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Brembo performance underwhelming


zelda

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Hello all,

I have a 350z with the following brake setup:

• Brembo calipers
• Grooved black diamond discs
• Brembo pads
• Hel braided lines
• Motul RBF 600 fluid

I've always found the braking performance underwhelming but since the car isn't track focused I've not thought too much into it, given that they do stop me safely.

However, I recently bought a 2017 Qashqai and the brakes feel so much sharper than the Zed. This makes me sad.. Anyone else think the Brembos perform poorly, or is this expected from a car 12 years newer?

I'm not sure I believe the factory Brembos are that bad, so I'll probably bleed them to rule out any air in the lines. But I would like to know if simply replacing the pads would do any good. I dont really want to spend a few hundred on more performance oriented pads and discs only to find that I should have just opted for aftermarket calipers in the first place.

As above, it's not a track car - just a weekend toy but I'd definitely like better braking response.

I guess there's maybe not a direct question in this post, but I'm interested to read other experiences.

Thanks

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Clean up the discs to remove any deposits and fit Ferodo DS 2500 pads (or similar) to front and rear and then carry out a proper bed in.

Brembo aftermarket pads are not of the same quality as OEM Brembo pads.

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What Alex said^ I’ve had to get warrantee on two sets of brembos aftermarket discs and pads- to start with the cost was like god are these really Brembo quality, since being at work aswell we’ve had so many warranty issues with Brembo aftermarket parts. I run ebc drilled and grooved with yellow stuff and so far I’ve had no issues, the money was kind of heart braking “a not so funny joke” but they’re ridiculously good and I also run motul rbf. 

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Thanks guys. Sounds like time to bin the Brembo pads. I'll take a look at some DS 2500 posts on the forum.

 

Checked shims not so long ago actually, and gave everything a thorough clean up and reapply copper grease etc. so happy they're good.

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I'd imagine the Qashqai doesn't have super dupper pads, however the initial brake feel is better than the Zed. FIrst action would be to bleed the brakes again, as a small amount of air in the system will cause poor feel. 

Edited by davey_83
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  • 2 months later...

Sorry to resurrect an old thread but it's on topic so I think I can get away with it!

 

I've just had my car serviced at Japex as usual and have been told that my front Brembo P56047 pads only have 6mm left on them, they have 14mm when new according to the website. It's only been 1 year and 3,000 miles since they were fitted at the previous service. I can't measure them accurately but have been out with a ruler and they are definitely much closer to the advised 6mm than 14mm. I don't track the car but do occasionally use the brakes reasonably hard, can it really be that I've burned through 8mm of pad material already?

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Depending on how you drive I would expect to get more than 3000 miles from genuine OEM Nissan Brembo front pads.

 

Brembo do supply an OEM aftermarket option so perhaps aftermarket Brembo pads have been fitted which would explain your issue.

 

Try Ferodo DS2500 next time, which ARE suitable for road use.

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19 minutes ago, ZMANALEX said:

Depending on how you drive I would expect to get more than 3000 miles from genuine OEM Nissan Brembo front pads.

 

Brembo do supply an OEM aftermarket option so perhaps aftermarket Brembo pads have been fitted which would explain your issue.

 

Try Ferodo DS2500 next time, which ARE suitable for road use.

 

I'm sure mine are aftermarket as I got them from Euro Car Parts, it seems the genuine Nissan OEM ones are about 7x the price so I wasn't expecting them to be the best but the projected 5,000 total miles for a front set seems ridiculous. I've tried both the DS2500 and Hawk PC previously and whilst I did get 20,000+ miles per set they both squealed a lot for at least half their life. Having to get them removed and re-greased regularly or whatever some people suggest as a solution is a pain. Any suggestions on a fast road pad for use with OEM discs that never squeal up to around £120 would be appreciated!

Edited by roadtrip
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ECP only sell after market Brembo pads I am afraid. (as well as other brands)

 

If you are a fan of ECP then aftermarket Pagid might work for you, (cheap as chips) however proper Pagid pads are expensive.

 

If you grease well and fit anti squeal shims to the DS2500s then you should be good.

 

Same applies to most pads that do not have the shims fitted.

 

OEM Nissan Brembo have the anti -squeal shim fitted to the rear of the pads as well as being a different compound to the after market Brembo pads

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Thanks Alex.

 

Is it expected that the original OEM shims are reused if fitting DS2500, Hawk or other performance pads? It seems StopTech pads include them. Is it possible that the aftermarket Brembo pads I'm current running don't have shims either yet are still quiet?

 

I always just get Japex to change them as they are far more likely to get it right than I am and figured they knew what they were doing.

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Sorry to jump in on this,

Anyone have thoughts on Black Diamond product for the Brembo calipers?  Used them in the past on my BMW's and they were very good.

 

Not sure how much life is left in my brakes but just something I've been thinking about.

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Personally I think there's better options out there. Discs I usually go for the cheapest I can get my hands on and treat them as a consumable, as I've found you get way better improvements from spending the big bucks on the pads. This is why I'm running ECP cheapy discs and Carbon Lorraine CL5+ pads on the MX5, and couldn't ask for anything more from them even after extensive track work.

 

BD discs do look smart, mind. Had them on an MR2 mk3 back in the day.

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