grech

Hi Mike, I really do not want to mislead anyone here, especially the folks who are very satisfied with their Akebono pads. Everything happened in a matter of 2-3 seconds and I know the brakes didn't lock obviously, but I do not clearly remember if I felt the ABS shuddering in the pedal or not. I'm swapping my pads out just as a safety paranoia thing. I know for sure that at least on my car, OEM pads performed a lot better. They may not have been able to avoid the crash but I am confident that the damage would have been a lot lesser.

grech

Thanks Frank, I did a ton of research before opting for aftermarket pads, mainly on here, and was only considering redstuff and Akebono, and heard great things about Redstuff's braking but not so great things in general about their noise. I'm most probably going to go back to stock pads, as in 4 different Mercs over the years, they have never let me down.

Did you ever try redstuff on a Mercedes btw?

Frank Rizzo

Yes. I have the reds on the front right now. They do let out an occasional squeak, but it is a small price for me for the performance.

eddieo45

I guess R1 Concepts is not a vendor on this forum, but I get a discount from Steven B., possibly as a member of "another" forum. Anyway, after 3 years/30,000 miles of satisfaction with R1 Concepts drilled/slotted rotors and Akebono pads (pads from TireRack), I just got R1 Concepts Premium drilled/slotted rotors (high-temp painted black), and Centric Posi-Quiet ceramic pads (they don't carry Akebonos). Not being all that good at following directions, I was pleased to see the pads labelled "Scorched, no break-in required." In the box however was the attached "How to break in new Brake Rotors & Pads," which my mechanics found hilarious. As I had a 20+ mile trip home in traffic, the "do not come to a complete stop" instruction was the first to be ignored! I'm hoping the burning-paint smell, smoke, nasty groaning noise, and (worst of all) pads sticking to the rotors when starting from a stop don't last 400-500 miles!

Rudeney

Actually, a proper break-in is critical. In the "good old days", mechanics used to say to just drive and brake gently for the first few hundred miles. Now, we have a more thorough understanding of the physics of brake systems and we know better. Those instructions are actually not wrong, but they are unclear about a few things.

The key to a proper break-in is to deposit a smooth, even layer of pad material on the rotors. To do this, you need to first heat up the system by driving around slowly with your foot on the brake. Do this so you need and extra 500rpm to keep the car moving. Once you start smelling the brakes, you have them heated up. Now, you need to accelerate to at least 60mph, and then brake hard, just below the point of activating ABS. Do not come to a full stop, because this will leave thick imprints of pad material on the rotor on one stop. Do this 10-12 times, then drive for 10 minutes without stopping to let the system cool. That's it. Of course you need a proper place to do all this so you aren't in traffic.

eddieo45

like where, Bonneville salt flats, lol?

Glyn M Ruck

http://www.stoptech.com/technical-su...and-procedures

Rudeney

Nah, you don't need the salt flats - a good empty strip mall parking lot will work (and there seems to be plenty of those these days!). I have a limestone quarry down the highway that has a long, wide entrance road that's great for this after business hours - otherwise I have to dodge dump trucks.

Oh, and one other thing to note - if you don't replace the rotors, you should never put new pads on old rotors with first "knocking them down". Basically, if the rotors are in spec, but not badly scored so they don't need turning, then just use low-grit metallic sandpaper and power sander to knock off the shine. The goal is to rough the surface so the pads can bite into it and also remove the shine so heat is not reflected back into the pads.

Glyn M Ruck

+1^ - as always good advice!

betrezra

I just installed new OEM rotors/pads in the front of my 04clk55 and I have to say the brake dust is gone. My wheels would be black after 1 week.... they are still shiney clean after 1 week.

Are the new OEM pads different than my orig 04 pads?

Glyn M Ruck

I know of no change in friction material on Benz OE.

Where did you source you pads from? Were they in genuine MB boxes or Pagid or Jurid boxes?

Pagid and Jurid are OE suppliers to Benz but also make other friction materials under their own brands.

mis3

You are lucky. Do you happen to know the part no.?

Fatz

Had my pads changed last week. I went with the EBC yellow pads. So far I am pleased with the quick grab and consistent feel. There is an occasional squeal, but not bad.

I am quite surprised by the low amount of dust. In choosing the yellow over the red EBCs I expected dust on par with the OEM..... Much less

mis3

I just replaced my brakes with OE rotors and pads.
Same great stopping power but unfortunately, same brake dust.

Rudeney

The OEM pads have great feel and bite, but the dust is crazy. The Akebonos have zero dust, but they just don't stop as well, or at least they don't feel as good as OEMs. I'll not use them again. I have heard good things about Porterfield pads - I may try them when the time comes.

Yalin

How is it possible to understand that the rotor is thick enough for grit? My left rotor is really wavy and soon i have to replace my pads as well. Would pls describe it Rudeney?

Thanks

Rudeney

The rotor minimum thickness should be stamped on it. Before replacing the pads and not the rotors, you should check it with a thickness gauge tool. As long as it's not below spec, you should be able to have it turned to remove the "waves". If there are no "waves" and it's still within spec, there is no need to replace the rotors, but you do want to knock the shine off - that's where the sandpaper comes in.

Yalin

Thanks alot Rudeney, its very kind of you