Best brake pads/disks for standard-to-fast road driving?
Discussion
Standard MX-5 Parts discs are fine. Axxis Ultimate pads are as good as you'll ever need, road or track. They don't need to be warmed up like some track-biased pads do but also don't fade when used on the track. They bite a bit harder than Mazda pads do but not so much that you lose pedal-feel. The only downside is the dusting but they are worth it.
I can actually get mine to fade but only at Bedford Autodrome at the end straight where I'm braking from 125mph to about 30-40mph for a hair-pin. It's probably the fluid rather than the pads themselves though - I must flush through with new fluid before my first track-day this year
I can actually get mine to fade but only at Bedford Autodrome at the end straight where I'm braking from 125mph to about 30-40mph for a hair-pin. It's probably the fluid rather than the pads themselves though - I must flush through with new fluid before my first track-day this year
Legend83 said:
Are Goodrich stainless steel hoses worth it if I don't plan to take her on the track? Basically want my brake setup to be top notch for the road.
Some say yes, and that it improves the braking, especially initial bite while others say no and that it takes the feel away from the brake pedal. I don't have steel braided hoses myself so I can't speak from personal experience. Skinny might be able to help here...I've had braided hoses fitted to my Porsche although they were fitted before I bought it so I can't comment on the difference in feel.
What I can say though is it makes the car more likely to fail an MOT. With none braided hoses the inspector can check the entire hose, whereas with braided hoses they can't.
This means all they can see are the very ends of the hose so if there is ANY hint of damage they can fail the car on its brake hoses as they're unable to see the reat of the hose beneath the braid (even though should the braid be removed this damage would be nowhere near enough to fail the test).
Just a thought.
What I can say though is it makes the car more likely to fail an MOT. With none braided hoses the inspector can check the entire hose, whereas with braided hoses they can't.
This means all they can see are the very ends of the hose so if there is ANY hint of damage they can fail the car on its brake hoses as they're unable to see the reat of the hose beneath the braid (even though should the braid be removed this damage would be nowhere near enough to fail the test).
Just a thought.
Got Mk2 last year its a 2000 1.8is it had done 25,000mls and the pads were original,they braked
okay but had zero feel (solid pedal). I perused the forums and decided on greenstuff pads,fitted
front pads and totally transformed the brakes,they now have a nice balance of feel and power.
Not everybody likes these pads (they are rather expensive) but i am a convert.
Dont know if this helps but thats my experience of greenstuff.
Cliff.
P.S. I am not infering that people dont like
these pads because they are expensive.
okay but had zero feel (solid pedal). I perused the forums and decided on greenstuff pads,fitted
front pads and totally transformed the brakes,they now have a nice balance of feel and power.
Not everybody likes these pads (they are rather expensive) but i am a convert.
Dont know if this helps but thats my experience of greenstuff.
Cliff.
P.S. I am not infering that people dont like
these pads because they are expensive.
I used to use Greenstuff pads but the last set I used ate a new set of rear discs within 1000 miles and hardly looked worn themselves. I can only assume that the pads were much too hard or the material was faulty.
Axxis Ultimates are much better, don't do any damage to discs and are around the same price. For normal road use you can't do much better than stock Mazda pads (a good price from MX5Parts).
Axxis Ultimates are much better, don't do any damage to discs and are around the same price. For normal road use you can't do much better than stock Mazda pads (a good price from MX5Parts).
i think the negatives on teh greenstuffs are rarely the price - it's the variable quality. some guys are perfectly happy, some have had bad problems with their greenstuffs fading.
but i have not seen one complaint about either the axiss ultimates or the Mintex M1144 pads (apart from teh dusting). i have used both, and they are fantastic pads - i prefer the mintex slightly, but then they are more expensive.
i would think for road use, genuine mazda pads are probably as good as you can get.
as for braided lines, my car is 16 years old and probably has never had it's brake lines ever done, so they were quite stretchy when it came to replacing them. i go the braided lines fitted and the brakes to me felt more responsive, especially under hard braking. i also have the master cylinder brace. it's probably far from necessary but i for what i want from teh car it suits me. never had a problem with the MOT's either - the braided lines you get from goodridge are covered in a tough clear plastic lining which helps protect the braid.
but i have not seen one complaint about either the axiss ultimates or the Mintex M1144 pads (apart from teh dusting). i have used both, and they are fantastic pads - i prefer the mintex slightly, but then they are more expensive.
i would think for road use, genuine mazda pads are probably as good as you can get.
as for braided lines, my car is 16 years old and probably has never had it's brake lines ever done, so they were quite stretchy when it came to replacing them. i go the braided lines fitted and the brakes to me felt more responsive, especially under hard braking. i also have the master cylinder brace. it's probably far from necessary but i for what i want from teh car it suits me. never had a problem with the MOT's either - the braided lines you get from goodridge are covered in a tough clear plastic lining which helps protect the braid.
Edited by skinny on Friday 29th February 21:25
I've tried both Axxis and EBC kevlar on my Eunos and find the EBC are more than adeqaute for my use (20k per year daily driver). One thing that should be considered is tyres, it's no use fitting super spec brake pads if you use cheap "teflon" coated tyres as the tyre has the ultimate effect on braking efficiency.If you lock the wheels because the tyres have no grip you are not going to stop.
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