Best brakes that leave the least dust?

[engineerjet]

I noticed today that my front wheels looks spotless while my rears are filthy. I got a car wash a few months ago so I'm assuming the rear brakes are just dirtier. Are there any brands that this community suggests for minimal dust without compromising braking?

[Instig8]

Akebono Euro Ceramic, they leave almost zero dust.

[cspcrx]

What he said!

[edyco]

Be aware that you will trade performance for less dust. I had Akebono and took down that POS after few thousands miles (was convincing myself there are bedding in).
If your rear ones dust more (very unusual) that means whoever did your pads used two different pads. As far as I know, only Mercedes C63 has ceramic pads in front and semi-metallic in the back out of factory as ceramic brake option. They dust in the back. Usually front wheels should be dirtier if both set of pads are semi-metalic (and B8 S4 uses semi-metallic pads). But those ceramics on C63 are different animal from Akebono Euro.
If you want to try ceramic, I would go Textar e-pad or ARE Ceramic (expensive).



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[Silver Streakin]

That's not necessarily true. The OEM pads are known to produce a lot of darker dust than other pads. It's not always the amount of dust but the color.

I currently have Hawk 5.0 up front and still the OEM rears... and it's easy to tell which end is still the stock pads. And I'm not giving up performance.

[BR11S4]

You haven't had a car wash in a couple months?

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[LtDangle]

After putting on the Stoptech axle pack I've noticed a lot less brake dust and significantly better braking compared to OEM.

[01northernS4]

Be aware that you will trade performance for less dust. I had Akebono and took down that POS after few thousands miles (was convincing myself there are bedding in).
If your rear ones dust more (very unusual) that means whoever did your pads used two different pads. As far as I know, only Mercedes C63 has ceramic pads in front and semi-metallic in the back out of factory as ceramic brake option. They dust in the back. Usually front wheels should be dirtier if both set of pads are semi-metalic (and B8 S4 uses semi-metallic pads). But those ceramics on C63 are different animal from Akebono Euro.
If you want to try ceramic, I would go Textar e-pad or ARE Ceramic (expensive).

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I'm starting to wonder if there are different versions of Akebono pads for our cars or knock offs as I've read a few opinions like yours and as a result was about to avoid them... good thing I did not as in my case the Akebono, on my car, are better than stock performance wise (very linear braking and great stopping power), no noise at all (stockers had a terrible squeal after a year old, mostly in cold weather) and absolutely no visible dust. I could not be happier.

If I had to reach to say something negative about the Akebonos, I guess I could say the pedal feel for some might be a tiny bit softer than stock… that's it... that's me reaching and it's absolutely no issue... but I also just replaced the pads without new rotors so who knows... big upgrade from stock pads for me in every way including pedal feel (stockers were way too grabby at low speeds).

[bhvrdr]

I'm starting to wonder if there are different versions of Akebono pads for our cars or knock offs as I've read a few opinions like yours and as a result was about to avoid them... good thing I did not as in my case the Akebono, on my car, are better than stock performance wise (very linear braking and great stopping power), no noise at all (stockers had a terrible squeal after a year old, mostly in cold weather) and absolutely no visible dust. I could not be happier.

If I had to reach to say something negative about the Akebonos, I guess I could say the pedal feel for some might be a tiny bit softer than stock… that's it... that's me reaching and it's absolutely no issue... but I also just replaced the pads without new rotors so who knows... big upgrade from stock pads for me in every way including pedal feel (stockers were way too grabby at low speeds).

I had the same experience and I would say if anything they are a better performance pad then the OEM ones because they allow for much better pedal modulation.

Not that theyre a track pad of course but I just mean for performance driving.

I do notice that they make several different types of ceramic compounds and the euro ceramic is the GG rated one which means they can supposedly take quite a bit of heat and they also perform pretty well cold.

[edyco]

I'm starting to wonder if there are different versions of Akebono pads for our cars or knock offs as I've read a few opinions like yours and as a result was about to avoid them... good thing I did not as in my case the Akebono, on my car, are better than stock performance wise (very linear braking and great stopping power), no noise at all (stockers had a terrible squeal after a year old, mostly in cold weather) and absolutely no visible dust. I could not be happier.

