Just got these new pads after much research. I wanted a pad that had that great initial bite that was provided with the oem pads. But also was relatively low on dust, but didnt fade horribly like the stock pads did....oh and most important for a daily driver....NOISE.

I have used Hawks in the past...from HPS to ceramics and honestly was never impressed with either. The ceramics were low on dust and noise, but sucked on initial bite and i felt like i really had to lay the pedal to the floor to get any kind of reaction out of them. The HPS were great when warmed/hot, but sucked on initial bite otherwise, which is the most important thing for a daily driver that doesnt see much heat in the brakes.

So...after much research I decided to go with StopTechs Street Performance Brake pads. I must have read 1000 reviews on them, and for the most part, i would say 95% of the people who used them were very happy with them. So i figured what the hell.

Key features of these pads:
High initial bite
No noise
Moderate dust
Very linear feel
High resistance to fade
And can also be used for moderate tracking, even though they are primarily designed as a "high performance street pad"


On to the test:

Im using my original rotors which have seen pretty easy miles and have plenty left on them, so i simply replaced pads front and rear. These pads have all the same shims and clips as OEM to keep down and squeek as well as match up with all the clips and pins to hold the pads in firmly.
Install was a breeze.

Bed in procedure.

5 80-90% brake pressure decelerations from 60-10
5 80-90% brake pressure decelerations from 80-10

The first 2 slow downs didnt feel like much, honestly. But as the pads warmed up into the 3rd one, i could really feel these start to bite a bit more. After the first 5, i could start to smell the the pads. I then continued on with the second set of 5...and as expected they started to fade a bit around the 9th and 10th decel. I then drove around for about 10 mins to let the brakes cool a bit.


I then proceeded with another round of bedding.

This time i did 5 hard braking from 80-20
Then another 5 moderate from 80-20.

The second set of bedding i could immediately feel the bite increase on these pads and the fade was almost non existant. After the 2nd decel from 80-20, the pads bite so well the ABS kicked in as soon as i hit the brakes at 80 and i was getting some screeching out the tires and there was no fade all the way down to 20. The smell from the pads was pretty intense after this second set of runs. I hopped out the car and my rotors had a totally different color to them. Almost blueish, so i know they were plenty hot. But also, they had a very bright luster to them that wasnt there before. I guess these pads really cleaned off the surface of the rotors nicely cause they look like mirrors now haha.


So i then drove home and let the brakes cool fully before i went back out on the road. After about 2 hours i hopped in the car, pulled out the driveway, and DAMN, just going in reverse these pads have some trememdous initial bite, even when cold.


Overall impression of pads so far:
Now keep in mind i only have about 40 miles on these pads, but I did go through a pretty good bed in procedure to insure the pad material was transferred over to the rotors.

Initial bite:
Awesome!! to say the least. All i have to do is rest my foot on the brake and you can feel these pads start to bite the rotor...but its not so much that it jerks you back or anything, but just enough to know the brakes are in control.

Control:
After the initial bite the response with these pads is well, the best way i can explain it is to be very linear. I def dont have to use as much travel on the pedal to get the car to slow down but its very smooth. However, the harder you press, the more these puppies bite.

Dust:
I noticed a bit more dust than with my oem pads, and with the Hawk ceramics, but not as much as the HPS. But nothing that isnt expected out of a higher performance pad. I rather have the brakes than worry about the dust.


Noise:

None so far.


Sorry for the length, but i figured anybody who may be in the market to upgrade brakes might find this helpful and help them with their decision on what pads to get.


VERY IMPORTANT!!!!!!

After you have completed your bedding procedure, re torque your lug nuts. I nearly had a wheel come off while driving but thank GOD i was going slow and was able to stop in the middle of the street to tighten up the lug nuts....yes they were that loose...i even lost one of them. I guess the massive amount of heat generated from the bedding caused the studs and lugs to expand enough to cause they to loosen up. I have never had problems with lugs coming loose and i always properly torque my lugs by hand. Both front wheels lugs nuts were loose...a couple were loose enough for me to spin them off by hand.

 

nice write up.

 

Very nice. I was going to go Hawk when I change pads, but good to know there's other good options out there.

 

Def. These are cheaper too, i believe. Full set cost me $140 shipped to my door, from autoanything.com. The thing im mostly happy about is the initial bite that just didnt seem to exist with either set of Hawks, as well as the oems. I think the best way to describe these would be a high performance pad that provides the benefits of a daily street driven oem pad with the benefits of a more aggressive track compound.

 

Danny whats the name of these lol....... haha gimme a link! i need a new set man!

 

Dood....i would slap you if you were here lol....they are made by StopTech....and they are called "Street Performance" lol.

StopTech Brake Pads, StopTech Street Performance Brake Pads

 

tank Q sir lol

 

Nice review. I will probably try these out for my next set. I had the Hawk ceramics and didn't like them at all.

 

If you are due for pads...get them. I think you will be very pleased with them. I was very reluctant due to the unsatisfaction i had with the Hawks. Maybe for an everyday mawmaw and pawpaw they would be fine. But like most people on here, we tend to drive a little more aggressive. But im thoroughly impressed with the performance of these pads so far and can only imagine they could better as i get more miles out of them.

 

I wonder how well these hold up on the track though. The Hawk ceramics only lasted me 3 track days before they turned into dust.

 

I dont really ever plan on tracking my car at the moment....currently my point A to point B transportation. But this is direct from Stoptechs website, if it helps any.

"StopTech Street Performance brake Pads are engineered to meet the demands of high performance driving while maintaining the refinement and comfort expected in everyday
driving conditions. StopTech brake pads combine the benefits of premium street brake pads with aggressive friction formulas suitable for light track day and autocross use.
Para-aramid composites are specially formulated to provide linear response at both cold and hot temperatures, delivering optimum stopping performance over a wide range of driving conditions."

 

Thanks for the write up!

I had those ordered with StopTech front rotors a while back, I still haven't done the bedding in which is why they're noisy as hell lol

I really like them though and best part, no brake squeal as you reverse out of a parking spot

 

I did get some squeek out of the pads last night as i was coming to a stop. But in the pads defense, it was cold and damp and this was right after driving off so needless to say the pads were cold. At this point i think any pad would make noise haha.

 

Very important update in first post

 

Great review! I scribed to thread for future reference when my pads need to be replaced. It would have been nice to have a camera to show the blue rotors, but of course who would have thought about pics for a pad job... lol.