I'm going to be doing some brake work this spring on my 2013 Grand Sport. I will be changing out my silver calipers to red and while doing so, I am also going to change out the brake pads to get rid of the annoying squeak and dusting that the stock pads cause.

Currently, I'm between the Carbotech 1521, Powerstop Z26 and Autozone Gold Ceramic pads. I realize that these are all over the spectrum in regards to cost, quality and so forth. I've read lots of reviews about the AZ Gold and Carbotech pads here, but not really any on the PS Z26 pads (that may tell me everything I need to know about them ). However, I'd love to get some opinions from those of you who have used any/all of these pads, especially long term users. I know all of these I've listed are better in regards to dust and noise, but I'm really interested in the overall stopping power and longevity?

Also, I will be replacing the rotors at the same time. So I'm also looking for some recommendations for those, as well. I've been looking at the Powerstop slotted and drilled rotors and the drilled rotors from BrakePerfomance.com. Again, any opinions from those of you that have used either of these is greatly appreciated. Of course, I can always go with stock again, and very well may do so since they aren't very expensive and seem to be pretty good.

Take into consideration that this car is street driven, only, and while I do enjoy doing some spirited driving occasionally, it will not be tracked. The stock brakes perform great, but I can't take the dust and noise any longer.

Thanks, in advance, for all that take the time to respond with recommendations.

Sincerely,

Brian

 

Brian I replaced my front pads with the Duralast Gold pads, my rotors were like new, and I have never had a squeal from them. That was all I was looking for.

 

I'd stay away from drilled, unless you just want the look. They tend to warp/crack so I hear.

Maybe a good in between would be slotted groves.

I have heard mixed reviews regarding the 1521's.

What's wrong with the OEM pads. Mine have worked flawlessly for the 35,000 miles. Not a squeal.

Sometimes aftermarket is all hype.

 

On 5/13/2009 I put a full set, front & rear drilled & slotted rotors I bought on Ebay on my 1998 Camaro Z28. I now have 131,000 miles on them with no issues at all, I have replaced the pads since then. I just bought a Full Set front & rear of Drilled & Slotted Rotors and Ceramic Pads from Brakemotive to put on my 08 Z51. Hope this information helps you.

 

LS1121, what type of pads and rotors did you put on the Z28? We're they Powerstops? If so, how long did the original pads last and how did you feel the stopping power was?

 

I too could not stand the dust from the stock Z51 pads. I tried the EBC ceramics, but they were just too inconsistent and I even managed to fade them on the street once. I cannot recommend those. I currently have the Hawk 5.0 pads on stock rotors and like those quite a bit. Good initial bite and linear progression. Dusting is fairly low, similar to ceramics. I haven't hear a peep out of them yet. My wife has the Carbontech on her Audi S5 and they are virtually identical to what came on the car with the exception of dust. Good initial bite and modulate well. They do groove/wear the rotors more than stock pads though. I know either one of these examples don't really represent your brakes, but thought there may be some parallels.

 

It's been a while but I believe I got them from brakelabs and the pads from Advance Auto, Ceramic. I installed the Rotors and Pads @ 192,000 miles and then replaced the pads @ 308,677 so I got 116,677 on the first set of pads.

The Rotors I just bought are from Brakemotive on Ebay. My thinking is that Brakemotive and Brakelabs are both getting their blanks from China as are so many people these days. I watched a video yesterday about rotor comparisons and it was that a popular German company was doing this also. Today not everything from China is crap, they are the world leader in manufacturing like it or not, and I do not.

 

Porterfield R4S pads have been recommended to me. Not usually spoken of here either.

$200 for 4.

 

Old Calipers can be power coated to what every color you want them.

Rotors can be turned and zinc coated if they are still in good conditions.

So going this way should save you huge bank to start with.

As for pads, there a way less expensive ceramic pads if you want to just cut down on the dust and give up a touch of brake bite, or less dust pads if you still want performance pads.

 

Do yourself a favor and look at Akebono. I was also sick of the Z51 brake dust and the famous squeal. Replaced with Akebono and both these problems are gone and I notice no difference with performance.

 

1521 review after 20,000 miles.

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/c6-c...rake-pads.html

 

IMHO The stock brakes on a base Corvette will stop that car quicker than 99% of the cars on the road. So if you're paying attention to your surroundings when driving, the chances of being involved in an accident because you couldn't stop quick enough, are extremely slim.

If you're in a competition on a road course, that's a whole different story.

Could I stop quicker with really good brakes? Of course.
Do I need to? Not in my opinion for the way I drive.

BTW, I painted my calipers with rattle can paint 7 years ago. I do a touch-up every couple of years.

 

100%
I'm cheap and careful where I spend my money. I paid $233 for all four New Rotors with Ceramic Pads delivered to my house, that's half the price of just those fancy name pads....... Could I have spent more....sure I could have buy Why? My Corvette is my DD and I know for a fact that what I bought is a good quality product. Putting STP stickers on my window does not make my car go faster.

 

In the end for most this is good thinking.

I will probably never have to replace my brakes on my 08.

I just am not hard on brakes.

I have near 200,000 miles on my original brakes on my 96 4 Runner. Still have lots of rotor and pad life.

If driving on the street and you're going through brake components often your driving like a jackass....

 

"...If driving on the street and you're going through brake components often your driving like a jackass.... ..." Aw Dave, stop holding back on this one!

 

Basically, I guess I'm looking for the middle ground between cost and performance. While I did purchase a performance car, I do only use it as a daily driver and, like I said earlier, I do enjoy some spirited driving occasionally. However, I will never be able to drive the car anywhere near its full capability, but I do want to make sure the car retains majority of that capability without breaking the bank.

Sounds like most are in agreement that the stock or less expensive rotors will do just fine, as well as, some of the more inexpensive pads.

 

My GS for street brakes has had OEM and Hawk and Carbotech ceramics. I ended up with the Carbotech since I also use their track pads. The ceramics work very well, I have to be careful and mindful of the traffic behind me, they can't stop nearly as fast. The Carbotech's are consistent hot or cold and on the street you have to work at it to get them to fade. The brake pedal on the GS is very sensitive, much more so than on my Z-51 setup.

As for rotors, you can go either way with drilled, slotted or plain. Plain probably works best as it has the most surface area. Contrary to popular belief, it is difficult to get a rotor to warp. They can and so build hard spots which are brake pad deposits. The deposits transfer to the rotor when they are hot and you are sitting at a red light with the brake on, ie, stopping at the bottom of a steep hill. I think drilled rotors may help mitigate deposits but they still form. I don't know about slotted rotors. For me its about performance not looks so I don't like compromises when it comes to brakes. If I could afford two piece rotors I would buy them.

 

Arctic, how would you compare the performance of the pads vs. stock?

 

I am not a big fan of drilled rotors if the car is driven hard. My z51 front oem rotors were new when I bought the car 7 months ago and are now blue and cracking. As far as actually stopping the car they do great and still do, but as far as longevity goes they are getting replaced soon. If the car is just a cruising with the occasional fun then drilled and slotted should work fine. If you drive the car hard I'd stay away from drilled.