If I had to reach to say something negative about the Akebonos, I guess I could say the pedal feel for some might be a tiny bit softer than stock… that's it... that's me reaching and it's absolutely no issue... but I also just replaced the pads without new rotors so who knows... big upgrade from stock pads for me in every way including pedal feel (stockers were way too grabby at low speeds).

I do like grabby pad though. However, I literally missed stop sign once with AK. They are just too soft and IMO, during aggressive driving there is unnecessary delay.
As for dust, I do not care about it.


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[grovlet]

I prefer Porterfield R4-S Pads...... They are designed around Performance with low dust:
Porterfield R4-S

They have very linear feel - and low dust as well. Been running them on my Subaru for years and have them on the S4 now as well - fit the bill perfectly for the street.

EDIT: They also have race pads if you prefer:
Porterfield Race Pad Options

There is a comparison to the R4-S and others showing friction levels - as well as some pointers on operating temps as well.

[cspcrx]

you have to ask what are you going to ask of the pads.

If your car is a daily driver that once a year might see the 1/4 or 1/2 event and that's about it the Akebono is a great pad. Had them on my car and no regrets.

If you are going to do track events for more 1/4 and 1/2 putting greater demand on your brakes you need to upgrade more than just the pads to be happy.

OP was worried about dust and for the price hard to beat the Akebono. Good luck and lots of good information in here.

[LeadToRome]

Clearly stock pads in the rear and something else up front. You can either spend money or live with the dust until you need new rears. Maybe try washing it a little more frequently?

[edyco]

Guys, mixing pad compound is really, really bad idea. If rears have more dust, they are probably more aggressive. That means that in slick conditions (including rain) rear end could become front end.


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[grovlet]

Guys, mixing pad compound is really, really bad idea. If rears have more dust, they are probably more aggressive. That means that in slick conditions (including rain) rear end could become front end.


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While that's an extreme possibility - I doubt it's that major of a concern here - typically like 60% - 70% of braking is handled by the fronts anyways.... So already out of balance by design....

IF you were were talking race conditions / extremes - you may notice a difference in brake feel and have to modulate braking / brake points to account - but even then I doubt the car would actually change direction drastically and spin simply due to front/back difference.... Left vs right maybe a better possibility....

[SouthernBoy]

I still have the stock OEM pads on my 2016 S4 6MT and they have been great. I am very interested in this thread because I am seriously considering replacing the front pads because of the dusting factor. Before this car I had a 2004 Acura TL with the manual transmission. It came with Brembo brakes up front and the dusting drove me crazy. I replaced them at 15,000 miles with Rotex Kevlar Gold pads and could not have been more pleased. Yes I lost a slight bit of stopping power but that would have only been a factor if I had tracked the car. In all street conditions, those pads were excellent. And the dusting dropped to below what the standard TL with an automatic had. I know this because my wife got a 2005 TL with the automatic transmission.

So I would imagine that if you have no plans to track your S4 but you still want good brakes without all that dusting, the Akebono pads may be a good choice. Don't know from personal experience and that is why I am following this thread.

Thanks fellas. I needed to read all of this.

[edyco]

While that's an extreme possibility - I doubt it's that major of a concern here - typically like 60% - 70% of braking is handled by the fronts anyways.... So already out of balance by design....

IF you were were talking race conditions / extremes - you may notice a difference in brake feel and have to modulate braking / brake points to account - but even then I doubt the car would actually change direction drastically and spin simply due to front/back difference.... Left vs right maybe a better possibility....

I am talking about slick conditions. While that might not be possibility for some, on ice or snow or some other surfaces it could spell trouble. Also, B8 S4 has better weight distribution than previous ones. Although still front heavy, Audi did better job with B8. That means rear braking force is definitely stronger than before.


