I replaced my OEM Brembo brake pads and OEM rotors Friday night. I opted for R1 Concepts Cross-drilled rotors and Hawk HPS pads. I was under the impression that I would sacrifice some stopping power on the Hawk HPS pads for quieter/lower dusting pads.

A couple of questions:
1. For those that changed the pads out, did you notice a considerable difference in the amount of effort to brake with the new pads?
2. Is this occuring due to the combination of the cross-drilled rotors (which has slightly less surface area to bite into) and lower stopping power pads?
3. As the pads settle in, should I notice an improvement in stopping power with less effort?

I performed the bedding process, I don't believe any of the rotors are glazed (would this be a symptom?) I did have a barely audible 'knocking' noise coming from the left rear rotor at speeds below 10mph for the first 2 days of driving, but that appears to have disappeared now. I had inspected the brakes, calipers, and rotors, but did not see any visible issues.

 

Hawk HPS are a higher temp pad, which means they resist fade very well, but they don't have good cold (initial) bite characteristics for the street. Ultimately, this means that no matter what you do, they will always require more effort to brake on initial stops. In the wet and cold, it's a bit scary because there is a slight lag in brake grip when you first apply the brakes. It's why I will never use them again on the street.

 

Wow, I did not realize that....I would have just stuck with the OEM Brembos had I known in advance.

 

+1 on Hawk Hps pads. Only advantage they have is less dust than oem. I have the same setup w/ rotors. No initial bite compared to oem. When the pads first get wet it IS very scary. Will not get them again but the less dust is nice.

 

just to chime in, what you're experiencing w/ the hawks is normal. it's a trade off, less dust, less bite.

 

It's actually kind of disappointing that Hawk markets them as good street pads because I find them anything but, and as you can see, I am certainly not alone. They are better suited for autocross, canyon carving or perhaps a light lapping day.

FYI - After going with OEM on my first 2 sets, I switched my fronts to Project Mu NS in November, and I've actually been quite pleased with them, even through our cold Philly winter. The bite is almost identical to OEM Brembo pads, and they do seem to have a little less dust than OEM. Not a ton cheaper than OEM (maybe $30-40), but an excellent street pad so far.

 

Yeah, I probably should have done a little more research on them before I purchased them, but I guess I will get used to pushing the brake pedal a little harder than before. Money was not an issue, and I think I looked at the Project Mu's but was turned off by their teal color (OCD got the best of me...lol.)
I will admit that once the Hawk HPS pads are warmed up, they do seem to perform as well as the OEM Brembo pads do.

If I do it again, I will definitely look at the Project Mus next time.

 

mine squeal like 50% of the time. and i did notice they take a lil more effort than oem but not much with normal street driving. wouldnt choose them again tho!

 

dude you live in Texas, you'll be fine. i'm in SoCal, warm all year round. HPS pads work just fine for me. really, how often do you slam on the brakes pulling out of your driveway? once they're warm, they're way better than OEM. Project Mu's are hella dusty and loud. if you have squeal issues w/HPS then you either have rotor issues or you need pad shims.

 

C'mon foo I told you that when we were installing them. That's why I just gave Mauricio my used Hawk pads.

Glad to hear though the thumping stopped. Wonder what was causing it?

 

Texas gets cold during the winter - below 45 degrees. It's not so much a question of slamming on the brakes pulling out of a driveway - it's going for your brakes on the highway after you haven't used them for 1-2 minutes and experiencing that 1/2 second lag. That lag could mean a nasty pileup. That lag always bothered me.

As for the Project Mus, I'm not sure which ones you were using (maybe B-force?) but my NS's are as quiet as a door mouse, and I've noticed MUCH less dusting than OEM Brembo pads. I used the OEM shims and lots of brake quiet and I've had no noise issues whatsoever.

 

come on man, that's pretty over exaggerated.

 

I wish it were, but that's certainly the way it felt in the cold or rain. Quite scary, actually. Living in SoCal, you probably haven't experienced it, but in the cooler temps, it's pretty noticeable.

 

I knew I was going to give up some initial bite, but that first couple of days of driving, I was shocked at how those pads operated until they are warmed up.

After closely inspecting everything, I suspect that one of the brake pads must have been coming in contact with the rotor on that left rear tire, it seemed to do it at each complete rotation and I must have shaved off whatever was causing the drag over the weekend.