Factory brake pads - compound and friction rating?

[yo_marc]

Hi all -- Anyone know what the factory brake pad compound and what the US DOT friction ratings are?

I'm assuming ceramic and GG? Though, wouldn't be surprised if they're some mix of semi-metallic with the bite they have.

Non performance-pack brakes, but I'm open to hearing about either.

Thanks!

 

[Geomets]

Hi all -- Anyone know what the factory brake pad compound and what the US DOT friction ratings are?

I'm assuming ceramic and GG? Though, wouldn't be surprised if they're some mix of semi-metallic with the bite they have.

Non performance-pack brakes, but I'm open to hearing about either.

Thanks!

Ceramic? Many companies advertise their friction materials as ceramic, but it's not the rear deal. They just add some in the organic mix, so...No. Semi-metallic? Certainly not. It's a Golf after all. The bite you feel is from the calipers pushing new organic material. Your car is still below two years old, right? Anyway, the brake dust these pads leave behind show that they're just organic pads. As for the friction coefficient it should be in the range of every organic OEM, 0.22-0.3. Just throw a set of good (premium) semi-metallic pads and forget them for years to come. They don't corrode like the organic ones, nor they harden as the heat cycles apply to them. I think Carbone Lorraine makes pads for your non PP setup. You'll thank me later, it's the best pad I've ever tried (in my previous Peugeot 207 RC with very good brakes from factory), it really impressed me.

 

[yo_marc]

Thanks for the feedback -- that is some info for me to look into.

I am actually trying to narrow down some pad choices for another vehicle of mine... one that's hindered by "no-dust no-feel" OEM ceramics.

I am very pleased with the GTI brakes -- Figured if I can get some info, it'd help me narrow down choices.

I am not sure Organic pads are even offered on my other platform, but something to keep in mind.
I may just get an EBC pad/rotor kit with their black (ultimax?) pads, and call it a day.

 

[Geomets]

Thanks for the feedback -- that is some info for me to look into.

I am actually trying to narrow down some pad choices for another vehicle of mine... one that's hindered by "no-dust no-feel" OEM ceramics.

I am very pleased with the GTI brakes -- Figured if I can get some info, it'd help me narrow down choices.

I am not sure Organic pads are even offered on my other platform, but something to keep in mind.
I may just get an EBC pad/rotor kit with their black (ultimax?) pads, and call it a day.

Just do not buy organic. And something else.
I wrote "premium" in my post, so your last paragraph should not contain "that" aftermarket product Whatever product comes from Europe isn't premium. I'll give you three options of brake pads I know are good and their mother-companies do have R&D departments and they are active in official racing events. Ferodo Racing's DS2500 compound is their perfect hybrid (not plain Ferodo), Carbone Lorraine's RC5+, Endless' MX72. The last one wasn't tested by me, but I'm planning fitting them when spring comes in my GTI. There are other good pads like Pagid etc., but I didn't do much research in them so I can't really recommend the type you'll need, but they have solid solutions too.
In the same league with Endless is Project μ and Dixcel, but I don't know if they produce possible squeaks or brake dust or rotor wear. They are top in what they are supposed to do though... Brake!

 

[yo_marc]

Thanks for the information! I'd need to do a lot of homework to track down the brands you mention. Definitely good stuff to look into.

I answered my original question this past weekend when swapping over winter tires: The factory friction rating is "FG", which from what I understand is a pretty desirable rating.

 

[Bäsemödel]

EBC green stuff is the direction im heading in a few miles when its time to do pads...

 

[breaking badly]

Don't do that. Skip that EBC crap and go for a quality brand,
which does pro motorsports and OE preferably.

I may just get an EBC pad/rotor kit with their black (ultimax?) pads, and call it a day.

EBC Black are worse compared to stock. Their price says it all.

Whatever product comes from Europe isn't premium.

Is this a typo? Ferodo, Carbone-Lorraine and Pagid all are European.

I'll give you three options of brake pads I know are good and their mother-companies do have R&D departments and they are active in official racing events. Ferodo Racing's DS2500 compound is their perfect hybrid (not plain Ferodo), Carbone Lorraine's RC5+, Endless' MX72. The last one wasn't tested by me, but I'm planning fitting them when spring comes in my GTI. There are other good pads like Pagid etc., but I didn't do much research in them so I can't really recommend the type you'll need, but they have solid solutions too.