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[killer_s4]

https://www.ecstuning.com/b-akebono-parts/c-braking/

Akebonos are on sale on ECS

[Z06Corey]

www.rockauto.com .....akebono

[Z06Corey]

Screenshot_20190717-215327.jpg

[jsh139]

Another vote for the Akebonos. I have them all around and although that initial bite isn’t there, I don’t appear to have lost any actual stopping power. You get used to them in a few days. And the lack of dust is awesome.

[dimonblr]

Another vote for the Akebonos. I have them all around and although that initial bite isn’t there, I don’t appear to have lost any actual stopping power. You get used to them in a few days. And the lack of dust is awesome.

Agree with the above.

The initial bite is definitely missing compared to OEM pads, but I got used to this peculiarity of ceramic composite pads, and prefer that over having black wheels all the time. The car still stops as it should when you apply the brakes.

[Scaughtedaug]

Akebono pads, SS brake lines and some good DOT 4 fluid and you'll be good to go.

[MSq5]

I’m going to go with Hawk 5.0 on my 3.0T Q5 when the time comes to replace fronts. I’ve used them on other high performance cars and really like the performance and very low brake dust. They are linear. Not grabby or touchy. Braking power increases in a linear manner with pedal pressure.

[grovlet]

I’m going to go with Hawk 5.0 on my 3.0T Q5 when the time comes to replace fronts. I’ve used them on other high performance cars and really like the performance and very low brake dust. They are linear. Not grabby or touchy. Braking power increases in a linear manner with pedal pressure.

Well - you may regret that move..... Quite a bit of dislike for the Hawk 5.0s on the Audi Forums (and other forums as well to be frank) - and my guess is it has to do with they are not designed to hold up to the weight of the Audis....

Also as an FYI - they were also terrible as replacements to the HP+ on my Subaru LGT - NOT Linear at all as well as way more dust than the HP+ - I swore by Hawks previously but the 5.0s forced me to searching for a proper replacement to the HP+ - and found Porterfield....

But hey give it go if it fits your preferences.

[AerotusX]

+1 for Akebono. No dust, no noise. Very linear and more than enough stopping performance for DD. I would say it has about the same stopping power as OEM, but with less initial bite, which leads ppl to think it's not as good. It's not a track pad for sure. For all-around performance, comfort, and price; it's hard to beat.

[Bmil128]

I’ve added steel brake lines in addition to my second set of Akebono pads seems to have brought some of the pedal feel back.

[s5bri]

What rotors do you recommend for front & rear? Your right that rockauto is cheaper than ecs from akebono pads.

[Z06Corey]

On rock skip the economy section and go to coated or daily driver. Id get the coated rotors so they dont rust up amd stay away from the cheapest in the category. If its a daily driver you'll be fine. If youre tracking the car you may want an upgrade. Also if you are going to order from Rock try to find parts from the same warehouse to save you on shipping. Finally before you check out cross reference the part numbers on Amazon because I've had times where the parts are slightly higher on Amazon but the shipping was free so it was cheaper on Amazon.

[evanb]

What rotors do you recommend for front & rear? Your right that rockauto is cheaper than ecs from akebono pads.

Buy them from FCPEuro and you'll never have to pay for another set.

[Z06Corey]

Buy them from FCPEuro and you'll never have to pay for another set.

What's the deal, lifetime warranty? Even with every pad change? I don't turn rotors, I always get new.

[ns8013]

What's the deal, lifetime warranty? Even with every pad change? I don't turn rotors, I always get new.

Yes, you place an order for a replacement set of pads (and rotors if you need them), then ship your old ones back. When they receive the old set, they credit it against the new order. You can keep doing this using the original order, and they even say right in their FAQ that they don't care if you are racing and burning up parts every weekend, they will stand by their warranty. You can even do this with oil and filters if you want to take it that far, and never pay for another oil change again. The only caveats are that you have to place the new order first and get a refund once they receive parts, and you must still own the car the parts were purchased for. The warranty doesn't transfer to new owners.

My brakes were ridiculously squeaky in the cold this winter, and are making some horrible scraping sound now, so instead of seeing if I can fix them, I'm just going to order rotors and pads from FCPEuro this week and be set.

[dimonblr]

I’ve added steel brake lines in addition to my second set of Akebono pads seems to have brought some of the pedal feel back.

