In my experience, with a lighter E36…
Going from Axxis Ultimates, a street performance pad, to Textar ePads, resulted in a world's difference in dusting (much less, and lighter in color), and noticeable loss in bite. In fact, that car was left with the odd situation where the rear wheels, which still had Ultimates, would darken faster and more than the fronts.
Both were to be expected, and the latter took some time to adjust to, but once that accilimation had been achived I didn't feel braking power was insufficient, nor did they exhibit any temperature sensitivity (cough, Metal Masters).
A pad that meets
R90 spec will theoretically be within 15% of the
performance offered by the OE spec parts.
That spec, or specs in general, like friction ratings, only tell part of the story, but at least they are quantifiable, and arrived at through empirical testing.
The ePad option was arrived at through research that revealed that Akebonos were polarizing, at best, and the impression that the Textars gave an OE-level of feel and performance, albeit without the dust. Some mentioned that they may be even been OE in some applications.
Another characteristic is that they wear the rotors very evenly, like they've been polished, with no grooving or other signs of hard use.
No regrets, and while they weren't the cheapest pads, nor would I expect them to hold up in driving events, they're fine for street duty, and I'd do the same over again.