Which pad would you recommend? I am look at the Heavy duty or LTS Pad from Hawk or the Performance Friction. I have read a lot about both and the Hawks get good reviews but the PF sounds good due to it having no fillers. This is going on a 03 Yukon that does no towing. I live in Florida but could be moving to the mountains within the next year. Any comments are welcome. Factory brakes do last a long time but the performance is not good at all. And they are starting to pulsate so I figured with taxes coming I would just replace everything to pick up some safety and get this done while I can. Vehicle has 73K on factory brakes. I know they can last longer but I want more performance. I let my parents drive this on a trip to Nebraska and my dad said the brakes were terrible coming down mountains, and yes he does know how to drive through mountains.
Hawk or Performance Friction?
- Thread starter mcrn
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I've used Hawk HPS pads in the past, and wasn't overly impressed. I know the EBC's I've used on my car and a buddys truck and car have much better stopping power, but it also showed with rotor wear.
Anyway, what not go for the Hawk Ceramic?
Anyway, what not go for the Hawk Ceramic?
The more I read about brakes the more I want to stay away from Ceramic. They are good for low dust and low noise but not generally good for performance. I can put up with a little more dust and noise if it could save my life or someone else. Ceramic have a lower friction coefficient than semi metallic and they also hold heat longer which both transfer more heat to the rotor.
Hawk Ceramic I had on a 99 300m and they were dusty as [censored] and squealed like a stuck pig. I Hated Them.
But I was reading good reviews of Bendix CT-3 pads and took off the hawks and put on the Bendix... and holy moly, silent, low dust, and GREAT stopping power (even in a two ton car).
I have a set in my closet waiting for the day my Mazda needs them. Stock Mazda pads are Bendix Ceramix and the CT-3 is their higher performance compound.
I have heard that HPS are great pads but for a daily driven car I found love in the CT-3.
But I was reading good reviews of Bendix CT-3 pads and took off the hawks and put on the Bendix... and holy moly, silent, low dust, and GREAT stopping power (even in a two ton car).
I have a set in my closet waiting for the day my Mazda needs them. Stock Mazda pads are Bendix Ceramix and the CT-3 is their higher performance compound.
I have heard that HPS are great pads but for a daily driven car I found love in the CT-3.
I have tried GM Ceramics on my Corvette, stopped lousy and warped my rotors.
I now use HAWK HPS, GREAT pads.
I now use HAWK HPS, GREAT pads.
I have Hawk HPS on my car and they work well. They do dust some. No squealing.
Originally Posted By: Corvette Owner
I have tried GM Ceramics on my Corvette, stopped lousy and warped my rotors.
I now use HAWK HPS, GREAT pads.
That is what Im reading more and more about ceramic pads. SP rotors are what im probably going to go with for discs.
I have tried GM Ceramics on my Corvette, stopped lousy and warped my rotors.
I now use HAWK HPS, GREAT pads.
That is what Im reading more and more about ceramic pads. SP rotors are what im probably going to go with for discs.
I have Hawk Ceramics on my car now and will be going to Performance Friction Front and Rear on next change. Hawks squeal like a pig and do not impress me stopping wise. I thought the pads would be better for what they cost. Performance Friction cost half what Hawk pads cost. So while I cannot recommend the PF's because I have not ran them yet I can say do not buy the Hawks.
JHZR2
Staff member
Bendix ct-3
Akebono ceramic pads work fine in my application. No dust and they stop fast. Also, I've read (here,I think) that NAPA Gold ceramic pads are made by Akebono.
But I don't know about using them in trucks or large SUVs.
But I don't know about using them in trucks or large SUVs.
I just switched from OEM Motorcrafts on my F250 diesel to Wagner Thermoquiet on all 4 wheels. VERY impressed.
Had both Hawks HPS and PF Carbon Metallic on 2 different cars:
Hawks HPS seems to be relatively more bite (although not much compare to Axxis Ultimate), and more dusty.
PFCM seems to be gentler and still relatively linear, but less dust and quieter than the Hawks.
Both should be much stronger than stock (and generic like Monroe Ceramic)
Hawks HPS seems to be relatively more bite (although not much compare to Axxis Ultimate), and more dusty.
PFCM seems to be gentler and still relatively linear, but less dust and quieter than the Hawks.
Both should be much stronger than stock (and generic like Monroe Ceramic)
Originally Posted By: mcrn
The more I read about brakes the more I want to stay away from Ceramic. They are good for low dust and low noise but not generally good for performance. I can put up with a little more dust and noise if it could save my life or someone else. Ceramic have a lower friction coefficient than semi metallic and they also hold heat longer which both transfer more heat to the rotor.
