Brake Pad Recommendations?

Kinja'd!!! by "Doge_Supreme drives a BRZ" (doge-supreme)
Published 10/17/2017 at 18:44

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Looking to replace the factory pads in my BRZ, and could use some recommendations. I tend to drive rather aggressively so something a bit more performance oriented would be preferable. Typically use the car for commuting with frequent mountain drives, and the occasional auto-x.


Replies (14)

Kinja'd!!! "CaptDale - is secretly British" (captdale)
10/17/2017 at 18:50, STARS: 0

I went with Hawk 5.0 pads on my GTO and love them. I would suggest them if they make them for the BRZ. Good ratings for both street and track.

Kinja'd!!! "Nibby" (nibby68)
10/17/2017 at 18:53, STARS: 0

ones that help it stop better

Kinja'd!!! "Doge_Supreme drives a BRZ" (doge-supreme)
10/17/2017 at 18:58, STARS: 0

I see them for the 2014 BRZ. I don’t think any changes were made to the brakes between 13 and 14 though.

Kinja'd!!! "WRXforScience" (WRXforScience)
10/17/2017 at 19:01, STARS: 0

I’ve gone through a few sets of pads on my BRZ, so I might be able to help.

The last set I used with the stock setup were some Project Mu HC 800+, my last set and before that I used some Hawk Street/Race, and before that some Stoptech Street Pads. I’ve got a set of Ferodo 2500's that are on my AP Racing Sprint Kit that have worked well for me.

Autocross isn’t too hard on brakes, in fact, race brakes won’t get enough heat to work in many autocrosses. Bigger issues for autocross are: initial bite, cold stopping power, and brake feel.

The Stoptech’s were great for autox, but don’t hold up to track duty. The Ferodos, Hawks, and Project Mu worked great for both autox and trackdays; however they are louder on the street and tougher on rotors.

Carbotech has some great sets of pads and I’m trying them next.

If you aren’t going to the track, get the Stoptech Street pads, they are cheaper, quieter, and easier on rotors than all the others. They have pretty good initial bite and feel and work great for the type of driving you do.

The only pad that I don’t like is the Hawk HPS, I got a free set with my AP Racing brake kit and they aren’t worth putting on the car.

Kinja'd!!! "CaptDale - is secretly British" (captdale)
10/17/2017 at 19:02, STARS: 0

As far as I could tell with a quick look in my Subaru catalogue they take the same front pads ‘13 and ‘14

Kinja'd!!! "DutchieDC2R" (dutchiedc2r)
10/17/2017 at 19:05, STARS: 0

For pads, Ive used Stoptech products and have absolutely zero issues with them. The Hawks are probably of a better quality, but as far as grab goes and track use, I am very happy with them (Ive had them on my miata and now on my Integra).

Kinja'd!!! "ITA97, now with more Jag @ opposite-lock.com" (ita97)
10/17/2017 at 19:37, STARS: 0

I’d recommend Hawk’s HPS, or the street 5.0 pads which are an updated version of the HPS. Good torque, can take a little bit of heat, good cold response, nice initial bite, minimal dusting and noise for a real brake pad and friendly enough to rotors. They’re fine cold, and with a very minimal amount of heat they come alive. Stoptech’s street performance/sport pads are also very similar (and good) at a lower price point. Neither of these are appropriate for any track use, but both are fine for autocrossing.

If you want a little more brake pad, look at the Hawk HP Plus/Street Race pads. Higher torque, will take a bit more heat, okay cold response, fantastic initial bite, really comes alive a bit of heat, but lots o’ dust, noise and will wear rotors significantly faster. They’re great, but there also about the limit of what one can run on a street car and still have reasonable cold modulation. A conservative driver might be able to run a track day with them with some cooling help. A fast shoe can probably get one or two 10/10th laps out of them at a time before they fade.

Another option to consider might be Porterfield’s Kevlar R4S pads. Nicely streetable, great modulation (but not as high torque as an HP plus) will take some heat, but are long-lived, quiet and rotor friendly. I’ve run them on street cars and liked them. If you want probably the best overall pad for the use you’ve described, they’re probably it if you’re willing to pay. The only downside to them is that they are pricey. EBC green/red stuff is another option, but I’ve just never been a fan. I’ve found them to be short-lived, weird modulation and more prone to fade then I thought they should’ve been for what they were.

Kinja'd!!! "merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc" (merged-5876237249235911857-hrw8uc)
10/17/2017 at 19:46, STARS: 0

Stop tech z23 evolution pads. Love em for street and autoX

Kinja'd!!! "JawzX2, Boost Addict. 1.6t, 2.7tt, 4.2t" (jawzx2)
10/17/2017 at 20:07, STARS: 0

I’m a big fan of the EBC Yellowstuff for mixed use. They produce dust like MAD, and are rough on rotors (seriously, who keeps their rotors for more than one set of pads?) but they have very good performance from cold and don’t feel wooden off the bat either, (good for commuting and daily driving) and once they heat up they really bite like crazy. I have haven’t gotten them to get fadey in public road driving, even with serious mountain-pounding here in Vermont. They’ll be good for AX due to the good cold bite and feel, and though they might not be a true trackday pad like some of the Hawk stuff and EBC’s own Redstuff, they are very civil as daily drivers. Not noisy at all in my experience, though YMMV.

Kinja'd!!! "Matsayz" (matsayz)
10/17/2017 at 20:51, STARS: 0

I upgraded rotors and pads to EBC red stuff. Huge difference in brake dust, like night and day from the VW pads on my Golf R. Bought it all on Amazon too!

Kinja'd!!! "gettingoldercarguy" (gettingoldercarguy)
10/17/2017 at 21:17, STARS: 0

I’ve consistently used the Carbotech bobcats and had great results with them.

Kinja'd!!! "pip bip - choose Corrour" (hhgttg69)
10/18/2017 at 06:22, STARS: 0

Bendix?

Kinja'd!!! "davesaddiction @ opposite-lock.com" (davesaddiction)
10/18/2017 at 09:41, STARS: 0

Another vote for StopTech Street Performance for mixed-use daily/backroad/occasional track/autox.

Kinja'd!!! "MR2_FTW - Group J's resident Stig" (MR2_FTW)
10/18/2017 at 09:45, STARS: 0

I’m a huge fan of Porterfield’s HP R4S (street + autocross) compound. I run it on my MR2 and my FX16.