I second that. DS2500, RC5+ and MX72 are very good choices,
as is the Pagid S and most PFC. I didn't do any research if they
are available for the non-PP GTI calipers though.

 

[hawker800mech]

EBC green stuff is the direction im heading in a few miles when its time to do pads...

I had EBC Green on my previous Subaru. Great bite when cold and even better once heated up. It chewed up the stock rotors, but never warped them. Plus, they dust like crazy. I had Hawk pads on another Subie that warped the stock rotors when they got really heated up. Plus, they were bad when cold; they needed warmed up to feel confident. Nice thing about EBC is you don't have to dress existing rotors due to the sandpaper like bedding compound on the pads. I may throw Yellows on my PP if I don't do a big brake upgrade.

EBC Blacks are not an aggressive/sport driving pad. Installed them on my mother's car. Drive aggressive, and they lose some bite. Drive normal and they are very, very good. When I sold her car to a coworker, he later told me how impressed he was with the cars braking.

 

[Bäsemödel]

What do you recommend instead Breaking?

 

[Geomets]

Don't do that. Skip that EBC crap and go for a quality brand,
which does pro motorsports and OE preferably.



EBC Black are worse compared to stock. Their price says it all.



Is this a typo? Ferodo, Carbone-Lorraine and Pagid all are European.

My friend, I wrote not all, reffering to that company's products. It's an exception (bad exception, indeed). All the other companies do make products we can talk about.

 

[breaking badly]

Bäsemödel, for "fast road" and autocross applications
with a non-PP GTI I'd recommend these:

Ferodo DS2500
Ferodo DS Performance
Carbopad GT

These are available for the non-PP front calipers. I haven't done
any research if Pagid S, CL RC5+ or other reputable products
are available for these calipers. Availability may/will vary highly
depending on where you live.
Remember the mentioned pads are not suitable for tougher kind
of track use.

 

[yo_marc]

You guys may rake me over the coals when I say this; I went with full Raybestos hardware on that other platform of mine. I'll see how everything pans out.

Speaking about GTI replacement brakes -- I personally would go OEM. Perfectly happy with them. Dust and squeals and all. I wouldn't want to introduce any risk of unwanted performance changes. (Been there, done that with a BMW E46 - another awesome factory-brake'r)

 

[breaking badly]

I too have no issues with the stock pads (Clubsport) currently,
I just wonder if NA market GTIs get the same compound as Euro
GTIs since from time to time I read from different compounds to
meet different market requirements.


ps:
When my pads are worn I'll either try to obtain OE Clubsport S
or Pagid S pads.

pps:
Pagid S pads (of which most are ECE approved, meaning they're
road legal in Europe) are the exact same compound as non-ECE
Pagid RS4-2-1 Black (which is a mild track pad and at the same
time OE compound on several Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche and
McLaren), but with anti-noise padding and different packaging.

 

[Geomets]

Firstly I'm really sorry I'm going off-topic but I wouldn't start a new thread for a single question.

I too have no issues with the stock pads (Clubsport) currently,
I just wonder if NA market GTIs get the same compound as Euro
GTIs since from time to time I read from different compounds to
meet different market requirements.


ps:
When my pads are worn I'll either try to obtain OE Clubsport S
or Pagid S pads.

pps:
Pagid S pads (of which most are ECE approved, meaning they're
road legal in Europe) are the exact same compound as non-ECE
Pagid RS4-2-1 Black (which is a mild track pad and at the same
time OE compound on several Ferrari, Lamborghini, Porsche and
McLaren), but with anti-noise padding and different packaging.

Do these pads come with wear indicator wire? The ones I'm going for do not, so to the question. Is there a side effect in the MFD if the pads do not have the aforementioned wire? Should I use VCDS (which I do not have) and, if yes, what is the procedure?

 

[breaking badly]

Yes, they do. I'm not sure if they would even get an ECE approval if they had no wear sensor.

With a sensorless pad I would both disable wear sensing with VCDS and plug the old OE pad's
connector onto its counterpart to protect this one from the elements (and for some later use).

Don't miss to report back when you run the RC5+ for some time.