C6 Z06 Brake Pad replacement

[vetteheadracer]

I have to do the pads on my 2008 as they are getting near the end of their useful life. Anyone using anything other than factory spec replacements and if so what is good / bad about the pads?

Front brakes only at this point.

[roughrider]

EBC Yellow stuff from BM are good value. Even the EBC discs are very reasonably priced! Weird, how the individual pads wear at an angle, because of more swept area towards the outer edge of the disc!

[Godzilla]

I've used Raybestos ST43s and they were pretty good. No fade on track but perhaps a tad harsh on the rotors for everyday use.

Racing Brake make a decent 2 piece rotor with re-usable alloy hat and proper directional venting when your discs wear out.
I think I might have a new set of their fast road pads lying around? Are you interested?

[JenkinsComp]

I use EBC pads, but went for factory spec as I am unlikely to go on a track with the Corvette for a while.
They work just fine, no noticeable difference, other than the price!

[V10 BAT]

Nigel,i got ebc red stuff.seem to dust a bit,but i lkie them, well pinchy.
Dont know how they compare to stock cos i have never used them.
These guys are great ,with reasonable prices.
MECHANICAL TECH SERVICES
EBC MASTER STOCKIST
0800 052 3067
0800 052 3068
0208 843 9091
Ask for steve the guv.

[vetteheadracer]

I used aftermarket brake pads on my Lotus exige and although the worked well when driving the car hard, they squealed like a stuck pig when driving the car gently.

I used the EBC red stuff pads on my Mitsubishi Evo and they were excellent, but as I am in the US in a couple of weeks time I will see how much I can get some pads for over there and if they are hideously expensive will gets some EBC pads I think on my return.

[Godzilla]

If you're never going to track it, then you may as well get some low-dust ceramic pads out in the US. Check the Corvette Forum.

But if you think you'll ever track it, then I've never heard of anyone choosing EBC...

[zapbrannigan]

vetteheadracer said:

I used aftermarket brake pads on my Lotus exige and although the worked well when driving the car hard, they squealed like a stuck pig when driving the car gently.

I used the EBC red stuff pads on my Mitsubishi Evo and they were excellent, but as I am in the US in a couple of weeks time I will see how much I can get some pads for over there and if they are hideously expensive will gets some EBC pads I think on my return.

In the US I think the stock ACDelco front-pads are around $100(ish) for a set. Probably around the same price as the EBC Yellow's from BM

[V10 BAT]

I think that there are some two pc pad sets out there.
Like c5 set up.

[ian_uk1975]

Godzilla said:

If you're never going to track it, then you may as well get some low-dust ceramic pads out in the US. Check the Corvette Forum.

But if you think you'll ever track it, then I've never heard of anyone choosing EBC...

I can definitely recommend AC Delco ceramic pads if you're not going to track it; it's really amazing how long the wheels stay looking clean for and makes washing the car much less of a chore. However, one or two hard stops from triple-digit speeds has revealed a frightening level of fade, so definitely not pads to go for if you'll be racing. They're perfectly fine for normal road use though. For stopping power and fade resistance, I can recommend Performance Friction Carbon Metallics... I had a set of these on the C5 and they were very good indeed; great initial bite and progressive, BUT there's no such thing as a free lunch... lots of dust, needed warming-up before they really started 'working' and the dust was not kind at all to my wheels (pitted the finish quite badly). Also, as already stated, high performance pads are liable to squeal when cold.

[vetteheadracer]

Decided to change the brake pads on the C6 Z06 today which was quite painless except I needed to spray all the star bolts that hold the 6 pads in place with WD40 before trying to remove them.
Did the passenger side first no problems but was shocked to discover this when removing the top inner pad on the drivers side!
The left pad in this picture is the normal pad and the right pad is the complete disintegrated one from the inner drivers side top pad.



Decided to go for the Hawk ceramic pads and also changed the bolts to the hex headed ones sold here:

http://www.racingbrake.com/Z06_Brake_Pad_EZ_Bolt_p...

These guys also sold me the pads, excellent service

[Ron Fellows]

vetteheadracer said:

Decided to change the brake pads on the C6 Z06 today which was quite painless except I needed to spray all the star bolts that hold the 6 pads in place with WD40 before trying to remove them.
Did the passenger side first no problems but was shocked to discover this when removing the top inner pad on the drivers side!
The left pad in this picture is the normal pad and the right pad is the complete disintegrated one from the inner drivers side top pad.



