Brake Pad Friction Ratings

[ET16]

Shopping for pads for my Saab, I was surprised how hard it was to find out the friction ratings. I was looking for FF or better, but found few that published the rating or had a picture showing the rating on the pads.

 

[JustinH]

rockauto usually posts photos of the brake pad and you can read the friction ratings on the pad.

 

[spasm3]

The problem is the cross over. If you look at the chart, and ff pad could also be called a gg at .45. An EE pad could be called an FF pad at .35.

 

[JHZR2]

The odd thing is I've had some "lower" friction pads that felt more grippy than higher rated ones that have replaced them.

 

[stephen9666]

The friction rating doesn't tell the whole story, but I also consider it when buying pads.

 

[stephen9666]

Originally Posted By: spasm3

The problem is the cross over. If you look at the chart, and ff pad could also be called a gg at .45. An EE pad could be called an FF pad at .35.

You might be overly concerned about "cross over." If the chart is accurate, the coefficient would have to be a single exact number to fall on the edge. If it's .01 either way it's a different designation.

 

[HangFire]

Originally Posted By: JHZR2

The odd thing is I've had some "lower" friction pads that felt more grippy than higher rated ones that have replaced them.

Not odd at all. Cheap soft grippy-feel pads can fade a lot when hot, and thus get a lower rating.

Originally Posted By: stephen9666

The friction rating doesn't tell the whole story, but I also consider it when buying pads.

This.

 

[HangFire]

Originally Posted By: HangFire

[quote=JHZR2]The odd thing is I've had some "lower" friction pads that felt more grippy than higher rated ones that have replaced them.

Not odd at all. Cheap soft grippy-feel pads can fade a lot when hot, and thus get a lower rating.

Originally Posted By: stephen9666

The friction rating doesn't tell the whole story, but I also consider it when buying pads.

This.

Originally Posted By: JustinH

rockauto usually posts photos of the brake pad and you can read the friction ratings on the pad.

and I thank them for that. I've pinged a few other websites about publishing this information, either crickets or nonsense responses, listing what's already on the site and no acknowledgement that the info I'm asking for is still missing.

 

[skyactiv]

The factory Bosch brake pads on my GTI have an FG friction rating on them.

 

[ET16]

The other thing I don't completely understand is where the 90R rating comes in. This only certifies that aftermarket pads are close to OEM in performance, right?

 

[UG_Passat]

Originally Posted By: ET16

The other thing I don't completely understand is where the 90R rating comes in. This only certifies that aftermarket pads are close to OEM in performance, right?

It's is a ECE R90 regulation, which yes, coincides with OEM in performance (meeting or better), which also has country code stamping also

 

[Carmudgeon]

Pad friction ratings are like UTQG tire ratings. Objective, and meant to be useful, but only to a limited extent.