Ahhh The Feel Of New Brakes

[branshew]

Just replaced both front and rear sets of brakes today and flushed & filled the fluid. I used PBR's Deluxe Premium Organic pads. So far they have a great feel, impressive stopping power, and no noise. They should be relatively dust free as well.

I called around to several parts suppliers and nobody had anything in stock for a '93 LS. I finally found them at BAP/Geon. Two sets for the price of one at the dealership. I'll give you an update in a few weeks after I wear them in a little more.

[flash213]

hey branshew, be sure to post how those pads go. The one area I m really unhappy with the LS so far is the brakes. I checked the fronts the other day and there was like 80% left on the pad. They just doesnt feel that strong. Did you have Toyota pads on before? Thanks.

[SRK]

I just installed Lexus (Toyota box) OEM pads on my 92 LS this morning. They are a slightly different looking compound than the pads that came out, which are also Toyota. The brake feel is great, quiet, good power right from the get go. Not that expensive either.

The parts guy who I know somewhat said that the pad materials tend to change as Toyota Lexus refine them over the years, so a pad for a 92 will be different this year than the year the car was built. That seems to be the case. Certainly I am pleased with the price and the performance.

[branshew]

hey branshew, be sure to post how those pads go. The one area I m really unhappy with the LS so far is the brakes. I checked the fronts the other day and there was like 80% left on the pad. They just doesnt feel that strong. Did you have Toyota pads on before? Thanks.

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My others were OEM Lexus, but they had worn very thin. They had decent stopping power, but they created a lot of dust. The LS is a heavy car and needs good brakes to stop it. I'll provide an update in afew weeks after I break in the pads some more and use them in various conditions.

If anyone can elaborate some more on the different brake pad options I would like to hear it. I found organic, semi-metallic and ceramic options for the LS. I was advised to go w/ the organics by several people. I think the OEM pads were semi-metallic but I'm not 100% sure, and I didn't think that the rotors were designed for ceramic pads. I'd be interested to know more about the primary differences and what one should consider when looking at the different material options.

[SRK]

OEM Lexus pads are metallic. Organic pads are nowadays mostly used by the franchise brake shops to get a lower selling price, and are not advisable. Ceramic pads work very well, and I have upgraded many types of cars to them. I have also used carbon-metallic with great results. Depending on who you speak to, the rotor wear is either increased or decreased......I find that rotors wear anyways, and it is not a concern. Brake dust is, and there is no predicting which pad will produce what - you just have to try them. European factory pads - Volvo, Mercedes, BMW, seem to produce the most dust as they are very soft. The Japanese OEM's make very hard pads that appear to produce less, and wear for a long time.

[akewlguy]

I know my metalic squeal all the time. It is such a bummer.

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

Cheers to LEXUS!

[wwest]

I don't understand, completely...

When I buy brake pads I ask for the most aggressive pad material available. By aggressive I mean I want the damn things to "EAT ROTORS FOR LUNCH!"

I NEVER want to buy brake pads that have a lifetime warranty.

The dust free issue....

The frictional material on the pad will wear away, it must!

There are only two ways that can happen, dust or gas. If gas is the result of wear then your braking will be poor due to the gas boundary layer between the pad and the rotor.

I'll take dust any day, I may have to clean my wheel more often but at least I'll be around to do it.

If the pads I use are deemed too aggressive by some of you due to excessive pad or rotor wear then so be it.

You can often reduce the squealing by chamferring both the leading and trailing edges of the pads.

[GRAND_LS 4]

I found the stock pads to work best. Not sure if they are the same ones offered for the first gens, but they have great stopping power, as well as providing a squeek and dust free operation (knock on wood).

[GRAND_LS 4]

hey branshew, be sure to post how those pads go. The one area I m really unhappy with the LS so far is the brakes. I checked the fronts the other day and there was like 80% left on the pad. They just doesnt feel that strong. Did you have Toyota pads on before? Thanks.

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Are they stock pads? If they are, then are you sure the POWER is not adequate, or the FEEL?

I have to admit, they are spongy, but when you slam it, they stop better then any other car I know, thanks to the 4 piston calipers. A lot of Lexus owners, and supra owners upgrade to the 95+ LS brakes. You can improve the feel by changing the steal lines to the breaks.

[flash213]

There are spongy but its the stopping power im unimpressed by. Im coming over from a benz which would stop on a dime, which youd have to pick up to help pay for maintence. Recently alomst ran a red light , I STOOD on the brakes and just didnt get what I thought I would from the brakes. I am going to change the brake fluid soon maybe this well help some but I think I need to improve somewhere in the system. I look into the steel lines. Thanks.

[VBdenny]

I bite the bullet and buy factory stock pads only, I know what you mean about dust issues and it isn't worth it to me to use aftermarket. I put new pads on my mothers Camry last week, $56 at the dealer for pads. 45 minutes to drive and get the pads, 25 minutes install. Toyotas are great to work on.

[JIBBBY]

You really want to be impressed pick up a set of good condition 1993-1995 supra turbo front 4 piston calipers and slap those on your lexus night and day comparision to the stock 2 pistion front calipers. I just put them on my sc400 putting out 500hp and boy did I need them for braking at high speeds. I also put the new pads and cross drilled rotors on this car and now stops on a dime. Picked up these new calipers on ebay for $350 painted red with a lexus decal. I am very impressed and they are selling more.

[TexasLexus94]

I learned the hard way that cheap pads are not worth the problems. I installed new rotors and cheap Raybestos pads from Rockauto.com. After installation, I pulled into Wendy's drive through, and thought I was a squealing city bus! I replaced the new pads with the old OEM's, and all the noise went away. Just have to worry about pad thickness, but I've learned my lesson-Use OEM, and stop being such a cheapskate.

[hammo400]

I gotta say to wwest that you ON'T want your pads to "EAT ROTORS FOR LUNCH" . At $750.00 for a full brake job with rotor replacement, it's a helluva expensive lunch ! If you DO want rotors for lunch. use ceramic pads on your Lexus. They will heat the rotors up too red hot until they warp (Yeah! Similar to night pix you see of F1 cars )= vibration = replacement. Bon Appetit!

Best pads for my 98 LS are semi-metallic after market pads from Wagner ( www.rockauto.com). Good for 50K, $20/pair, low dust and great stopping power.

I'm changing the fluid in my reservoir this weekend, but asked at the dealership and they said they don't do brake flushes. Probably because of the hardware /software needed to properly bleed the ABS valves. May not be worth their time. If they were to drain/fill the brake reservoir, they'd charge $80 - I'll do it myself with Castrol Dot 3.

[lsrxlex]

You really want to be impressed pick up a set of good condition 1993-1995 supra turbo front 4 piston calipers and slap those on your lexus night and day comparision to the stock 2 pistion front calipers.  I just put them on my sc400 putting out 500hp and boy did I need them for braking at high speeds.  I also put the new pads and cross drilled rotors on this car and now stops on a dime.  Picked up these new calipers on ebay for $350 painted red with a lexus decal.  I am very impressed and they are selling more.

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Jibbby, I have a 1990 LS (with all OEM brakes system and 15" wheels) and I just want to improve the braking power. Do you think the 93-95 Supra turbo calipers will fit on my car?

Thanks.