Need new front pads at 13,000 miles?

oogster · 04-15-2005, 11:01 AM

THis is what my mechanic said. I still don't believe it. I do not autox and only drive the car moderately hard. If I really do need new pads, should I go with the OEM again? Best price I could find is $215 on the internet. Any other recommended pads for the summer?

whitson01 · 04-15-2005, 12:04 PM

my buddy has 30k miles on his sti and claims he hasnt changed the pads yet!!??
so i dont know.. i wouldnt go with oem.. theres all kinds of pads to choose from.. i havent decided my self which ones to go with..

***sciolist*** · 04-15-2005, 12:30 PM

Well… how much wear is left on the pads? My OEM pads are at about 6mm, and that’s with about 100 autoX runs, 4 lapping sessions and about 19K total miles. I would expect these pads to be good for close to 40K miles of reasonable street driving.

You can definitely do better than the OEM’s in terms of performance, but there are a number of variables to take into consideration: Noise, dust, low temperature grip, high temperature fade resistance, feel, etc. Depending on your objectives, you may want to swap two sets back and forth.

oogster · 04-16-2005, 04:33 AM

What are some different brands of pads?

**TRM** · 04-16-2005, 06:02 AM

the OE pads brand new are just over 9mm thick.

you should check the pads yourself. once you get down to about 3mm it's probably time to change them.

Boxer · 04-16-2005, 06:13 AM

Get a second opinion (or do as TRM suggested). I think the only way you'd have worn the stock pads that fast is with regular auto-x or street driving in a manner which you would no longer have a driver's license.

***sciolist*** · 04-16-2005, 10:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by oogster

What are some different brands of pads?

I’m using Porterfield R-4’s for the racing season and swapping back to OEM in November.

You can see the remaining pad thickness pretty easily by just looking in under the caliper – you can’t actually measure it without taking the pad out, but you’ll get a good idea of what you have by just shining a light in there. You could also look at how far the "squealer feelers" are away from the rotors.

04-15-2005, 11:01 AM	#1
oogster Junior STI Driver Car: Blue 04 STi Location: NJ Posts: 52 Join Date: May 2004 Trader Rating: (0)	Need new front pads at 13,000 miles? THis is what my mechanic said. I still don't believe it. I do not autox and only drive the car moderately hard. If I really do need new pads, should I go with the OEM again? Best price I could find is $215 on the internet. Any other recommended pads for the summer? This ad is not endorsed by this member. Please register or login to hide this ad.

04-15-2005, 12:04 PM	#2
whitson01 Spec C Club Car: 06 acura tsx Fav Mod: soon to come Location: east TN Posts: 1,417 Join Date: Dec 2004 Trader Rating: (3)	my buddy has 30k miles on his sti and claims he hasnt changed the pads yet!!?? so i dont know.. i wouldnt go with oem.. theres all kinds of pads to choose from.. i havent decided my self which ones to go with..

04-15-2005, 12:30 PM	#3
*sciolist* Spiteful Old Codger Location: Bend, OR Posts: 2,345 Join Date: Jul 2003 Trader Rating: (1)	Well… how much wear is left on the pads? My OEM pads are at about 6mm, and that’s with about 100 autoX runs, 4 lapping sessions and about 19K total miles. I would expect these pads to be good for close to 40K miles of reasonable street driving. You can definitely do better than the OEM’s in terms of performance, but there are a number of variables to take into consideration: Noise, dust, low temperature grip, high temperature fade resistance, feel, etc. Depending on your objectives, you may want to swap two sets back and forth.

04-16-2005, 04:33 AM	#4
oogster Junior STI Driver Car: Blue 04 STi Location: NJ Posts: 52 Join Date: May 2004 Trader Rating: (0)	What are some different brands of pads?

04-16-2005, 06:02 AM	#5
TRM uh, whut? Car: 04 STi Fav Mod: wdb Location: Eastern PA Posts: 2,207 Join Date: Oct 2003 Trader Rating: (0)	the OE pads brand new are just over 9mm thick. you should check the pads yourself. once you get down to about 3mm it's probably time to change them.

04-16-2005, 06:13 AM	#6
Boxer Spec C Club Location: FL Posts: 1,506 Join Date: Jan 2004 Trader Rating: (0)	Get a second opinion (or do as TRM suggested). I think the only way you'd have worn the stock pads that fast is with regular auto-x or street driving in a manner which you would no longer have a driver's license.