I'm thinking about doing my pads and shoes in the near future, just as a precaution. Anyone have any recommendations for brands they've used and had good results with or brands to stay away from. I just want something reliable that doesn't dust too much.

 

I call on a lot of professional auto shops, and any reputable brake shop seems to wholeheartedly recommend Akebono friction material, especially for foreign nameplates. I don't hear such good commentary about any other brand in any product line.

*BTW, the reasons they give include: low comebacks due to noise, low dust, and general fit form and function.

 

Wagner ceramic pads

I put them on when I did the Tundra brake swap and they work great plus they don't have a brake dust problem. They still make dust but they make less dust and its the same color as mag wheel so you can't see it.

But allot of it boils down to what you want to spend. But consider that most police departments can get what ever brake pads they want but most of the fleet managers I've spoken with use the Wagner.


FOG

 

X2 on the Akebono pads. Might be hard to find, I waited 6 weeks for mine to come in.

 

I'm not trying to shoot down your experience with Wagner, but in my experience, the only shops that install Wagner brakes are shops that offer 89.99 specials, namely Just Brakes. I'm under the impression that Wagner is a price point brake product.

 

BTW, all CARQUEST stores now carry Akebono pads (in stock) in place of their previous top line offering, Raybestos Gold. They've got 'em in stock for my taco.

 

Most of the shops I've seen installing Wager were the bottom of the line Wagner stuff, not the ceramic pads. But as far Wagner brand quality goes when I went to get rebuilt Tundra calipers I looked at a bunch (A-1 Car done/Auto Zone house brand,etc) and the Wagner stuff was well above the others on quality.

The only other thing I can say about Wagner ceramics is I drove all over the mountains of Colorado (Pikes Peak and Rocky mountain park) and rode the heck out of the brakes and they bit hard every time I stepped on them even when they were pretty close to being overheated.

But as the old saying goes your mileage may vary. Kinda like Brembo rotors, some swear they are the greatest and some have warped them just as easy as their stock rotors.


FOG

 

So the ceramic is their premium line? got it.
I'm not sure who does good rotors these days. They're all out of China (or India) which doesn't necessarily mean they're bad. Raybestos parent company is suing Duratec and one other manufacturer of rotors for fraudulently claiming OEM specs. All Raybestos is outta China these days. And you better believe Advance, Autozone, etc are all India/China/Taiwan rotors.

 

Well I did a little looking and saw that KVR makes pads and rotors (cross drilled, slotted, cadnium plated, whatever you want) for the 4runner. Makes me happy as these were what I ran on my RX7 and absolutely loved them. unfortunately they don't make shoes for the rear. I know Wagner makes shoes for the rear, does Akebono?

 

apparently Akebono only does ceramic pads, no shoes.

 

So for the rear I guess the Wagners would be the only choice.... At least they are easy to get a hold of.

 

Yeah, or Raybestos, also a good product. I would just make sure to steer clear of any junk from Autozone/Advanced or any of the CSK stores. Not sure what O'Reilly stocks, but I'm sure it's quality.

 

Advanced carries the Wagners actually, including the ceramics.

 

Toyota for the rear shoes and you will not have to replace them again for a decade. In the front i always get the cheap organic pads. Have never had an issue with their stopping ability and they dont chew up rotors like the ceramics can.

 

OEM is a very good suggestion for the rears. That and the KVRs up front will make a nice combo.

 

I just installed a pair of brembo rotors on amazon for $110 w. shipping, matched w. some hawk pads for $70, what a difference! I wish I would have done a quality brake job the first time. A lot of times you can just dial in the rears to get some more life out of those shoes.

 

Well, since I'm setting my rig up more as an expo/overland type deal, reliability is a little more important than stretching the life of the rear pads.

 

I am getting ready to replace to rotors and the pads. From what i can tell this is what i'm going to do. Rotors for the front are going to be EBC slot/vented/groved. http://www.autoanything.com/brakes/6...0A3104284.aspx
And the Pads i'm going to go with EBC green stuff pads but go with the 7000 they are more heavy duty and better life, less dust, and brake good at either cold or hot. http://www.autoanything.com/brakes/6...0A2607425.aspx
Also, they are made in England from what i can tell so way better than some China junk. Here is EBC's website too http://www.ebcbrakes.com/

Feel free to tell me if you have run these pads or disks.