ceramic brake pads

2004STARWARSTDI

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 19, 2004
Location
LAKELAND, FL
TDI
2004 Platinum Gray GLS Jetta / 2006 Silver Jetta with DSG
Replace brake pads with ceramic pads, and replaced discs on all 4 wheels. Did the brake bedding procedure as instructed. Noticed it takes more pedal pressure to stop the car with the ceramic pads. Is this normal-first time using ceramic pads. Car stops fine.
 

dieseldorf

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 11, 2000
Location
MA
TDI
ex- 1996 wagon, ex-2000 Jetta
You'll find the pedal pressure to be high and stopping power not as good under normal conditions with "ceramic" pads. I've removed them from all our vehicles where fitted as standard.
 

Chris B

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 23, 2001
Location
N. central Illinois
TDI
2002 Jetta Wagon 5 spd
You'll find the pedal pressure to be high and stopping power not as good under normal conditions with "ceramic" pads. I've removed them from all our vehicles where fitted as standard.
I hated the Akebono ProAct pads for every one of the 120,000+ miles I tried to wear them out....LOL. The only good thing about them was zero brake dust. Yeah, they were quiet and very easy on the discs, but braking power was seriously lacking. They finally just fell apart from rust. I installed them after putting on a set of TRW organic pads that had the best brake feel I've every experienced and stopped like the proverbial Hand of God. But, I got tired REAL quick of having my wheels look like an Appalachian coal mine after a few hundred miles.

I'm now running a set of DuraLast Gold and they're in between the Akebono and the TRW - modest dust, modest braking.

Chris
 

Genesis

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Feb 26, 2003
Location
Sevier County TN
TDI
'03 Jetta Wagon
Ceramics are excellent for track use as they fade very little if at all (your primary concern with them is potential fluid boiling, which will screw you irrespective of the pads in use) but they have crap for braking power when cold. You simply have to get them good and warm before they have reasonably-decent braking power; typically this makes them VERY unfriendly (at best) for street use.

The TRWs on the MkIV cars are VERY grippy but as noted they're also pretty dusty. They won't hold up if you get 'em real hot, but you really ought not be doing that in street use anyway. If you are you might want to think about how you drive rather than whether ceramics are appropriate.
 

Prairie Chicken

Veteran Member
Joined
Jan 28, 2014
Location
Northern IL
TDI
05 Jetta, 04 Jetta
I haven't put the effort in yet to identify the brakes on my current DD... it has drilled/slotted rotors and have to be ceramic as there is no dust. They stop great - better than any of my cars with semi-metallic pads.

IDK if the rotors make that big of a diff... maybe so?

Edit: found it... 2 PO's ago, installed powerstop rotors with z16 evolution ceramic pads. over 120k on them and still plenty left.
 
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dieseldorf

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 11, 2000
Location
MA
TDI
ex- 1996 wagon, ex-2000 Jetta
Yeah, I've mostly moved back to a semi-metallic from Centric. They make the car brake as one would expect. Dust isn't too bad. Probably 2/3 less than a typical Euro pad.
 

UhOh

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 24, 2014
Location
PNW
TDI
2000 & 2003 Golf GLS (2005 Mercedes E320 CDI)
Must be a fluke as Akebono pads work great on my cars (have them in three cars).

My cars operate mostly on highway roads. Some city-type driving. Even in the city I don't notice any real issues. But, yes, there's a little more pressure required. I prefer this over one of my cars which has stock (organic) pads on it- it's too grabby.

As with most things, driving needs vary. It pays to research accordingly.
 

20IndigoBlue02

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 22, 2001
Location
Was North NJ, now SoCal
TDI
2002 Golf TDI-- deceased
Replace brake pads with ceramic pads, and replaced discs on all 4 wheels. Did the brake bedding procedure as instructed. Noticed it takes more pedal pressure to stop the car with the ceramic pads. Is this normal-first time using ceramic pads. Car stops fine.
You'll find the pedal pressure to be high and stopping power not as good under normal conditions with "ceramic" pads. I've removed them from all our vehicles where fitted as standard.
It really depends on which brand Ceramic pads are we talking about.

