Brake pad recommendations

[jrsteeve]

Need to change the pads on my 2004 3.0 and want to try to save a few ££s if at all possible. Are there any brands you would or wouldn't recommend? I#ve seen GreenStuff, RedStuff and Mintex.

thanks for any help

[Laurence]

I've just fitted EBC 6000 Series SUV Heavy Duty Pads - more commonly known as Green Stuff.

No problems so far, very similar to the OEM pads but with much less dust.

[2002Silver4.6is]

Axxis Deluxe!!

Ceramic brake pads, virtually no dust!!

[Tomaz]

Originally Posted by 2002Silver4.6is

Axxis Deluxe!!

Ceramic brake pads, virtually no dust!!

i Plus, if you really want to save some bucks, do them yourself. It's easy if you are mechanically competent and have the right tools. Good luck.

[jrsteeve]

I'd be willing to give it a go if it was something slightly less likely to kill me if i do it wrong! lol

btw what are the rotors and how much are they? I've read about them being needed too but don't know what they are.


Cheers for the help!

[jrsteeve]

ok cheers, are they all the same size for the X5? Seen a few on ebay but they stipulate certain years.

[JCL]

Best source for Axxis Deluxe is Zeckhausen, a board sponsor. They have a fitment chart on their site.

http://www.zeckhausen.com/

I wouldn't call the Axxis Deluxe pads ceramic, they have an organic compound. They may have added ceramics to their marketing effort, but these are not a true ceramic IMO. Still, I like them, and would buy them again.

Good luck.

[DZeckhausen]

Originally Posted by JCL

I wouldn't call the Axxis Deluxe pads ceramic, they have an organic compound. They may have added ceramics to their marketing effort, but these are not a true ceramic IMO. Still, I like them, and would buy them again.

Actually, Axxis Deluxe is no less a "true ceramic" pad than Hawk Performance Ceramic, Centric Posi-Quiet Ceramic, or Akebono ProAct Ceramic. Ceramic is simply one of up to 40 ingredients in the mix of particles that goes into a friction compound and makes up from 1 to 5 percent of the total volume. It is not, as some marketers would like to make us believe, a pad carved from a solid block of ceramic. And there's nothing about the word Ceramic in the name of the pad (or on the box) that tells you anything about how the pad is going to perform. Yet people call me all the time asking for "ceramic" pads, as if that tells me anything about what they are really looking for in terms of their ideal mix of performance characteristics.

For example, most people think "ceramic" pads are low dust. However, Axxis ULT pads have "ceramic" prominently featured on the box and those are certainly not low dust pads. I've seen other posts on forums, claiming that ceramic pads are unusually rotor friendly. I’ve also seen people warn others to stay away from ceramic pads because they "eat your rotors" or they "warp" your rotors. All of these statements are probably based on someone's experience with a specific pad (e.g., NAPA Ceramic) that was on their car when they experienced some sort of issue that may or may not have been related to that pad choice. Or a dealership service writer made something up to coerce their customer to stay with OEM pads. And thus is born an Internet legend.

In the specific case of the Axxis Deluxe Plus pads, they have always been a "ceramic" pad, but the box was designed at a time when the marketers had not created a buzz for ceramic. Once ceramic became the hot buzzword, the Axxis Ultimate (featuring "Kevlar") on the box became the Axxis ULT with "CERAMIC" in big letters and "Kevlar" was relegated to fine print. About a year later, the Axxis Deluxe Plus became the Axxis Deluxe Advanced and "ceramic" magically appeared on the box. These steps were taken, not as the result of a dramatic change in pad compound, but rather to avoid losing sales to other brands who had already jumped on the "ceramic" marketing bandwagon. (Remember when Sugar Pops became Corn Pops? Same stuff, different spin.)

By the way, it is possible, but not common, for a "ceramic" pad to also contain strands of copper or steel, thus making it a "semi-metallic" pad. These are not mutually exclusive ingredients and the performance of the pad depends on these and other ingredients, as well as the manufacturing techniques. When you ask your vendor for pads, you should tell him/her what you really want in terms of performance (cold bite, friction level, pedal feel, dust level, rotor wear, etc.) and explain what compromises you are willing to make in one characteristic in order to gain more of another. Don't fall for the marketing campaigns and simply ask for a single ingredient.

[JCL]

Good balanced information Dave, thanks. (Also, I have and would recommend them to other BMW owners no matter what the ceramic composition is)

[SuperGreg]

Originally Posted by DZeckhausen

Actually, Axxis Deluxe is no less a "true ceramic" pad than Hawk Performance Ceramic, Centric Posi-Quiet Ceramic, or Akebono ProAct Ceramic. Ceramic is simply one of up to 40 ingredients in the mix of particles that goes into a friction compound and makes up from 1 to 5 percent of the total volume. It is not, as some marketers would like to make us believe, a pad carved from a solid block of ceramic. And there's nothing about the word Ceramic in the name of the pad (or on the box) that tells you anything about how the pad is going to perform. Yet people call me all the time asking for "ceramic" pads, as if that tells me anything about what they are really looking for in terms of their ideal mix of performance characteristics...

I just bought and installed the Axxis Deluxe pads from Dave. His customer service and knowledge is amazing, and I received my parts within 4 days of ordering. I bedded the new brake pads last night using Dave's bedding procedure. I am very happy with the performance of these pads. I can't wait to wash the car this coming Saturday, and begin to enjoy the lack of brake dust accumulation between washes .