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Ferodo Premier Brake Pads Long Term Test – Part 1 2013.4.29

This month we decided to try out some low-cost brake pads from a mainstream manufacturer. We have been using performance brake pads for so long we wanted to make sure we were still getting value for money.

We stopped using OEM replacement pads years ago. The pads would fade in what felt like an instant and the life of the pads was far too short for our liking. Paying double the price for a set of performance brake pads was well worth the extra investment. We could go over a year between brake pads changes and we had a pad that was up to the job when we were on track or in the mountains.

Over the past few years we have used a carbon fibre based pad from Roesch. These pads are awesome.

We have never been able to fade these pads even when they have been smoking badly and the brake feel has always been absolutely lovely.

The only slight downside with Roesch pads was that they lacked a bit of bite when they are cold but after a couple of applications they would be working perfectly.

So, this time instead of replacing the Roesch brake pads with another set, we thought we would try out a set of Ferodo Premier brakes pads to see what the difference was and to see if OEM replacement brake pads were still as bad as they used to be.

To give an idea of the price difference.

We get our Roesch brake pads from Street & Circuit in Greece and they cost 150Euro for a set. Ferodo Premier brake pads for the same car cost only 40Euro, again from Street & Circuit.

How will we judge if this is a successful test?

There are two main parameters we measure a brake pad by.

The first is service life. We need the Premier pad to last at least 6 months.

The second parameter is stamina. We do not expect the Ferodo Premier brake pad to be anywhere near as good as the Roesch but we do expect the pad to withstand modest punishment without any sign of brake fade. Modest punishment being able to descend a 500m pass without any brake problems.

So we need the pads to last 6 months and give no brake fade under moderate use.

Bedding in and fitting.

As the title says this is part one. And for this part we are covering fitting and bedding in.

The pads come in a nice strong box and the brake pads themselves look to be of a high quality. We wont put up the actual photos of the pads but if you want to see what Ferodo Premier brake pads look like check out this Google search.

Fitting was a cinch.

The Ferodo pads did seem more of a struggle to fit than the Roesch, it is possible they are a few mm thicker.

The springs on the top of the Ferodo brake pads (to brace them in the caliper) seem slightly weaker than the Roesch carbon pads. The caliper needed a good shove to put back into place with the Roesch, the Premier pads went back in much easier.

So we have put 50 miles on the Ferodo Premier pads.

Stand out features?

Cold bite. The pads are much better than the Roesch from cold. We have not noticed any difference in the braking power of the pads between hot and hold as yet.

Noise? The pads do squeal slightly occasionally. Nothing that would annoy in our opinion.

We did not change the discs when we fitted the Ferodo pads so we were surprised that the pads stopped so well right from the off. As they bed in we expect the pads to get better and better.

Worries?

The pads are excellent from cold. This makes us worry about their hot performance. A pad that bites well when cold usually overheats when it is hot but we have not had the Ferodo pads on the car long enough yet to make a judgment.

So whats next in the test?

More miles for sure. We will write another article in a few months. By then we will no how the pads do when they are fully bedded in and by then we will also know how they do under moderate abuse.

Stay tuned for the next installment.

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This page was last modified Jun 24, 2018 @ 5:38 pm

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