Good afternoon,

So I recently bought the Ferodo DS2500 pads for a tracking event. Since the tracking event is over and I have had a chance to really examine these pads, I thought I would post a quickie review. Especially since these pads have some "gotchas" in store for those that buy them.

I chose the Ferodo pads for a couple reasons. First, they were instock and could be sent to me in time for my tracking event. Second, the price was not bad and they were for street and track use. The Ferodo DS3000's are for track use only. The total cost for all four calipers was right around $160.

As for the quality of the pad, it is certainly good. They are well made and very thick. Much thicker than the stock Brembo pads.

Installation was also relatively easy. The Track Brembo system makes it really easy to swap out pads. You do have to "bleed" the calipers because the pads are thicker than stock. To install them, you have to losen the bleeder and squeeze on the pistons. This creates more room for the thicker new pads.

On the track, the pads are amazing. They have a great initial bite and have very little fade. I heated them up to some relatively high temps and the braking force only faded slightly. The sound is definitely quiet for the track and the dusting is minimal. In fact, the dusting is better than stock.

Now the bad news. They take some serious work to "bed in". You have to practically run them on the track. The other option would be to find an empty country highway. Multiple 70 to 5 mph runs are needed. You also have to give some strong brake pressure. Once the pads are in their operating temperature range, they will start to bed in. The other bad news is that the brakes will resonate if they are not properly bedded in. Furthermore, even after bedding, the brakes tend to makes noises. On normal braking, they grind heavily. On slow speed light braking, they resonate and make other unpleasant noises. This is a sign that they are not suited for the street. The temp range is to high for street use.

So, great for the track. However, to noisey and bad for rotors when used on the street for daily driving.

 

Ferodo has a DS3000 pad for the Brembo application now? My next set of track pads will either be the DS3000 (if it's available) or the Cobalt GT-R spec.VR pads...

On a side note, the OEM "Brembo" pads are supposedly made by Ferodo, but I don't know for sure. For the street, I'll be using teh OEM pads since all four corners can be had for $90 shipped.

 

That is also what I had heard. However, I did forget to point something else out. For those that have the OEM Brembos and have not looked at their pads, you might want too. The OEM pads are "feathered" at the edges. From the edges of the pad in, the friction material is beveled. The replacement Ferodos that I have are not feathered at the edges. This in itself increases the braking surface by 10-20% (estimate only).

 

splparts.com sells DS3000 pads.

Quote:

On a side note, the OEM "Brembo" pads are supposedly made by Ferodo, but I don't know for sure. For the street, I'll be using teh OEM pads since all four corners can be had for $90 shipped.

The factory pads have "FERODO" cast into the backing plate.

Anyway, thanks for the review peptidbond. I look forward in trying the DS2500 as well.

Michael.

 

SPLparts.com is where I got mine from. Good service overall.

 

It's good to see different pads being tried out. I've got the Cobalt GT-R spec.VR pads that John was talking about and will try them on the 28th.

I never knew the OEM pads were so cheap! Where can you get them for $90?

 

I found the pads listed on this site: http://www.nissan-auto-parts-dealer.com

I've been looking for a site that sells OEM Nissan parts at wholesale, and this is the best I've found thus far. I ordered my replacement front endlinks for $35 shipped, and the dealer wanted almost $60.

As for the OEM Ferodo pads, mine too are bevelled at the edges, but I suspect this was because I used them for two track weekends and the compound isn't designed to withstand really high temperatures. As a result the compound starts to break down... that's just my theory, I could be wrong though...

chahny, I look forward to hearing your review. Will you be testing them out at the track?

 

When I switched out my OEM pads for a track day, I noticed that the edges were beveled. I thought I read somewhere that it helps reduce noise under light pedal pressure, ie when rolling to a stop.

John: I will be trying them out at Gingerman Raceway, open lapping day, no sessions (that's why I need more than GT-Sports). Did you read the instructions for bedding in the pads? I'll have to find a nice empty stretch of road to be able to build enough heat.

 

The bevels are there to keep down the noise at slow speeds as you suggested. They are not from track events. I have now switch back from the Ferodos to OEM for street use, but I am having another issue. My system is completely bled, but the petal is really soft compared to the Ferodos and before I switched at all. It travels about half way down before full force is achieved. I want the petal to travel about an inch before a good pressure is reached for street stopping. After that, I want it to move no more than another inch before full force is achieved. As it is now, it travels sooo far that I think it is going to the floor. It catches me off guard sometimes. At any rate, any way to reduce petal travel? I know you can do this on other cars. A buddy of mine takes his Durango in every once in a might to have the brakes tightened. It has nothing to do with bleeding. Something else.

 

Not sure if this will help but it's worth a try. Before you put your key into the ignition, pump the brake pedal a couple time. You will feel some resistance in the pedal. Now turn it on and try it out.

