Brake Pad recommendation

[cshorey]

Hello all,

I own a 2000 Subaru Impreza 2.5RS. I just had my 90k mile maintenance completed and was informed my pads were below 15% left and needed to be replaced ASAP. They could put new OEM pads on for $360, but I declined as I can put pads on myself. I didn't like the OEM pads as I think an issue with my car is the poor stopping power. I upgraded pads to Metal Masters (which is a performance brake pad).

I have not stayed up with the subaru forums since the release of the WRX and the huge influx of after market parts that won't work for me.

So I am looking for new pads. Anyone got any recommendations? I want another street performance pads to help with the lack of stopping power.

Currently I am thinking of getting either of the following:

Metal Masters (Primitive: Wheels, Brakes, Suspension)
Hawk Performance HPS-High Performance Street disc brake pads (Hawk HPS Street brake pads)

Any suggestions? Other pads I should consider or either of these better then another? I am outside my comfort zone and knowledge area here. And search the web, and various forums haven't helped (been doing it all week)

thanks,
chris

[BigJimZ28]

go with the Hawk's
I have used them in all of my cars and love them

[todd@bsaw]

I'll second Hawks. I have HPS pads in both my cars. The stopping power is excellent and there is very little-to-no brake dust.

[AP2TUDE]

I have the Hawk blue's on my Mustang and Porterfield and Hawks on my race car. I am extremely happy with both. The Porterfields are excellent when hot, but really crappy when cold. Depending on your environment you should really look into what operating temperature is required for the pads.

Stick with a street pad, otherwise you will expect your hot temp stopping power when they are cold and find that your brakes work drastically differently.

[cshorey]

Thanks for the feedback. I am leaning toward getting the Hawks.

AP2TUDE - I will defiantly be getting street pads, I was just leaning towards the performance street vs OEM replacements.

My car is a daily driver with lots of highway driving (sometimes stop and go, sometime moving quick). I live in the pacific northwest so I get lots of rain and not a lot of extreme temps.

The OEM brake system is weak IMO, and most of the Subaru enthusiast boards all kinda agree. Brake system upgrades are very common.

Am I being too aggressive going with street performance for should I stick closer to OEM brakes?

chris

[MotorCity]

Hawk.............

[bert31]

Where do you guys buy the Hawk's Brake Pads?

[todd@bsaw]

Originally Posted by cshorey

Am I being too aggressive going with street performance for should I stick closer to OEM brakes?

The Hawk [High] Performance Street pads (the HPS pads I have) are great for any car. You do not have to be into the mod scene or have a track car to see benefits from upgraded brake pads.

Lets put it this way. For the average daily driver, what is more safe... to be able to hit 60mph in less time, to corner at higher Gs, or to stop 20ft shorter to avoid an accident?

[cshorey]

Just after my mechanic said to not do any hard braking as my squeelers should be hit any moment, a car in the left lane pulled out from a dead stop in front of me on the highway as the traffic got backed up in that lane. Full lockup on my part, ABS went off, skidding in the rain and I floated it to the right (there was a car there, who thank god, was paying attention and gave me some room). I was about an inch off the car in front of me when I slide to a stop. It was great fun. Then they proceeded to pretend that the event they caused didn't happen and drove 25mph on the highway. sigh...

TireRack carries the Hawk pads. I am going to call around locally to various shops to see if I can get it faster in town.

chris

[blucpe]

i just put hawk ceramics on my vet. so far so good, stop good and hardly any brake dust which is ok by me.

[BlackElantraGT]

I will vouch for TireRack for ordering brake pads. They sent me the right pads, but for my model year there were 2 variations of pads for the rear that the manufacturer did not tell them about. I emailed Tire Rack with some pictures of the discrepancies and they immediately figured out which rear brake pad was needed.

Their email response was quick and they have a warehouse in NV to make the shipping to CA quick. I just wished they had sent me the replacement without me having to place another order. In the end, I had to order the correct pads and was told to return the incorrect pads from my original order. Of course being the procrastinator I am, I never returned the other set so in the end it was like I bought 3 set of pads, 1 for the front and 2 for the rears.

[NavindraLR]

ferodo DS2500's.. best pad's i've ever used, and I've tried everything tirerack, and stoptechusa have to offer. The description says its a track pad, but can serve for daily driving, as which I mostly used it for except for a couple track events.