did the same thing. Now I have ebc greenstuffs.


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## Zac (Mar 10, 2004)

Since we have ppl in here that rock Hawk and EBC GS, I might as well ask which is preferred? How good are their bites on stock rotors? WHich lasts longer? And GS damages the rotor?


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## Silvspec86 (Apr 4, 2003)

i dunno about that, damaging the rotors thing. they say its supposed to be extremely rotor friendly, cuz they are an organic kevlar compound. this is the first time i've heard anything about that. Chimmike, so you say that the excess dust is normal? will it be as bad when its fully broken in?


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## Zac (Mar 10, 2004)

Silvspec86 said:


> i dunno about that, damaging the rotors thing. they say its supposed to be extremely rotor friendly, cuz they are an organic kevlar compound. this is the first time i've heard anything about that. Chimmike, so you say that the excess dust is normal? will it be as bad when its fully broken in?


How is the braking ability over stock? And do you notice less fade?


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## Silvspec86 (Apr 4, 2003)

um, there is definaltely more bite, and it seems to bite with no fade even with some heavy use. the good thing i like about it is that it bites hard when cold, unlike the stock Semi-Mettalics that seems to need a bit of heat up to get good bite.


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## Ninety-Nine SE-L (May 5, 2002)

I'm pretty happy with the Nissan Genuine Pads. Thoughts?


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## Blank (Aug 21, 2003)

soooooooooooo i had a stuck caliper... 284 bucks later all is well in chris's spec... tore up the pads and rotors and stuff all over my pass side front...


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## Silvspec86 (Apr 4, 2003)

ouch


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## Zac (Mar 10, 2004)

Yo Silverspec I was hoping for an update on how the GreenStuffs are biting, dusting, fading and wearing.

Chimmike, do you reccomend Hawk or GreenStuff and why?


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## Silvspec86 (Apr 4, 2003)

sorry, nickzac, been kinda busy the past couple weeks, anyway the Greenstuffs are good, but its still shedding dust like crazy, i have to clean my wheels every other day to keep them looking good. but they do bite hard, i'll give it that. and it seems to have resurfaced my rotors now that its seated in there. i've gotten about 300 miles on it and it should be broken in but it still is dusting like crazy, the EBC guy wrote back to me and said that it was normal during break in period to see exessive dust, but i'm a bit past break in now and while its gotten better, it still sheds alot more than the stock ones. the EBC guy says that the dust is coming from the rotors, being seated. sounds reasonable, my rotors are now ridge free and super smooth, just how its supposed to look. i dunno, i mean if you dont mind the cleanning, they are very good pads for $50


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## Zac (Mar 10, 2004)

Minus the dusting they sound good. Mike!!!??? Hawk or EBC?


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## Flying Vv (Apr 10, 2003)

A friend of mine uses Hawk performance pads on his Corrado. The feel is wonderful. With new rotors front and back its amazing to see the difference. He tried EBC greenstuff but didnt like the dust. He reccomend hawk. as for me, i brake hard and do occasional AutoX and my stock brakes are fine. Havent had any problems yet. Although im gonna upgrade my brakes once i get some more cash


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