Scarry ceramic !

  • #1

    Scarry ceramic !

    I just replaced my noisy semi-metallic pads for ATE ceramic thinking the would brake the same way they do on my Lancer GTS !

    They are pretty scarry… Really need to push hard. I first tough my front calipers were stuck (after piston compressing) but no.

    Do "cheap" organic pads will grab better/same as "cheap" semi-metallic ? I want no noise !

    I'm only cruising on weekends but I want it to grab hard if I need to..


    Also, how does 87NA brakes should compare to regular recent car ?? (ex Lancer). (everything is new except the booster…)

    Thanks.
  • #2
    Organics have the greatest grip but least heat tolerance… Ceramics are the opposite, lowest grip with the highest heat tolerance

    The various metallic, semi-metallic, metal-matrix will fall in between those bookends
  • #3
    I used some Raybestos pads and they are extremely quite but can still lock up the wheels with 225 wide tires. I'll see how they work when i get 275/40R17's on the rear.
    1986 300ZX factory Turbo 2+2 5 speed swap. 1985 Toyota MR2. Floor boards gone. Good fabrication practice.
  • #4
    Are you sure the brakes are bled properly? My 84NA (NA brakes, anyway) brakes better than my wife's S197.
  • #5
    They shouldn't be as bad as your describing. You will loose braking power with ceramics, but not enough to be that bad.

    Is your pedal super hard or very soft?
    86na - BlueZ
    Shiro #366 - Kouki Monster
    85t - Mr Tickles
  • #6
    the pedal seems fine. I could lock the front wheels with some motivation. OK for cruising but would be too hard for a DD car in trafic. I did bled the front ( + Removed piston to check for rust / stuck). All good. I will try some 15$ organic for fun..
  • #7
    Could be as simple as De-glazing the rotors. Which can also cause shimmy and shake. And if you have braked hard already also do the pads.
  • #8
    Excellent article on de-glazing.
    http://www.stockcarracing.com/techar…ake_deglazing/
  • #9
    OK finally they are OK when hot (2-3 consecutive braking). So most of the time they are not OK. I guess other ceramic brand/compound would have been fine…
  • #10
    Ceramics are known for quietness, low dust rotor-friendly longevity…definitely not world renowned for their bite. Yes, they get better when they're hot, like really hot. They exist for the average soccer mom schlepping around who don't want to hear even a peep from their brakes. I had installed many sets on customers cars over the years and after several complaints almost identical to yours I now usually use a quality metallic.

    I'm personally a fan of cheap organic pads for everyday use, especially on Z31's. They stop great and are reasonably quiet. Can usually find a set on Rockauto for like $8.
  • #11
    Actually the ceramics tend to squeak and people don't like that, most soccer moms get a semi-organic compound to keep things quiet in my experience…

    There's 2 kinds of pad grip:
    stiction - which is the tackiness of the pad trying to weld itself to the rotor (organics have the highest)
    abrasion - which is the sandpaper effect of coarsely digging into the rotor (metal matrix have the highest)

    Abrasive pads are less reliant on temperature to perform, but create lots of dust (see any german car's front wheel for evidence)

    Unless you drive your car hard, even cheapo organics will provide good grip in all conditions, although in a hot climate you'll likely want at least a semi-metallic