Scuba Ghost

Depends on how the car is driven.

BettermostCorvette

I thought that to be strange too but thats what the Corvette mechanic told me that put the rears on.

Powder06C6

I had rears go first on my 97 z28. Had rears changed at 48k fronts at 75kish. On original pads on my 06 at 45k mi. Driving habits have a lot to do with it. Those people you get behind going down a hill who stay on the brakes the whole time I imagine change brake pads like underwear.

vette_guy_2020

ok - so let me ask this question to others who have owned their vettes for a while: do you find more often than not that you need to replace your rear brake pads first? I'm wondering if that may be the general trend for c6's?

RobLo

I had some unrelated work done to my '05 Z51, the mechanic said it looked like I needed front brakes, I had just over 23K miles on the car. Because of the noise and dusting of the OEM pads I was contemplating a change anyway. After a lot of Forum research I bought a set (fronts and rears) of Akebono Premium pads, around $140 from Rock Auto Parts. When I took off the front brakes they had 7/32" of pad left. I checked the Akebono's and NEW they had 11/32" so I figured I still would have had at least another 25K miles on the old pads. The rears had a little less wear on them but because I bought the set I replaced all four. As a followup, after almost 1K miles on the new pads I find no loss of braking (I don't track the car but I do occasionally drive aggressively), zero dust and a SLIGHT squeak the FIRST time I apply the brakes turning out of the driveway, after that no noise at all. Hope this helps....

RocketDawg

When I had about 80,000 miles on my '03 and I took it to the Corvette specialty shop that I use for another issue, and he said my front rotors were cracked. He replaced them with GM drilled rotors and ceramic pads. When the car was totaled, it had had 114,000 miles on it and the rear brakes had never been changed, and they were performing well at the time.

Adam@Amp'dAutosport.com

For a quality replacement pad, check out the Carbotech 1521 brake pad.

The Carbotech™ 1521™ is our high performance street compound. The 1521™ compound is known for its release and modulation, along with unmatched rotor friendliness. 1521™ is also a very low dusting and low noise compound with an excellent initial bite. This compound's excellent linear torque production provides incredible braking force without ABS intervention. Carbotech™ 1521™ operating range starts out at ambient and goes up to 800°F (426°C+). 1521™ is suitable for ALL street cars, perfect for your tow vehicle or fleet vehicle. Carbotech™ 1521™ is NOT recommended for ANY track use.

F $148 R $128 Less 5% forum discount. Give me a call at 216-780-8825 to order.

cagotzmann

My 2010 GS Convertible with about 4 track days brake pads down to 25% front 50% rear. total mileage 10k miles. The rest of the driving is 50/50 city / highway. Replaced mine at 10k. I asked the people at Spring Mountain when I was there how often they replace pads on there cars. Its from 1 to 3 level 1 classes which is about 200-250 miles / level 1 classes. So full track use is from 200-600 miles of track use.

haljensen

I don't trust either, they are both profit driven. Talk to your friends and family, ask them for a TRUSTED (not cheap, not quick but TRUSTED) mechanic.

You can see some problems yourself, you don't need to be a mechanic to see deep grooves in the rotors or hear the loud squeal from worn out pads.

Wayne O

There is no typical life expectancy for brake pads or rotors. It depends on how you use your car and your 'style' of driving. Other than being observant for anything abnormal (noises, pulling, etc.), visually inspect your pads and rotors every so often to monitor their wear rate. Have the rotors mic'd by a professional when they're getting worn. Brakes are a maintenance item....don't wait until they're too far gone.

4thC4at60

102,000 w/30% of pads remaining

cclive

But, to be fair, all successful businesses in the US are profit driven...at least until the President completes his fundamental transformation of our country.

cclive

I just report the news...we report, you decide.

Gearhead Jim

2009, Z51, A6
DD and road-tripper, but occasional hard blasts through the mountains.

Replaced pads & rotors at 50k miles, probably could have gone to 75k but I had a lot of trips coming that involved mountain driving, didn't want to press my luck.

My rear pads were slightly more worn than the fronts, just a little. That could come from TC or AH using the rear brakes, but I very seldom get any intervention from the nannies so don't really understand. OTOH, the rear brakes seem smaller (in relation to the fronts) than on many other sports cars.

LS WON

I ordered my car from factory and got it with 3 miles on it. I now have 49,100+ miles on it now and just had brakes checked and original battery load tested. There is alot of life left on the brakes. Original battery is fine too. Already had brake fluid and all other fluids changed using amsoil fluids about 15,000 miles ago.

vette_guy_2020

@hal - you bring up a good point. Can anyone here recommend a trusted brake specialist in the greater Seattle area?

MikeERWNC

I put on new drilled rotors and ceramic pads on all four right after I bought the car around the 65K mark.
I have almost 20K miles.
Pads and rotors still look like the day I installed them.
2007 Base and it is my work car. 20K miles since January.

eurostyle

I just changed the rear original shoes on my chevy venture minivan at 205.000 miles.

LS WON

On my other car which is 5 spd. manual and a daily driver I went 10 years without changing brakes or fluid.

nytrorcr

My Dodge 3500 has 104.000, still about 60% or left & it's a 2008... it is hard to believe but could be true.