Never had those issues using Akebono Euro-Ceramic pads nor EBC Redstuff pads.
 

UhOh

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 24, 2014
Location
PNW
TDI
2000 & 2003 Golf GLS (2005 Mercedes E320 CDI)
It really depends on which brand Ceramic pads are we talking about.

Never had those issues using Akebono Euro-Ceramic pads nor EBC Redstuff pads.
Yes, there are differences. I too have the euro-spec Akebono pads. Will note that it looks like ID Parts no longer carries Akebono pads. Just bought rear brake bits from them for my car and went with their high performance ceramics. I've never had any issues with brake components, or anything for that matter, from them.
 

hskrdu

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 17, 2003
Location
Maryland and New England
TDI
2003 Golf GLS 4D 5M, 2015 GSW SE 6M
I bought Akebono when they were on sale two years ago (an especially good sale) with no previous experience or opinion towards them. They were mounted to my Golf, replacing OE pads (TRW on the Jetta). I have found the Akebono to be exceptional in terms of feel, stopping ability, longevity, and low dust. I'm happy with the results I've seen.
 

phaser

Veteran Member
Joined
Apr 18, 2004
Location
Oregon
TDI
2004 Jetta PD - 490k
I've used Akebono Euro ceramic for years and have never had any regrets. Braking power is excellent.

.
 
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gforce1108

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Joined
Aug 2, 2006
Location
Newburgh, NY
TDI
04 Jetta GLS BEW, 14 Audi A7 V6 TDI, 13 Porsche Cayenne V6 TDI
I run advance auto / carquest "platinum" ceramic pads all the way around on my 04 and have been using them on every other car I do now. I had tried EBC pads and hated them (after loving them on other vehicles).
 

Chris B

Veteran Member
Joined
Oct 23, 2001
Location
N. central Illinois
TDI
2002 Jetta Wagon 5 spd
Yes, there are differences. I too have the euro-spec Akebono pads. Will note that it looks like ID Parts no longer carries Akebono pads. Just bought rear brake bits from them for my car and went with their high performance ceramics. I've never had any issues with brake components, or anything for that matter, from them.
Yes, I must add that I had the non-Euro spec Akebono pads. I bought mine before they started offering those. I couldn't wear mine out fast enough to justify tossing good (and $$) pads away just to try the new (and still $$) version.
 

Genesis

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Feb 26, 2003
Location
Sevier County TN
TDI
'03 Jetta Wagon
I had Akembos on my MkIV/ALH for a while but removed them. I didn't have issues with them in terms of stopping power but they liked to squeal at low speeds and I was unable to stop them from doing so despite several attempts.
 

TornadoRed

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Joined
Aug 3, 2003
Location
West Des Moines (formerly St Paul)
TDI
2003 Jetta TDI wagon, silver; 2003 Jetta TDI wagon, indigo blue; 2003 Golf GL 5-spd, red (PARTED); 2003 Golf GLS 5-spd, indigo blue (SOLD); 2003 Jetta TDI wagon, Candy White (SOLD)
I've been using Akebono ceramic pads since 2006 or 2007. I chose them mainly to keep my wheels from getting covered with brake dust, and have kept using them because they last so long. It is possible that they don't stop as quickly as some organic or semi-metallic pads, at least until they warm up, but they are fine for my style of driving which is usually neither aggressive nor sedate. I typically get 80k-120k miles from a set of pads -- the front pads usually last longer than the rears, which may not be typical for most cars or most drivers.

The ones I have are described as Euro pads, but they are made in the USA.
 

UhOh

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Dec 24, 2014
Location
PNW
TDI
2000 & 2003 Golf GLS (2005 Mercedes E320 CDI)
Genesis and I have had this "discussion" previously. I too had some squealing first time I installed the Akebonos (front of my car). I was not happy. I ended up re-greasing everything and since then (50k miles?) not a peep. I later installed on other vehicles using grease in more places and none of the other sets have complained. Yeah, sometimes things just don't turn out, and with brakes I have no tolerance.

