I have a 2010 Clubman S with 42k that will need front pads within he next month or So. What are the best front brake pads for "Spirted" street driving? I don't do the track or any auto cross or related activities. I would like a little bit better performance from my stock brakes.

I'm thinking EBC Green pads, any thoughts?

 

I changed my stock pads to EBC greens about a month ago at 43k miles. I also decided to get new rotors since a shop told me the old ones were a tad warped. They're still breaking in - I haven't bedded them in properly yet - but even so, they are excellent performers. Brake feel is pretty similar to stock IMO, but if you're doing spirited driving and not autoX or anything I think they are very good value for the money.

 

EBC Greens will give you better performance over stock. For the "spirited" driver, EBC Reds work even better under heavier road-driving conditions. EBC Yellows are really track pads. They now have Orange pads but I haven't run them yet.

I have had good performance with the Green and Red pads and it really depends on how far away from stock you want to go, your driving style, and the cars performance range. Too much towards a racing pad will give you crappy performance because they won't start to work until they are way hot and broken in. Greens are a better than stock upgrade followed by Reds for more performance-style driving.

That's my opinion... and you know what they say about opinions...

 

not sure if this applies to your generation

but if no performance driving is being done...

I am a believer in centric pads and rotors (same maker of stop tech products)

I use posi quiet pads, perfect for street great price

if your one of those... i need pads for "aggressive street" use better brake fluid and tires

these pads are great for the street and at a good price point... just my two cents

reference: I have used everything from street pads to full blown race pads... not on r53s but on my race cars

 

I would go either EBC Greens or Reds depending on how rough you are on brakes on the street.

Oh and bedding in pads doesn't take that long. Some good hard stops followed by some no-brakes driving to cool down the brakes and you're good to go. If you want to read up more about it check out the article Stoptech has on bedding in brakes.

 

Just put on the Akenobono pads from WMW. Very impressed. $90 well spent.

 

No such a thing as best brake pads... It depends what you are looking for. I'd say, make sure you understand the trade-offs. Do your homework
When it comes to brake pads it's all about choices:

- How much dust - Even with the best pads those that will make less brake dust won't brake as well. One of the hardest thing to gauge though until you've put them to the test and get a feel for it.

- Cold braking (initial braking) vs. warm (in traffic) vs. hot (spirited driving). The more performing brake pads will tend to work very well when hot but if all you do is casual daily driving you might be very disappointed.

- Longevity. No certainty there but typically the better performing pads will wear faster. The limit is your pocket. If you don't mind changing pads more frequently then performance might be what you want to look for.

- Matching rotor geometry. Not all pads are build the same. It does benefit to get the pads that match the rotors. I've had pads that would slightly stick out of the rotor. Not great as it would cause vibrations.

- Lastly, small advice, don't install different pad types front and back, like ceramic on the rear, ferrous on the front. It will throw off the brake engineered bias front vs rear and might give you bad braking performance results.

On my other car I'm running StopTech 309. Really nice performance brake pads. Cold breaking isn't bad. They get better from there. BUT they do dust a lot . . . good luck picking out.

 

[QUOTE=vietnameeh;3814393]not sure if this applies to your generation
but if no performance driving is being done...
I am a believer in centric pads and rotors (same maker of stop tech products)
I use posi quiet pads, perfect for street great price
if your one of those... i need pads for "aggressive street" use better brake fluid and tires
these pads are great for the street and at a good price point... just my two cents.



+1. Great value in the Centric pads. Less dust than than the stock pads too. I have use 3 sets on various vehicles.....very pleased.

 

They do? Do you have a link to someone who sells them?

We eat Yellowstuff pads at track days, so I'm looking for something harder.

Off the track, I'm quite happy with OEM pads. Especially when they're included in the maintenance.

 

We recommend the EBC Redstuff, we use them on all the cars we service at the shop. We've found the Greens to be a little soft on the R56 chassis cars.
And if you need rotors go with our brake package as we have the free shipping code for them this month.

 

I have run the Greenstuff pads on my MGB for years but took the advice of a local BMW guru and have been running Hawk ceramics on the front of my 2009 R56 and I'm extremely pleased with them for spirited street driving and autocross. Not as "grabby" initially as the stock pads, very progressive with better modulation and better grip when your foot is really in them. Also FAR less dust. It's a common misconception that brake dust is residue from the pads when in reality it's about 90% rotor material resulting from abrasion. Good quality performance pads will not only improve your braking but will also extend the life of your rotors.

 

I got new centric premium hi-carbon rotors when I did my brakes and they are a great value.

 

Just picked these up from Way.

 

I have EBC red's and EBC ultimax slotted rotors all around. I know that their pads are great, a couple friends of mine are running them on their miatas and once they warm up their consistency is unbelievable.

Not too sure about R56's but if you were in an R53 I'd also recommend Detroit tuned caliper bushings as well as stainless steel lines.

Now rotors......... Just go with stock, EBC slotted rotors are a load of crap. Mine have a year and 13k miles into them and they need replacement really bad, I should of listened to the guys when they told me these would warp..

 

porterfield. they outperform ebc any day of the week imo/ime.

 

I can attest that EBC rotors are to avoid imo. They don't warp (warping rotors is a bit of a myth) but they are poor quality. I got some a year or two ago and they were giving me vibration. I changed them almost immediately.
Your safe bet with rotors are stoptech (by centric) truly they're good rotors.

 

Stoptech "street performance" pads.

 

I just ordered a new set of carbotech's for my R-56 JCW. They are a bit spendy but once you have had the performance its hard to go to a lesser pad. I run X-10 Front and X-8 rears. They last for about 20K street miles and 6 to 8 hard track days. They are aggressive and a bit loud for the street. The front rotors are a bit grooved from them but I think they is plenty of rotor left. I will measure them when I add the pads. I paid about $400 for the front and rears and they had to back them for me like they did last time. Only takes a couple of days. I have them done so I can run the stock sensors on them and I also have them pre-bedded. I did the same last time and they should match up perfectly with my rotors this time with out turning them.