Hey Haena,
If you're hearding something after 700 miles, something is either wrong or you've just got a squeak. Even if you tried to, there is no way to blow through even totally crap brakes in 700 miles. You do have to worry about seating the brakes nicely in the first 500 miles or so and i suppose if something went wrong there they could be performing poorly or making noise. Remember - you're totally under warranty - if something is going wrong and the squeaks don't go away or you're having poor stopping, take that thing back to the dealer and have them take a look around.

 

i can just go to the dealer to have them look at the brakes..?? wouldn't that be weird..?? i heard that brakes are not covered by the warranty..?? it is normal for the tc to have poor stopping..?? my parents has a maxima and the brakes on the max is totally different. i know that max is very different from a tc but still... there is such a big difference... on the tc, i step on the brakes and by the time i get like 4-5 feet, i have to step on the brakes hard because it won't stop. is that normal..??

 

im just going to wait for the brakes to squeal, then i will change it.

 

The brakes feeling different than the maxima isn't wierd. The brakes not working right is wierd. I remember them feeling funny when i got the car but it was just adjustment on my part. I remember thinking you had to step on them a little hard, but when you do step on them moderately hard, the car should stop very fast. If it isn't stopping and/or it's making a noise, you can take it in. You're right that brakes aren't covered under warranty because they're a wear part - when the pads are gone, the dealer isn't going to fix it. But if the brakes aren't working right, it's not wierd at all to have the dealer take a look and see what's going on. Nothing should be wrong with the brakes at 700 miles - they should be seated and almost brand new.

 

I have 35,280 on my tc, and i get that intermittent brake light. I have no squealing, but my rotors are nasty rusty and black, and there is more brake dust than ever on my rims, looks like some upgrades!

 

yep.. i just had my car in to the dealer for the brake light going off. I have 34,000 on my tC. they said the car was very low on brake fluid and that I needed new brake pads. they were trying to charge me like 350 just to replace the brake pads and turn the rotors.. i told them to go F themselves.. does anyone know where i can buy OEM pads? (the ones on tirerack aren't very good)... i'd like to just be able to find some factory-direct replacements.

 

I bet (if you don't want TRD and just want the replacements) that mcgeorge or TRDSparks will sell them to you - if they're not listed on mcgeorge, just email them. They've always been good to me.

Nice to see you around Smash... ever figure anything out with the grill replacement?

 

Brake pad life is completely dependant of where and how you drive. Some people get 5-10 thousand mile and others get 25-30 thousand on the same pad compunds. If you are looking for better pads than stock there are plenty to choose from that are cheaper and better. If you are looking for a low dust pad that will outperform stock and is very inexpensive than something like an Axxis Deluxe Plus is probably the best choice. Its quiet, low dust low rotor wear and very inexpensive. For something that has more performance but low noise and low dust than the Hawk HPS is a good choice as well. If you want something that is high performance and dust is not an issue, than the Axxis Ultimate is probably the best choice. The Hawk HPS and Axxis Ultimate are very close in brake performance with the Axxis being quite a bit cheaper.

Our StopTech BBKs and Stage kits all include Axxis Ultimate brake pads since they offer the best balance of price and performance and is our most popular pad for all applications.

I saw somebody mention getting rotors turned and we generally feel that it is a bad idea. If you have pedal vibrations I can guarantee you that 99% of the time is is NOT a warped rotor. What has likely happened is that your pads have been overheated past their max operating temperature and have laid down some uneven pad deposits on the rotor face. This happens more often near the end of a pads life as the thinner it gets the less heat capacity is has. They overheat quicker and deposit faster. The best way to fix the issue is to install new pads and do a bed in procedure which will scrub off the existing pad material and then lay down an even layer of pad material of the new compund on the rotor surface.

Whenever rotors are turned, the rotors heat capacity is diminished which means it will get hotter faster and stay hotter longer which can lead to another occurence of uneven pad deposits happening sooner.

Heres more info on pad bed in and the warped rotor myth:

Bed in procedure: http://www.stoptech.com/tech_info/wp...contents.shtml

Warped rotor myth: http://www.stoptech.com/tech_info/wp...rakedisk.shtml

 

I'm at 37K and my brake pads are still good. 15K and it's gona already? That's a surprise to me.

 

with the brakes going easily on some peoples cars, makes me worry about the life of the clutch

 

well i have had bad luck with the brakes, (no i do not ride them, just drive hard) th eog pads where down to 5% in 9500mi, i switched them to project mu pads, they sucked noisy race pads wore down faster then the factory's, i switched them at 16,000mi, and went with the trd pads great they were like $30 on line, put them on just remember to keep the shims that come with the original pads, i didnt, so they are a little noisy put they worked great for a while, now i just hit 30k and the pads at 25% but the pedal feels like crap so im ordering another set of pads, not sure of yet im looking, every one says hawk but they are noisy and a lot of dust, so maybe the trd's again, im going to change the rotors to the cryo's and change the lines and fluid too, to get the pedal stiffer,

 

The Hawk HPS is a quet pad with low dust. The Hawk HP+ is noisy and dusty but it is more of a pad designed for autocross with very high cold bite as opposed to a track pad which need a lot of heat to work well.

If you want a good all around low noise pad with low dust the Hawk HPS is probably your best choice. If you are willing to sacrifice a little bit of performance you could also go with the Axxis Deluxe Plus which has better bite than a stock pad with low noise and dust. The deluxe plus costs about 1/3 the price of the Hawk HPS. Another choice for a street performance pad is the Axxis Ultimate which Im pretty is the same pad as the TRD pads. It has high bite, low noise and moderate dust and we use it on all of our big brake kits and stage kits for street only use. It is usually priced about $20-$30 less than the Hawk HPS.

And FYI, cryo rotors show no benefit over non cryo rotors in any of the tests we have put them through ( including severe beatings in purpose built race cars on the track). If your rotors are such that cryo is required to make them last longer, you either have very low quality rotors or your pad selection is incorrect for the application.

We offer a Stage 2 kit with all of these parts together with slotted or drilled rotors, Axxis Ultimate brake pads, SS braided lines with silicone outer sleeving and 3 bottles of Motul RBF 600 fluid that you may want to look in to.

 

wow that is odd 15k and its worn.. do you valet your car a lot?

 

how can i go about telling that my pads are worn? do i have to take off the wheel and look at the pads?

 

^^^thats the best way

 

The stock sytstem is set up so there is a light that will come on when the brake fluid gets below a certain level which will happen as the pads wear. There are also wear sensors built into the pad's clip-on shims that mill rub agianst the rotor and make a screeching sound.

 

axxis ulitimates > all

 

anyone get excessive noise after letting your car sit in the snow??? I mean i know some noise is normal but it happens for a long time... with12k they look okay besides that noise but that goes away after about 5 mi of driving...

 

Question: Will they fit as is, or other (additional) mods are needed to get them to fit?

 

yeah, it's because of rust buildup on the rotors, when you brake, it will go away because it scrapes it off...it shouldn't take 5 miles though, maybe a few thousand feet