"Performance" is the key word here! And I must say, it all depends on your vehicle, driving style and regional location. I've been using ceramic pads on my vehicles now and I love them but, I drive mostly on flat surfaces and the hills that I do climb/decend may not be what other are experiencing. I have driven my vehicles through the mountains of NY, down into PA, continuing on past MD/DC and into VA and finaly to Myrtle Beach, SC. We have also continued down all the way to FL. Very mountainous highway. If you have to go up, you'll have to come down. My ceramic brakes work fine.
If racing and running fast in the streets/highway or track is your driving style with lots of repeated hard braking, ceramic brakes may not be ideal but, for my driving, they're perfect!
The more I read about brakes the more I want to stay away from Ceramic. They are good for low dust and low noise but not generally good for performance. I can put up with a little more dust and noise if it could save my life or someone else. Ceramic have a lower friction coefficient than semi metallic and they also hold heat longer which both transfer more heat to the rotor.
"Performance" is the key word here! And I must say, it all depends on your vehicle, driving style and regional location. I've been using ceramic pads on my vehicles now and I love them but, I drive mostly on flat surfaces and the hills that I do climb/decend may not be what other are experiencing. I have driven my vehicles through the mountains of NY, down into PA, continuing on past MD/DC and into VA and finaly to Myrtle Beach, SC. We have also continued down all the way to FL. Very mountainous highway. If you have to go up, you'll have to come down. My ceramic brakes work fine.
If racing and running fast in the streets/highway or track is your driving style with lots of repeated hard braking, ceramic brakes may not be ideal but, for my driving, they're perfect!
Quote:
Hawk Ceramic I had on a 99 300m and they were dusty as [censored] and squealed like a stuck pig. I Hated Them.
I had the exact same experience with Hawk Ceramics on my Subaru. They also wore hard on the rotors. I honestly thought they had packaged a set of HP+ in a Ceramic box. I had a set of HPS on another vehicle and they didn't dust or squeal nearly as much as the Ceramics.
I went to an ATE ceramic and was very happy. I have since sold the car, so I can't comment on pad life, but they were quite, clean, and had a nice initial bite. I also have been running Akebono ceramics on my wife's truck with great success: Quiet and clean, with nice bite.
Another great performance pad that I don't think gets much press are Satisfied Grand Sports. I replaced the HPS pads mentioned above with Grand Sports and was impressed. Less dust than the HPS with equal performance. They were considerably cheaper too.
Hawk Ceramic I had on a 99 300m and they were dusty as [censored] and squealed like a stuck pig. I Hated Them.
I had the exact same experience with Hawk Ceramics on my Subaru. They also wore hard on the rotors. I honestly thought they had packaged a set of HP+ in a Ceramic box. I had a set of HPS on another vehicle and they didn't dust or squeal nearly as much as the Ceramics.
I went to an ATE ceramic and was very happy. I have since sold the car, so I can't comment on pad life, but they were quite, clean, and had a nice initial bite. I also have been running Akebono ceramics on my wife's truck with great success: Quiet and clean, with nice bite.
Another great performance pad that I don't think gets much press are Satisfied Grand Sports. I replaced the HPS pads mentioned above with Grand Sports and was impressed. Less dust than the HPS with equal performance. They were considerably cheaper too.
HAWK's are a high performance brake pad(this is what they do!)...an upgrade if you will!
If HAWK mentions ceramic in their formulation, IMHO, it's only a small amount of ceramic friction material mixed in with other friction materials. So, when HAWK mentions less dusting with their ceramics, this doesn't mean that their as "LOW" dusting as a regular replacement ceramic pad, just less dusting than their other "performance" pads(without ceramic material) as well as the competitions performance pads. And YES! They will bite into rotors sililarly to their other performance pad because this is what performance pads do! This is how to STOP! You need BITE!
What I don't like about performance pads(for my applications) is that most of them need more heat than my normal driving can produce so, the normal braking performance is undesirable for my driving style. PLUS, sometimes you don't know what kind of performance your getting until you install them. And another thing...I don't want to ware out my rotors faster!
If HAWK mentions ceramic in their formulation, IMHO, it's only a small amount of ceramic friction material mixed in with other friction materials. So, when HAWK mentions less dusting with their ceramics, this doesn't mean that their as "LOW" dusting as a regular replacement ceramic pad, just less dusting than their other "performance" pads(without ceramic material) as well as the competitions performance pads. And YES! They will bite into rotors sililarly to their other performance pad because this is what performance pads do! This is how to STOP! You need BITE!
