No, they just suck. Not exactly new at this. Seriously, go out on a road course and tell me how you like the HPS'. On the street they work just fine most of the time, but the factory pads are FAR superior. I still don't know why I bought them, but at the time I wasn't going to be on track for months and they were relatively cheap.

 

My last session on streets of willow ...I got in a good 10 laps in and I experienced no brake fades on the stock pads and i was pretty much standing up on my brakes..My buddy even saw my brakes glowing. I think i will probably go back to stock. Btw what the number for the stock brakes front and back?? I need to order them

 

Just get them from crate engine depot. They list the parts right out for you.

 

Ok sry to resurect but i just bought zzp front and rear drilled and slotted rotors and hawk hps pads. My stock rotors were getting low and had deep grooves.. And stock pads werecworn about 50% not to mention the constant dust and squeal. After reading this thread.... Did i make a mistake in going with the setup i chose? Seems that stock setup is the popular vote.... Car is daily driven, no track use yet but some spirited driving is all for now.

 

Just noticed this is a tc thread... Woops

 

The stock Ferodo pads in the front tend to chew up the rotor. The Mazdaspeed3 with single piston front calipers had the same stopping distance as the SS/TC, so the pad compound isn't the only factor in the equation.

I'd get the HPS or HP Plus just for longer rotor life unless you track your car. If you do race the car, then you obviously don't mind new brake parts every so often.

BTW, Brembo calipers and brake parts (master cylinders, levers, etc...) are prevalent with Italian motorcycles. My Ducati 696 has Brembo front calipers (a pair of 4-piston monobloc units) and rear caliper (2-piston unit, same as the one used on the Superbikes and possibly MotoGP). The stock front pads feel too progressive, you need to squeeze the lever HARD. I believe they are Ferodo pads... they also fade after several hard stops. Magazines like Cycle World also complained about this. EBC offers some good pads and DP Brakes seem to have good praises for motorcycles.

I have Hawk HPS pads on the front of my 4200 lb Crown Vic and the rear of my SS/TC (to solve the rear rotor issue). After 3000 miles on the Cobalt, the rear rotors look brand spanking new complete with crosshatching lines. The front rotors on the Cobalt look fairly grooved and worn. The HPS dust is actually a LOT less than the stock pads and is a light tan color.

On the Crown Vic, the front HPS pads do most of the braking work and leave no dust on my wheels but stop much much better than stock. The HPS pads seem to love heat but stop well in the cold.

After reading "The Man in the White Suit" and reading about why Formula 1 drivers pump their brakes after riding over kerbs, I started to do that after making fast turns or in the rain. I've actually had that happen a few times where after an aggressive turn, my pedal went to the floor. People told me that it was air in the system, but it would come back up immediately with the next pump. It made sense for the pads to come "loose" due to the vibration/jostling during that turn. The kerbs are very aggressive especially while turning.

So overall, I don't see any negative aspects to going with HPS pads. Hawk is a brand of Wellman and they make the pads for HMMWVs and other heavy duty applications. I can't find any for my Ducati, so EBC and DP Brakes are on my list as well as Ferodo. BTW the stock Ferodo pads on my Ducati are chewing up the rotors within 200 miles.

 

Stopping distance has nearly nothing to do with brake pad compound and caliper type in this world of ABS, it is dependent on tires mostly (other issues come into play but mostly tires). The Ferodos will still be there with you after a few laps on track, and the Hawks will be attempting to kill you. They are street pads, nothing else.

And what do the single piston calipers on the Speed3 have to do with brake pad compound?

 

Like I said, if you want to race the car, get different pads. Hawk also makes track compound pads. Car and Driver did a test and found the EBC track pads to provide excellent fade resistance on the track for the Miata.

That said, using the Ferodo pads for the street will mean chewed up rotors and excessive dust. If you're racing, you won't mind new rotors every so often. For street use, your needs are a bit different but not necessarily looking for worse performance. I have not been impressed with Ferodo pads thus far.

 

But a miata isn't a cobalt. Just because ebc worked best on that doesn't mean its best on anything else.

I've still got stock brakes front and rear with no problems other than the front dust. No grooving, noise, or any of that.

 

Same here. 27k, several track days and no hiccups at all. The stock front pads are absolutely superior to any aftermarket brake pads. The same cannot be said for the rears. It's amazing how many people mistake high initial bite for greater performance.

 

stock>rest
jesus you guys fail at reading, and your driving habits sucks along with maintenance.
pound for pound the stock is the way to go, if you want the brakes to last longer
then get autozone brake pads.

 

I've got 55k on the fronts and and 35k on the rears. The 1st set on the back went about 20k before it grooved them up pretty bad. Got them warrantied and they adjusted them. Been just fine since.

 

I know its a tc thread but just to reiterate my earlier post, hawk hps > stock sc pads? Or r they also the other way around?

 

I have the HP+ on the R1 premium rotors, you can't believe how noisy they are.

 

If you're worried about brake dust up front try http://www.armorall.com/products/view_product.php? product_id=33. Works great. Just follow directions. Stock fronts are fine.