I'd be curious to know why ID Parts no longer carries Akebonos. I wanted them on the rears of my car, but they didn't list them: I completely trust their judgment, so I just went with their top ceramic (I'd only do this, semi-blindly, if getting from ID Parts).
 

Cleenlivin

Veteran Member
Joined
Sep 8, 2008
Location
So Cal
TDI
2009 Jetta TDI Sedan (DSG) boughtback, 2004 Jetta TDI Sedan (Tiptronic), 2004 Jetta TDI Sedan (5 speed)
Semi-metallic pads...

I’ve had good luck with ATE and Pagid semi-metallic. They stop very well, and width a good set of struts/shocks and tires make a great combo. They do leave my wheel rims black but I feel it’s worth the benefits in terms of braking. I figure these cars were originally engineered to run the Autobahn, and the brakes were designed when semi-metallics were the best option.

You can also find semi-metallics reasonably priced and they are long wearing too.
 

2 Slow

Member
Joined
Mar 13, 2018
Location
Florida
TDI
03 Wagon
Regarding the OPs original question, all ceramic pads that I have ever installed take a couple hundred miles to fully bed, even after performing the recommended bed procedure. They will feel like they require significant pedal effort during this time, but you will notice that they get increasingly more responsive.

Over the years I have tried many different brake pad compositions on a wide variety of vehicles, mostly sports cars. Due to my experience, I always go for ceramic pads unless I need ultimate stopping power and fade resistance (track car or heavy haul truck). I like the low dust and I personally really like the linear pedal feel with no initial bite. It is very intuitive.

On a side note, I recently installed a set of Wagner ceramics from Advance Auto with new rotors on my 01 Jetta Sedan. I absolutely love the feel of them. Right rear does squeal just a tad under very light pedal, low speed, right hand turn braking, but I haven't tried fixing it. 99.99% silent with excellent linear pedal feel providing confidence at any speeds a TDI will see.
 
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phantom1260

Veteran Member
Joined
Aug 15, 2017
Location
Brampton, Ontario
TDI
1997 Jetta GL IDI, 2010 Jetta TDI (Sold)
Does anybody have any experience with Brembo pads and rotors? Also can I wait until the wear indicator light comes on to change the pads or should I be inspecting them myself as well?

The outer pad looks fine but I'm wondering if theres uneven wear and the inside pads are done. I can always take the wheel off and check but if the wear indicator is trustworthy then I can avoid the hassle.
 

hskrdu

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Oct 17, 2003
Location
Maryland and New England
TDI
2003 Golf GLS 4D 5M, 2015 GSW SE 6M
Brembo and Zimmerman are often considered to be among the best for quality. I've had good experiences with Brembo items, but (that being said) a rotor is fairly simple part, and there are lots of decent (and cheaper) rotors. I turned off the brake wear indicator b/c I found that it was unreliable (too early/too late), and as habit I was checking pads whenever the tires were rotated or swapped. Your 2010 might have an improved wear indicator than a MkIV, but IMO a visual inspection of the system is quick, easy, and worth it.
 

20IndigoBlue02

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Aug 22, 2001
Location
Was North NJ, now SoCal
TDI
2002 Golf TDI-- deceased
Does anybody have any experience with Brembo pads and rotors? Also can I wait until the wear indicator light comes on to change the pads or should I be inspecting them myself as well?

The outer pad looks fine but I'm wondering if theres uneven wear and the inside pads are done. I can always take the wheel off and check but if the wear indicator is trustworthy then I can avoid the hassle.
The wear indicator is only on 1 pad (driver's inner). There is no rear wear indicator.

Due to the nature of the "semi-floating" caliper, due to the rubberized caliper pin guide bushing, there will be uneven wear, which is why VW put the sensor on the inner pad. A solid guide bushing such as Tyrolsport, help even out the wear between inner and outer pads.
 

Genesis

Top Post Dawg
Joined
Feb 26, 2003
Location
Sevier County TN
TDI
'03 Jetta Wagon
The indicator isn't trustworthy, but it's better than nothing.

If you have a guide pin stick on the pax side, for example, you can have a trashed passenger side pad while the driver side is wearing evenly......
 
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