What I don't like about performance pads(for my applications) is that most of them need more heat than my normal driving can produce so, the normal braking performance is undesirable for my driving style. PLUS, sometimes you don't know what kind of performance your getting until you install them. And another thing...I don't want to ware out my rotors faster!
Originally Posted By: Char Baby
HAWK's are a high performance brake pad(this is what they do!)...an upgrade if you will!
If HAWK mentions ceramic in their formulation, IMHO, it's only a small amount of ceramic friction material mixed in with other friction materials. So, when HAWK mentions less dusting with their ceramics, this doesn't mean that their as "LOW" dusting as a regular replacement ceramic pad, just less dusting than their other "performance" pads(without ceramic material) as well as the competitions performance pads. And YES! They will bite into rotors sililarly to their other performance pad because this is what performance pads do! This is how to STOP! You need BITE!
I don't know why you're defending Hawk so much, especially since it sounds like you've never used their ceramic pads. Maybe it'd help if you looked over their web site and read some of the claims they make for their ceramic pads, then compare it to the multitude of complaints seen here on BITOG.
Some highlights from the site:
Quote:
Increased stopping power
Increased rotor life
Extended pad life
Ultra-low dust
Extremely quiet
Stable friction output
There's also no note that this performance is in comparison to their "other" pads. That train of thought is a bit presumptuous, don't you think?
HAWK's are a high performance brake pad(this is what they do!)...an upgrade if you will!
If HAWK mentions ceramic in their formulation, IMHO, it's only a small amount of ceramic friction material mixed in with other friction materials. So, when HAWK mentions less dusting with their ceramics, this doesn't mean that their as "LOW" dusting as a regular replacement ceramic pad, just less dusting than their other "performance" pads(without ceramic material) as well as the competitions performance pads. And YES! They will bite into rotors sililarly to their other performance pad because this is what performance pads do! This is how to STOP! You need BITE!
I don't know why you're defending Hawk so much, especially since it sounds like you've never used their ceramic pads. Maybe it'd help if you looked over their web site and read some of the claims they make for their ceramic pads, then compare it to the multitude of complaints seen here on BITOG.
Some highlights from the site:
Quote:
Increased stopping power
Increased rotor life
Extended pad life
Ultra-low dust
Extremely quiet
Stable friction output
There's also no note that this performance is in comparison to their "other" pads. That train of thought is a bit presumptuous, don't you think?
Guys, go by the rating on the side of the pad.
The alphabetical rating, like EE, EF , FF, and so on.
This tells the warm and hot friction characteristics.
Ceramic pads DO seem much less dusty. For street use in a normal car, this is a big advantage. They can grab quite well, like other types.
The alphabetical rating, like EE, EF , FF, and so on.
This tells the warm and hot friction characteristics.
Ceramic pads DO seem much less dusty. For street use in a normal car, this is a big advantage. They can grab quite well, like other types.
I have Hawk Ceramic pads on both my Jeeps and like them.The Wrangler has EBC slotted rotors and the Cherokee has ATE grooved rotors.Using cheap rotors and good pads don't work for long..it's the total package that gets the job done IMO.
Originally Posted By: mcrn
Which pad would you recommend? I am look at the Heavy duty or LTS Pad from Hawk or the Performance Friction. I have read a lot about both and the Hawks get good reviews but the PF sounds good due to it having no fillers. This is going on a 03 Yukon that does no towing. I live in Florida but could be moving to the mountains within the next year. Any comments are welcome. Factory brakes do last a long time but the performance is not good at all. And they are starting to pulsate so I figured with taxes coming I would just replace everything to pick up some safety and get this done while I can. Vehicle has 73K on factory brakes. I know they can last longer but I want more performance. I let my parents drive this on a trip to Nebraska and my dad said the brakes were terrible coming down mountains, and yes he does know how to drive through mountains.
Stick to new factory pads and replace the front rotors with powerslots. It made a world of difference on my Silverado.
Which pad would you recommend? I am look at the Heavy duty or LTS Pad from Hawk or the Performance Friction. I have read a lot about both and the Hawks get good reviews but the PF sounds good due to it having no fillers. This is going on a 03 Yukon that does no towing. I live in Florida but could be moving to the mountains within the next year. Any comments are welcome. Factory brakes do last a long time but the performance is not good at all. And they are starting to pulsate so I figured with taxes coming I would just replace everything to pick up some safety and get this done while I can. Vehicle has 73K on factory brakes. I know they can last longer but I want more performance. I let my parents drive this on a trip to Nebraska and my dad said the brakes were terrible coming down mountains, and yes he does know how to drive through mountains.
Stick to new factory pads and replace the front rotors with powerslots. It made a world of difference on my Silverado.
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