Axxis pads bedding complete...
 

So I completed the bedding-in process for my new Axxis Deluxe Plus brake pads. I got up at 4:45am on Friday morning and for those of you who may know the area, I headed up north on Rt. 128 to Gloucester, MA. I went all the way up to the first rotary where I know the traffic is usually light, but there were a few more people on the road than I had expected. I still got the job done though - warmed up the breaks with a few mild 60 - 45 slow-downs and then I proceeded to go through the 8 very hard slow-downs from 60 -10. I didn't want to glide for a while when a couple of cars were coming up on my tail because I didn't want the breaks to cool at all between stops, so the last couple of slow-downs had to be done in the breakdown lane. Yes, I'm sure they thought I was driving like a lunatic, or perhaps they thought I had something seriously wrong with my X. Oh well - couldn't really stop at that point. I made sure I was as safe as I could be. During the procedure, the breaks modulated quite well and I could easily feel how close I was to activating the ABS with each run - I could feel the tires just barely starting to lose grip. During the 8th run, I could definitely feel the brakes beginning to fade a bit - more so near the end of the run than at the beginning. After that I drove the car a full 20 minutes without touching the breaks again to allow them to cool sufficiently. The procedure went off exactly as spelled out on Dave Z.'s instructions and there were no surprises or ill effects - just quiet, straight, and very strong braking. The rotor faces turned a bit blue and I could see the gray color that Dave noted as well - seems to have worked exactly as planned. Overall I'd say the Axxis pads feel just a bit better than stock, definitely noticeable but nothing dramatic. No noise at all so far and the brakes don't seem to grab as much during that last second when I come to a complete stop - you know, when they grab just a bit too tight right at the end and make that brief "grunt" - no more of that - a nice plus for sure. I put my "cleaned all winter" style 132's back on as soon as I got home and I've barely driven the car since then, so I still don't have a good feel for how much less dusting they are. I'll let you know what I see after I get a few more miles on them.

After a year of hanging out w/you guys, here's a couple of pics of my X5 - including a shot of a rear rotor after bedding in the pads... Sorry it took me so long!

http://xoutpost.com/gallery/files/2/8/DSC00436.jpg

http://xoutpost.com/gallery/files/2/8/X5onFrontLawn2.jpg

http://xoutpost.com/gallery/files/2/8/X5onFrontLawn1.jpg

the bluish tint is from glazing the rotors.. not biggie since its not so bad. but yes, the deluxe pad is just a tad bit better then the oem pads in bite (friction coefficient) and feel/modulation. best bang for the buck out there methinks...

Your X5 looks great. I like those wheels.

I love those 19" wheels! Very nice.

Youre truck is sweet! I kept asking myself if a black X needed the chrome window trim..now I know the answer..NO!! Nice wheels too...

Sounds good and looks good!

Hey, thanks for the compliments guys. I just finished with my spring cleanup as well - Dawn, clay, Zaino - the works. I even clean the engine bay once in a while - still looks pretty close to the day I picked it up - 367 days and 13,098 miles later... My elbow hurts... I need a few more good weather days before I can give you a brake-dust report w/the new pads!

"No noise at all so far and the brakes don't seem to grab as much during that last second when I come to a complete stop - you know, when they grab just a bit too tight right at the end and make that brief "grunt" - no more of that - a nice plus for sure."

Does changing the brake pad get rid of this problem? The "grunt" is definitely something I want to get rid of.

I think it was more due to the bedding in procedure than simply changing pads, although I'm sure the pad material can have something to do with it. I'm sure Dave Zeckhausen would be able to tell you - in great detail.

Zeckhausen Racing

how long is noise scraping noise normal for? I heard 200-300 miles. Is it the zinc on the rotors coming off or the pads still not totally bedded? I did bedding procedure, do I need to do it again?