Your results with the Bobcat pads???

Well there are mixed reviews on the Bobcats it seems, and I'm wondering how much method of install and bedding has had to do with your results...

 

1) Did you install with all OE brake shims and anti squeal compound?

 

2) Did you have your rotors "turned" as Carbotech suggests (I believe this is the worst thing you can do to a rotor BTW)

 

3) Did you follow the suggested bedding procedure?

 

I personally refuse to turn rotors as it removes precious heat dispersing mass from them. If they are warped, I just replace them. However, Carbotech suggests this due to the compound they use. I just wonder how many people have not turned their rotors, and have had no problems with the Bobcat compound.

I had the Bobcat's, on new 2pc rotors, and I had the squeak/squeal, but only after bedding them in. When I first put them in they were quiet, but afterwards they were horrible. At any speed below 35mph or so, if any of the windows were open you would clearly hear the ceramic pads. And this was when you weren't touching the brakes just driving around, and when you applied the brakes ever so slightly it went away. I removed and tried regreasing, removing shims, but to no avail.

 

I couldn't handle this, and I just sold them at a loss! I instead picked up a set of Ferodo DS2500 club sport pads, and I absolutely love them!

 

Note: In case I didn't mention it before, I have the STI Brembo's, so Ferodo might not have a Legacy GT fitment avaliable yet. But the Bobcat compound is the same, so my comments & experience should directly apply.

Yes, Ferodo DS 2500 pads are my all time favorite street pads... however, there is no fitment for the GT yet.

I voted on the poll but I didn't use anti-seize on the pads, I used anti-seize on the bolts. I simply took my old pads off and put the new pads on, I didn't even put on anti-squeal on the pads.

 

5000 miles were on the odo when I did this.

 

6000 miles now, no issues.

 

Kelly

I worked on the brakes with edmundu for my car...we applied anti-squeal solution, to the OE shims. Once I bed the brakes in, it was driving me insane!!! So, I took everything apart, took off the OE shims/backing plates, and redid everything yesterday. So far, no more squeal...and I am hoping that it stays that way. I do hear a little bit, when coming to a full stop, from an already slow speed...as in when parking in my parking spot at home/work. But, now I can open the windows, and it's not an issue...so, again, hoping that it stays that way.

Damn, I ment anti-squeal in the poll!

At 8500 miles, I had bad brake vibrations caused by deposits from the OEM pads onto the rotors.

Took my Bobcats to the dealer, and they lightly turned the rotors to remove uneven buildups, and installed the Bobcats.

I bedded them per the instructions. No problems, no squeals after 1500 miles of hard commuting that involves 100 miles a day with everything from mountain two lanes to suburban gridlock.

 

Other than having to warm them up a bit in the mornings, I really love these new pads.

OK I installed the Bobcats at all four corners this passed week... the car had about 3200 miles on it with no issues other than the OE pads are no better than blocks of wood!

 

I swapped pads, reusing BOTH OE metal shims, and cheap Auto Zone anti-squeal in the little gray packets. Took the car out, and did the bed in procedure as per the enclosed instructions, except drove the car on the Hwy for about 20 mins to pick up the kids at school after the last 60-30. No squeaks, no issues... just good solid progressive stopping. They are MUCH better than OE... MUCH, MUCH better. Granted, they are no Ferodo DS 2500's, but I felt the OE pads were border line unsafe for a car of this weight.

 

The car is the wife's daily driver, and along with the TechniFit brake lines (another issue for another thread), and ATE Super Blue Brake fluid, the brakes feel much closer to what my stock Evo brakes felt like. Very confidence inspiring requiring much less effort and travel on the brake pedal. Solid is the word I would use. Granted, the car will probably never see a track day, but this is the way it should be straight from the factory. It is no track star, but definitely up above my personal minimum requirements for street brakes.

 

Now putting aside conventional wisdom... NEVER, EVER, NEVER "cut" or "resurface" rotors. If rotors are bad, they are bad and need to be replaced. 95% of what people perceive as "warped rotors" is nothing more than uneven pad transfer on the friction surface. Usually this can be removed with a few moderately hard applications of the bakes down to say 30mph or so... but NOT stopping, and then continuing on long enough to allow the rotors to properly cool. Stop Tech has a real good article about this on their wedsite. If you don't know, you should read it.

 

All in all, I think the Bobcats are a decent street pad for Average Joe. If you beat your brakes relentlessly everyday as I do on the Evo, you might want to look at other alternatives. For now, these will be just fine for the wife's purposes, and my mind is set at ease now that she has what I consider acceptable performing brakes now.

Blocks of wood would probably have a better frictional coefficent

 

Seriosly though... Blocks of wood on cast iron has a higher coefficent of friction than our stock pads... Furreal...

 

http://www.roymech.co.uk/Useful_Tables/Tribology/co_of_frict.htm

 

Wood on Metals(Clean) Coefficent: 0.2-0.6

 

Stock pads are 0.3

For another time, I do have a story of a friend of mine resurrecting a Porsche 914 from the junkyard with a VW bug engine and literally cut out blocks of wood for break pads... and they worked... and the caught fire... more than once.

 

Of course this was in the early to mid-eighties...

I bought the carbotechs for my fronts and saved money with Axxis pads in the rear,..the Axxis squeal and are very dusty,...

I added my input as "have squeal" although to qualify it, it is very minor, and only at parking lot speeds with light brake application. The performance of these pads is very much worth a little squeal under the above circumstances. It's hard to describe how much better the car stops with these pads if you haven't experienced it...

Thanks for the input...

 

I need a mod to change the polls choices to read "anti-squeal" instead of "anti-seize".

I bought the carbotechs for my fronts and saved money with Axxis pads in the rear,..the Axxis squeal and are very dusty,...

 

Thus, why I went with the rear bobcats as well. I had the Axxis ultimates on the WRX, with stoptech rotors, and they were like HELL!

 

The bobcats have quieted down a lot, for me anyway, and now, I can only hear them at slow speeds...ala rodan's comments.

 

Yes, they do feel MUCH better, when slowing down...just have to be a little more careful with the RE-92's on all corners...as those start to screech, more than the breaks!

 

One thing I did notice...when I stop from say 60 to 20-30, it takes a second or two for the tranny to catch up...so you might want to try rev-matching, to get back into gear, and going again...otherwise, serious clutch-stink!