Which lines did you get? I think I may do the same.

[Scaughtedaug]

Which lines did you get? I think I may do the same.

Lines - https://www.ecstuning.com/b-ecs-part...1016-slash-63/

Fluid - https://www.ecstuning.com/b-ate-part...r/type200~ate/

[dimonblr]

Lines - https://www.ecstuning.com/b-ecs-part...1016-slash-63/

Fluid - https://www.ecstuning.com/b-ate-part...r/type200~ate/

thanks

[Waffles_s4]

Am just curious, can I put the Akebonos in the front and some other pads (like the Hawk HPS) in the rear? Am asking because I found the AKebenos front, the rears are out of stock or simply hard to find in Canada.

It would also allow me to compare brake dist, performance, etc I guess.

Anyone tried different pads in front vs rear?

One thing for sure is am not sticking with OEM, my wheels and mags are full of brake dust, which also floats around the calipers btw.

[LeadToRome]

What rotors do you recommend for front & rear? Your right that rockauto is cheaper than ecs from akebono pads.

Buy them from FCPEuro and you'll never have to pay for another set.

What's the deal, lifetime warranty? Even with every pad change? I don't turn rotors, I always get new.

Yes, you place an order for a replacement set of pads (and rotors if you need them), then ship your old ones back. When they receive the old set, they credit it against the new order. You can keep doing this using the original order, and they even say right in their FAQ that they don't care if you are racing and burning up parts every weekend, they will stand by their warranty. You can even do this with oil and filters if you want to take it that far, and never pay for another oil change again. The only caveats are that you have to place the new order first and get a refund once they receive parts, and you must still own the car the parts were purchased for. The warranty doesn't transfer to new owners.

I mean I get it, but they are in business. If rotors are being sent back that just needed to be turned, (or other still-usable parts) how can they afford to stay in business?

*note that if you are going to send them your rotors, you won't have any rotors for a while, so you better buy 2 sets up front. Maybe that's the business model, sell people 2 of everything and hope they sell the car before they get around to wanting the shit replaced.

[Waffles_s4]

^^ I never heard of a tear and wear item having "lifetime" warranty. Its most likely against very specific defects (say immature cracking of rotors) and which are not caused by other factors (like bad pads, or bad installation, extreme weather, etc). Otherwise, they would be out of business in 6 months. Am pretty sure changing your mind would not qualify for returns, nor bad pads causing the rotors unusual defects.

[ns8013]

^^ I never heard of a tear and wear item having "lifetime" warranty. Its most likely against very specific defects (say immature cracking of rotors) and which are not caused by other factors (like bad pads, or bad installation, extreme weather, etc). Otherwise, they would be out of business in 6 months. Am pretty sure changing your mind would not qualify for returns, nor bad pads causing the rotors unusual defects.

You are wrong. They even have videos on YouTube of their returns process, showing the worn out, but otherwise completely fine, parts. The only requirements are that you must have gotten the parts from them originally, can't be the OEM ones off the car or anything, and then you have to place a new order and get a refund against that once they receive the old parts. They literally show returns of used engine oil in the YouTube videos. Believe it or not, but they've been doing it a long time. They say right in their FAQ that you can go racing each weekend with your car and still get the parts replaced, and they don't care if you do the work to install parts yourself, or a mechanic.

[Waffles_s4]

You are wrong. They even have videos on YouTube of their returns process, showing the worn out, but otherwise completely fine, parts. The only requirements are that you must have gotten the parts from them originally, can't be the OEM ones off the car or anything, and then you have to place a new order and get a refund against that once they receive the old parts. They literally show returns of used engine oil in the YouTube videos. Believe it or not, but they've been doing it a long time. They say right in their FAQ that you can go racing each weekend with your car and still get the parts replaced, and they don't care if you do the work to install parts yourself, or a mechanic.

Sorry too good to be true. So I will install pads, rotors, change my oil, spark plugs and track the car daily and they will "just" replace all these parts free of charge for X many times? You do know this is like thousands of dollars per customer? Sure.