God the brake dust is mental!

[Das Stig]

The used car dealer I bought the GLE from probably had to replace the pads in my newest acquisition because they're all very thick, but they've obviously replaced them with OE pads and by god the amount of dusting is ludicrous!

I take it that VW source their pads from the same place BMW do then? These OE pads are then chewing through the rotors like nobody's business aren't they? Even without that downside, I'm going to have to replace them soon because I refuse to wash the wheels every week.

ANyone got any recommendations for cleaner, non-dusting pads? Don't need any special race or track pads. The car is an auto. Just for street use. I just want something that will stop the car quietly and with much less dusting than the OE pads.

[h100vw]

If you didn't get that car from a VW dealer, I'd stunned if they fitted VW pads. I don't think the OE pads are that bad for dust.

I had EBC greenstuff in my Audi. They lasted well but I would say they were dust free. I did have dark wheels though and that masked lots of the dirt.

I wouldn't say that the discs are being chewed because of the amount of dust being produced. OE discs and pads last for ages in my experience.

Gavin

[maca]

The used car dealer I bought the GLE from probably had to replace the pads in my newest acquisition because they're all very thick, but they've obviously replaced them with OE pads and by god the amount of dusting is ludicrous!

I take it that VW source their pads from the same place BMW do then? These OE pads are then chewing through the rotors like nobody's business aren't they? Even without that downside, I'm going to have to replace them soon because I refuse to wash the wheels every week.

ANyone got any recommendations for cleaner, non-dusting pads? Don't need any special race or track pads. The car is an auto. Just for street use. I just want something that will stop the car quietly and with much less dusting than the OE pads.

I've heard that using white brake pads does the trick to avoid brake dust... I'd like to try it though because cleaning your wheels can be a real annoyance!

[Oneofthegreats]

I don't think the OE pads are that bad for dust.

VW, BMW & Merc. would have to be the worst car's for brake dust bar none. Especially what I've seen & what I see everyday!

The brake dust is that bad, that if left for a period of time, it will eat through the clear coat & pit the rim surface.

BMW use to have to replace a fair share of rim's under warranty for this reason.

My mk1 with genuine pad's have already eaten through the clear coat on my Ronal R8's & have started to pit my Porsche rim's!

[Preen59]

Its because of a couple of reasons..

Euro cars run soft pads and discs, because it makes the brakes far more efficient. Unfortunately, this also makes them wear and of course, create dust.

The dust is, among other things, carbon. This is because they are not allowed to use asbestos in brake pads anymore (for obvious reasons), and so they use carbon based materials instead. This is why older cars never used to be as bad.

[Jmac]

All above is correct but if you want to have less dust i suggest you buy Bendix GCTs (General Ceramic Technology) i have fitted them to my mates Bimmer and dust free , still chew the rotors though but thats a given.
Cheers

[gareth_oau]

stig, stop yr whining. ive got brembo 6 potters on my other beast, and I cant even get to the end of the driveway before the rims are black.

suugestion for you - take yr car to a car wash and for $2 you can do a quick pressure clean of all the rims only.

[Das Stig]

If you didn't get that car from a VW dealer, I'd stunned if they fitted VW pads.

Agreed. The car was traded by John Hughes Skipper VW in Vic Park, but (and I'm guessing now) it was too old for them to put on their own used lot, so it was shifted onto another independent used car dealer from whom I bought it. Maybe it spent a little bit of time on the John Hughes lot. Long enough to have the pads replaced. If Skipper VW did that work, then they would have used the VW pads they have in stock.

The other thing I don't like about the OE pads is that they're simply too good for smooth stopping from very slow speeds such as I have to endure daily in traffic here. Feathering the pedal just before coming to a complete stop for that non-jerking halt, just causes a horrible vibration and shuddering of the discs as they stop rotating under very light pedal pressure. Great for the autobahn and the track, less so for the traffic lights and peak-hour tailbacks. Unfortunately I have to spend a lot more time in the later than the former.

suugestion for you - take yr car to a car wash and for $2 you can do a quick pressure clean of all the rims only.

Yeah actually that's exactly what I want to avoid. I have my own pressure washer and know from experience that blasting painted alloys with it every week is going to cost me a lot of money down at Alliance Rim Repairs in resprays. No thanks.

[bujna]

The used car dealer I bought the GLE from probably had to replace the pads in my newest acquisition because they're all very thick, but they've obviously replaced them with OE pads and by god the amount of dusting is ludicrous!

I take it that VW source their pads from the same place BMW do then? These OE pads are then chewing through the rotors like nobody's business aren't they? Even without that downside, I'm going to have to replace them soon because I refuse to wash the wheels every week.

I thought that more dust equalled less rotor wear, as the pads are softer....

[Das Stig]

I thought that more dust equalled less rotor wear, as the pads are softer....

Conventional logic tells you that yes, but in practice it doesn't work like that. At least with BMW pads it doesn't. I am only assuming the same is true with VW pads. With the abolition of asbestos, the pad makers increased the amount of metal particles in the friction material to carry the heat away. That makes them very hard and very abrasive. To combat that, they made the fibrous friction material softer to get back the nice progrssive pedal feel again.

So you end up with a pad that produces a lot of dust very quickly with soft fibrous/carbon friction material which also gouges the crap out of the rotors because of the metallic particles in it.

In the case of BMW it equates to a set of rotors for every two sets of pads and endless amounts of wheel washing. The pads are not hugely expensive, but by god the rotors are. It's a $2,000+ job each time.

[Oneofthegreats]

In the case of BMW it equates to a set of rotors for every two sets of pads and endless amounts of wheel washing. The pads are not hugely expensive, but by god the rotors are. It's a $2,000+ job each time.

Who say's it's a $2000 job each time?

The only rotor's I know of that are $1K eac are the current M5's. The pad's are $750+

Not even the E46 M3 front brakes were that dear!

[Das Stig]

Who say's it's a $2000 job each time?

Auto Classic do. Mind you, the way Auto Classic charge, just taking your car in and asking them to look at it will get you a bill for almost $2,000!

The only rotor's I know of that are $1K eac are the current M5's. The pad's are $750+

There are four brakes on most cars, not two.

[dubbed]

Just for the record, EBC Greenstuff are bad for dust. My wheels are dirty within a week.

[gareth_oau]

Just for the record, EBC Greenstuff are bad for dust. My wheels are dirty within a week.

Ive got EBC greenstuff on mine and I dont think theyre a problem at all.

heaps better than my brembos

[DaveMack]

I've got EBC Greens as well ... haven't noticed any reduction in dust.

Dave