brake pad/shoe reviews

eyeballs said:

In my recent quest to get a stoptech pad on my car (I loved the last 2 sets I used on other cars) I spoke to a super helpful dude at centric who figured out a fiesta pad should fit, even though it's a bit thicker. Part number is 309.14540. I'm going to order it and I'll update with fitment results.

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Took awhile to get the pads. Got them in and bedded this morning. PERFECT FIT. Not sure if the 24 degree ambient temp contributed, but I could not get even a hint of fade on the street (at least 8 "stops" from 60-80, no traffic). Ever so slightly less initial bite compared to OE but still feel great and easier threshold braking. Not much dust, but may be too early to tell. They occasionally squeak slightly when coming to a stop (with no anti-squeal on them). Loving them so far.

update (12/25/15): after 6 hours of driving yesterday (epic kayaking in alabama!) I have noticed no more squealing. Even in normal driving, I prefer the feel of these to the OE pads (though it's close, I really like the stock pads).

I find that once the corksports are warmed up after a hard stop, they brake very hard and consistent. That first brake is pretty bad though and they do seem to cool off quite quickly when not on them constantly

Well I just ordered a set of Carbotech AX6 pads. So review will be coming in a month or so whenever they arrive with all the other things to be installed at the same time(wheel studs, rotors, stainless lines).

http://www.mazdas247.com/forum/showthread.php?123854793-Review-Carbotech-AX6-front-brake-pads

And there's my AX6 pad review as promised for future reference in this thread.

So, I have been using the Hawk 5.0 pads for just about a year already and it is pretty much the best all around pads I have ever had. I had hawks hps and hp+ for 10 years in my rx7s and they dust and squeal. The hawk 5.0 pads does dust a little bit but its not to where after a track event the rims are covered like with the HP+, it takes months for dust to cover my rims in brake dust. I put in 16000 miles on the hawk 5.0 and I have never felt brake fade at all, either from emergency stopping on the highway from 80mph or continuous hard braking at NJMP or autox. I have autox with the stock pads and holy crap do they fade quick at the track with hard braking. I have driven it in temps as low as 5f up in Lake Placid through snow and the initial bite at that temp is good, not great as if it was a 80f day but it saved me from many minor fender benders in the snow. They do not squeal at all compared to the HPS and HP+. In a year of driving, I haven't heard a single noise coming from the pads when braking.

I have many friends who drove my car and always their first reaction is the initial bite of the brakes. They would go and brake and the pads would bite very hard.

I dont know how the hawk 5.0 is on heavier cars but on the Mazda 2, to me it is the best. But then again, the only other pad I used in the mazda 2 was the stockers...thats not much to go with lol. Would be nice to get a comparison with other pads, but who has money like that I feel that the Hawks 5.0 is a better pad than the HPS considering they are at the same price point

One thing I do hate though, the pads bite is hard to where you can lock up the front and kick in the abs. I have bfg sport comp 2 as my daily spring/summer/fall tire, the tires seems to be the weak link in my car for the brake system lol I will have to see how they handle the BFG Rival S tomorrow when I install a set.

Rotaryknight said:

So, I have been using the Hawk 5.0 pads for just about a year already and it is pretty much the best all around pads I have ever had. I had hawks hps and hp+ for 10 years in my rx7s and they dust and squeal. The hawk 5.0 pads does dust a little bit but its not to where after a track event the rims are covered like with the HP+, it takes months for dust to cover my rims in brake dust. I put in 16000 miles on the hawk 5.0 and I have never felt brake fade at all, either from emergency stopping on the highway from 80mph or continuous hard braking at NJMP or autox. I have autox with the stock pads and holy crap do they fade quick at the track with hard braking. I have driven it in temps as low as 5f up in Lake Placid through snow and the initial bite at that temp is good, not great as if it was a 80f day but it saved me from many minor fender benders in the snow. They do not squeal at all compared to the HPS and HP+. In a year of driving, I haven't heard a single noise coming from the pads when braking.

I have many friends who drove my car and always their first reaction is the initial bite of the brakes. They would go and brake and the pads would bite very hard.

I dont know how the hawk 5.0 is on heavier cars but on the Mazda 2, to me it is the best. But then again, the only other pad I used in the mazda 2 was the stockers...thats not much to go with lol. Would be nice to get a comparison with other pads, but who has money like that I feel that the Hawks 5.0 is a better pad than the HPS considering they are at the same price point

One thing I do hate though, the pads bite is hard to where you can lock up the front and kick in the abs. I have bfg sport comp 2 as my daily spring/summer/fall tire, the tires seems to be the weak link in my car for the brake system lol I will have to see how they handle the BFG Rival S tomorrow when I install a set.

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Check out my thread on the AX6 review... specifically the part about me adjusting the brake switch to change the way the initial bite feels. It may be applicable to the HPS 5.0 as well. The AX6s went from untame-able to pretty awesome and still great bite as far as braking performance goes.

Those pads sound pretty awesome... I may give those a shot next time.

Another stoptech update: I did a track night event at Atlanta Motorsports Park last week. Tires were 205 neogens. No brake ducting. 3 x 20 min sessions. Brakes were firm and predictable the whole time with no abs issues. Cornering grip was a different story, unfortunately. I guess you can't ask too much of m+s rated tires. I did pass a couple 944's though.