Decided to go for the Hawk ceramic pads and also changed the bolts to the hex headed ones sold here:

http://www.racingbrake.com/Z06_Brake_Pad_EZ_Bolt_p...

These guys also sold me the pads, excellent service

Be careful with the Hawk Ceramics mate!

I put them in last week and thought they were good on the street. However on Saturday evening they completely disintegrated on the track 5 mins into the second session! Not a very nice experience braking from 150+ Mph to find sparks flying out of the front wheels

[vetteheadracer]

Will bear that in mind but not planning on tracking my C6 Z06....that is what the C5 is for!

[irish boy]

how many miles did you get?

im on nearly 10k but mine seem fine so far!

Edited by irish boy on Monday 6th April 17:28

[Godzilla]

Most Z06 owners take the whole caliper off which just involves taking two bolts off rather than the infinite amount to remove all 12 front pads.

Nigel, you should have had my unused set of Racing Brake pads as mentioned above rather than shipping a new set over...

I must say, if these low-dust ceramics are that dangerously bad on track, I wonder how they'll stand up to a hard drive on some twisty roads?

Simplest answer is to ditch the whole system and buy a proper Brembo 6 pot set up.
Funnily enough, I know of a set that will be up for sale soon...

[vetteheadracer]

irish boy said:

how many miles did you get?

im on nearly 10k but mine seem fine so far!

Well the car is coming up to 29,000 miles and I have had it since 12,000 and this is the first time I have changed the pads and I doubt the previous owner would have needed to so I would guess that is the first change. Looking at the knackered pad where the surface had complete disintegrated maybe it would be worth checking all the pads a bit sooner eventhough there was plenty of pad left on all the other ones and they had all worn evenly.

My car does mainly motorway miles so obviously different usage will mean potentially less miles on a set of pads but I would be surprised if a set would last less than 20,000 unless it was an exclusive track day car.

Godzilla said:

Most Z06 owners take the whole caliper off which just involves taking two bolts off rather than the infinite amount to remove all 12 front pads.

Nigel, you should have had my unused set of Racing Brake pads as mentioned above rather than shipping a new set over...

I must say, if these low-dust ceramics are that dangerously bad on track, I wonder how they'll stand up to a hard drive on some twisty roads?

Simplest answer is to ditch the whole system and buy a proper Brembo 6 pot set up.
Funnily enough, I know of a set that will be up for sale soon...

Regarding the removal David, I had bought a set of the EZ Bolts so it made sense to leave the calipers in place and just remove the 8 retaining bolts per caliper. The C5 brakes are attached the same i.e. 2 bolts holding each caliper on. Thanks for the offer of the pads but I don't use the C6 on track as that is what the C5 is for and that has race pads. I will let you know how the Hawk pads perform but they seem to give good bite so will report back if I have any issues with them.

Edited by vetteheadracer on Monday 6th April 20:10

[G4HKS]

I'm pleased I read this little lot - I was going to replace my standard pads for Hawk Ceramics - I guess not?! Are there any ceramic pads that anyone would recommend?

[Ron Fellows]

G4HKS said:

I'm pleased I read this little lot - I was going to replace my standard pads for Hawk Ceramics - I guess not?! Are there any ceramic pads that anyone would recommend?

The GM Ceramics standard ones are what most people in the States are going back to. Have a look on the www.corvetteforum.com
The Hawks are fine on the street just dont seem to like being on track.

I managed 7 track days on the standard pads before needing to replace them. So for now I've got a spare set of standards back in! Till I get something Im happy with.

[roughrider]

vetteheadracer said:

Decided to change the brake pads on the C6 Z06 today which was quite painless except I needed to spray all the star bolts that hold the 6 pads in place with WD40 before trying to remove them.
Did the passenger side first no problems but was shocked to discover this when removing the top inner pad on the drivers side!
The left pad in this picture is the normal pad and the right pad is the complete disintegrated one from the inner drivers side top pad.



Decided to go for the Hawk ceramic pads and also changed the bolts to the hex headed ones sold here:

http://www.racingbrake.com/Z06_Brake_Pad_EZ_Bolt_p...

These guys also sold me the pads, excellent service

Looks like that pad on the right has actually corroded away! After washing the car [before tucking it away back in the garage], i think its always a good idea to drive a mile or so to dry out the brakes. Otherwise, i think it leaves a wet pad to corrode with the steel disc at the point of contact!
The EBC yellows are behaving well on mine. No squeaking, and good feel at all temperatures. Wear seems low as well!