Out of ordinary? Could be. That is not the question. Question is: what you give up?
I feel like they'd be exposed on the Chinese forums if there was something significant that was bad. There does seem to be a lack of hype which I thought was related to price but it could mean you're right.
So far the only thing I've noticed is the backing plate might not be galvanized.
They offer domestic buyers a 50k mile warranty so unless it's cheap for them to replace, the company seems confident they'll last.
They also post their insurance company's policy number on the product listing to try and convince their people to trust them instead of the popular international brands
Who says they are significantly better?
The marketing claims are bold if you're saying things like "it ain't happening" but compared to the pads I've driven, they feel and perform significantly better (braking power, smoothness, noise, dust). Drove the BMW this morning and it doesn't feel nice nor inspire confidence having to press further down on the brake pedal.
And what is that standard?
If I can find the contact info for the organization responsible for the R90 certification, I'll ask them to verify the registration number for the graphene pads.
Brembo mentions R90 for that new Beyond EV line so I assume it's a good standard
How are brake pads tested in conformity with ECE R90?
An R90 certificate may be issued only by a specialized certification body as all pad models are laboratory-tested and undergo a variety of stress tests. The following is measured during an ECE R90 certification procedure:
-pressure sensitivity,
-speed sensitivity,
-brake fade (loss of braking force due to high temperature).
The friction material tests last from 3 to 5 hours, much shorter than in the case of first-assembly parts. Mass produced brake pads undergo even more stringent tests, including temperature sensitivity, wear, noise levels or thermal conductivity. These tests may take up to several months to complete. The R90 standard is sufficient to determine the minimum parameters of brake pads required to obtain a safety guarantee. The friction material may not contain asbestos.
The test results may not deviate from the nominal values by more than 15%.
Source
That is inherently a Chinese problem, not ours. We do not have issues buying Chinese products or having Chinese companies operating here (or in the West, for that matter).
If they are what you state they are, the market will be folded with them.
Read some
news about Tesla wanting to use lithium iron phosphate in their cars and this part of the article made me think graphene pads could have the same issue.
"Tesla CEO Elon Musk has pushed for the usage of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries, produced mainly by Chinese vendors. He claimed in March 2023 that the vast bulk of the heavy lifting for electrification will be iron-based cells.
However, due to the political tensions between Washington and Beijing, having Chinese suppliers develop battery manufacturing in the United States is challenging."
You make excellent points though so there's a good chance I'm wrong (ex: Fuayo making car windows)
So, they had all these years F1 for what?
https://www.formula1.com/en/latest/...ll-not-take-place.186HJrsCh027R2rl0eJnWG.html
In 2023 it is canceled due to COVID. But lets entertain your argument: they won't partner with F1 bcs. political reasons, but somehow they will come up with this super, uber brake pad concept? Based on history, ain't happening, but I would like to hear an opposite argument as long as it is not in the realm of wishful thinking.
Agree with everything you've said here. I honestly don't follow F1 so had no idea about the Chinese grand prix but it makes financial sense.
You originally wrote about Brembo hardware on Ferrari F1 so when I said partner with them, I meant F1 having Chinese brake pad on their cars.
Just found out they use carbon fibre brakes so this part of the conversation is out of my depths...