on a simpler note, those who brake earlier and longer or coast to a stop tend to have brakes that last longer... hence less wear..

those that drive more aggressive and brake harder because they're too fast and have to slow down much quicker tend to wear out their brakes sooner and there fore need to change their brakes sooner... my previous 2k2 6spd maxima would still be on its original rotors and pads if i hadn't upgraded to powerslot rotors and hawk pads.... i did that change @ 20K miles and brakes still had lots left.... maxima now has 80k plus miles and still no brake squeaks (car is in older brother's hand)...

 

Personally, I think that's more of a function of what pads/rotors you are using... I use my wife and I as an example... We both have similar driving habits with regards to how fast we drive, and how aggressive we are in how we drive and such, but I know she tends to brake harder/later than I do. In our case, we were previously running the same brakes on both our cars. We wore our brakes at almost the exact same rate. In fact before I switched out to the same brake pads she was running, I was burning through my brakes at a much quicker rate.

Since you have a 6spd, it also depends how/if you guys use engine braking. I know some people are fans of it, and others never do it. That effects how fast you wear your brakes too.

Kinda like tires... One tire may yield vastly different tread wear than another, even if you drive the same... Trying to control tire wear based on how you drive seems pointless, when you'd probably get better results by switching tires.

But as others have said, there are many variables that go into brake wear, so we can't just simplify it down to how hard you brake. Personally, brakes are relatively cheap, so it's pointless to change your driving habits, just to try and save a few bucks. Just drive however you are comfortable. Trying to change your driving habits, will make you uncomfortable when you drive... Being out of your comfort zone while driving, is what leads to accidents. (ie, spending more time concentrating on when/how hard to brake, rather than looking where you are going, etc)

 

No one drives the same, most don't even count applications* per mile yet they want to define pad life in "how many miles do they last".

Is that a city [NYC or Mobile] or an interstate mile?

* duration in milliseconds and pedal pressure graph.

A very loud buzzer everytime the brake lights come on would increase pad life significantly.

 

I rarely if ever engine brake, maybe only through the twisties for maintaining powerband.... i'd rather replace pads and rotors over clutch parts anyday....

i however did forget to mention that 85% of my miles are highway/interstate miles so that plays a big part... obviously if you commute thru a metro city on a daily basis you'll wear out your brakes sooner.... so the number of times someone brakes does factor in.

 

There are plenty of good performing brake pads out there, many of which are not terribly expensive. Consider it part of the cost of enjoying the hell outta what a G can do. Brake long and slow when you are surrounded by everyday ******** and stuff the brakes real hard when you have room on a familiar road and enjoy the balance of the car. Heal and toe hard into a good corner and break the tires a little loose powering out. What else did you get a G for?

 

I agree on AVS007. assuming that the constant velocity is the same, if you brake hard you lose more brake pads but only in a small amount of time. If you brake slowly you use less brake pads but the contact time of the pads and the disc is longer too so it will be equal. I'm more scared of breaking hard because it cause a great sudden change in temperature that causes your rotors to warp (atleast on the non-vented disk).

 

A 60 mph panic stop only increases the rotor ambient temperature by < 150F, however a full 120 mph > zero increases rotor by <600F.............4 back to back 60 = 1 single 120 stop.