This is something I do everytime I swap pads.

btw, saw your post on Gingerman. Glad you liked it and if you ever get the chance, try running it backward!

edit: The previous sentence can sound kinda funny. Try running the course in the opposite direction.

 

Thanks Chahny! However, I learned while bleeding the brakes that your suggestion does not work, at least for me. As soon as I start the car and vacuum comes up, the petal travel is back to what I describe above. I do have a couple ideas. First, I am going to bleed the brakes again just to be safe. After that, I will try your suggestion one more time. Finally, I will adjust the brake input rod to something more desireable for me. I just looked over some service manual pages and I may be falling within spec. I owned a Nissan before and it was kinda the same. Way too much travel to the brake for my taste. By adjusting the input rod, I can set my own travel. Unfortunately, everytime I put on thicker pads I will have to back it off some or else the brakes will be locked up. At any rate, this is why I will try other things first.

As for Gingerman, I would love to run it backwards. I only wish I lived closer. I used to at one time.

 

I haven't read the bedding instructions, but I did ride around the Glen in my friend's ITR when he was bedding the GTR spec.VR pads. The car vibrated heavily as he was getting the pad transfer off, and it took about 2.5 laps before the pad had seated to the rotor. But once the break in was complete, my god those things performed. I can only imagine how well they'll work on the Brembo application...

 

Figured out my soft brake issue. I won't go into details, but essentially it comes down to bleeding. By the way, a 20' vinyl hose from Home Depot is a great way to bleed brakes. My fluid is brand new, so I hooked one end to the caliper and the other went right into the reservoir. That way, I could just cycle the fluid through the system and not have to worry about a catch tank or topping off the reservoir. Don't do this if your fluid is old. Just replace it.

 

Thanks for the write-up, I always wondered about those pads. I ran the DS3000 on my Type R at Lime Rock and on the street for a little while (!). They were amazing on the track, never a hint of fade. Noisy and dusty as heck on the street though, they came off after a week. I contemplated the DS2500 for street use on my Z but after reading this, I think I may go with one of the Cobalt Friction compounds or Axxis Ultimates. The DS2500 sound a little more agressive than my Porterfield R4-S pads for use on the street.

 

Hunter, I seriously hope you are kidding.


NEVER/NEVER/NEVER reuse brake fluid. I also question adding air to the reservoir fluid?

Stopping matters.......not a place to cut corners.

BTW, I use Home Depot hose too. BUT, I put it into an old plastic Coke bottle, to be disposed of. S H I T, I use over a quart of new fluid when I bleed between track events.

Being a hard A S S, SAFETY FIRST: PLEASE re-bleed with all new fluid.

I'm too lazy to find links to validate my opinion, but, PLEASE, trust me on this!

 

You've already mentioned bleeding further down in which you probably found a SH|TLOAD of air in the system, so I won't go into that.

I have installed my own StopTech system and ran a total of four different pads on my car so far. I've changed my pads back and forth more times this summer than most people do in a lifetime. What you need to understand beyond the importance of a good and thorough bleeding is that different pads have a distinct initial bite, different coefficient of friction and can be either linear or progressive in clamping force. Of course your street pads aren't going to feel like the Ferodos. That's due to a different intial bite and C of F. Progressive pads grab harder the more pedal you apply. Linear pads have a consistent C of F and will feel weaker than a track pad with an aggresive compound.

Do yourself a huge favor and learn all that you can about pads, fluids and brakes in general. Like EnthuZ said, you CANNOT afford to **** around with your braking system and compromise it's integrity.

 

EnthuZ,

Your comments certainly make sense. However, the fluid was essentially new. I had completely swapped out the fluid on day one. Then I noticed the squishy feeling. The only reason that air got back in the system was because my neighbor (a chatty bastard) destracted me while bleeding. On the next day, I was not going to totally replace the fluid. It was less than 24 hours old at that point. Now, if it were any older, I would have completely replaced it. However, I consider 24 hours young enough to keep. Anyhow, I was almost out of new fluid. Furthermore, the new fluid I did have had only been openned once or twice and was kept in a metal bottle. It should be safe from water absorbtion.

As for putting air in the reservoir, I am not sure what you mean. When I ran the line from the caliper to the reservoir, the line filled with fluid before I placed in the reservoir. So, there was no air bubbling through the fluid in the reservoir. Any bubbling would have increased the water in the fluid, so I avoided this intentionally.

Droideka,

Great comments on the different pad types. I will certainly keep this in mind. Given the way the stock pads feel, I presume the are progressive. The problem I was trying to solve was the petal travel before initial bite. It seemed to go way too far. After the full bleed I mentioned above, that travel was greatly reduced. Thanks to your comments, I now know that after the initial bite, the travel is going to be long with progressive pads. Consequently, I am considering yet another set of pads for the street that are linear.

Thanks everyone. The good news is that my brakes are fine. In addition, as I mentioned above, the Ferodo's are great on the track.

 

Anybody here use the Cobalt GT-sport? Is so, how is it?

thanx