Top 15 brake pad manufacturers

Brake pads are an important element of the chassis, allowing you to slow down the movement of the car by adjusting the pressing force to the brake drum or disc and creating additional resistance on the shaft. Not only the braking performance parameters, but also the driver’s safety depend on the correct selection of this consumable.

The constant demand for brake pads has provoked an unreasonable growth in the number of manufacturing companies producing a product for all price segments (from budget to premium). To determine the choice of a single and good model, it becomes almost impossible here, and consumers have to determine the quality of consumables empirically. To minimize the risk of acquiring low-quality goods, the expert.bigbadmole.com/en/en/ magazine team selected for you the 15 best brake pad manufacturers, whose products are recommended by a wide range of experts and experienced car owners.

How to choose brake pads

The specificity of the choice of high-quality brake pads is to determine the six main parameters that will help find a high-quality, original product and identify it among low-grade fakes:

1. Preferred driving zones. It is very important at the first stage to clearly understand where and under what conditions your car will be used: in a mountainous, hilly or flat terrain, in a warm or mostly cold climate, with high humidity or aridity. It is also important to understand your own requirements for quality and comfort of use, for which you need to take into account the specifics of your own style of driving (measured or aggressive driving), and whether you agree to put up with small creaks of the pads as they are used.
2. Type of pads. When the first stage no longer raises personal questions, you should proceed to the selection of the type of brake pads. All of them are divided into four distinct groups:
3. Semi-metal (composite) - pads, the composition of which includes up to 65% of metal powder (iron or copper) mixed with graphite, inorganic materials and friction modifiers as a binder component. They are distinguished by a high degree of durability, but at the same time increased wear, noise and instability in operation at low temperatures. They are optimal for everyday tasks, but under high loads (riding in the mountains or towing a trailer) will be ineffective.
4. Organic (nonasbestos) - brake pads created on the basis of rubber, glass, carbon or Kevlar fibers. As a binder material they use high-temperature resin that can withstand significant thermal drops. These pads are very soft when braking, less noisy, but they give a lot of dust and wear out quickly. It is advisable to use them as a "light" replacement for semi-metallic models.
5. Metallic - very rough and at the same time expensive brake pads, characterized by high performance when braking in difficult conditions.They have a serious negative impact on the metal of the brake drum or discs, producing their resource together with their own. However, they will be indispensable where heavy towing work is required or the climate does not allow the use of other types of shoes.
6. Ceramic - even more expensive, but the most wear-resistant pads at the current time. They were created specifically for brake mechanisms operating in conditions of abnormally high temperatures, and came to the market straight from motor racing.
7. Cost of. Unlike other spare parts, in the brake pad segment, this parameter depends on the category of delivery. The first category belongs to products that go straight to the automaker conveyors (the so-called O.E.). The second is for those who export products to the retail market (aftermarket). Third, and the cheapest, are developed according to the standards of the country where their delivery is planned. Determining such pads is easy - just look at the specification and see what standards the company relied on when developing them.
8. Operating temperature. An important criterion, information about which is available in an accessible form in the accompanying product instructions. In general, for driving around the city or highway (highway) fit pads, the operating temperature of which will lie in the range of 250-350 ° C. But for the normal operation of sports cars, you should choose brake pads that can withstand from 800 ° C.
9. If you are the driver of an ordinary sedan or a family hatchback, then you should not spend money and buy pads for sports cars. Yes, the durability of such models is much higher than the standard ones, however, the performance, sharpened under difficult operating conditions, is unlikely to fully manifest.
10. Friction coefficient. A criterion that strongly influences the braking dynamics and depends on the quality of the pads. So, for standard production pads, the friction coefficient can be 0.3-0.5; for high-quality (O.E.) - 0.35-0.5; for the aftermarket segment - 0.25-0.35. In general, the higher the figure, the better, but in the case of overheating, a block with a higher friction coefficient will restore its performance much longer.
11. No mechanical damage pads, appearance and packaging packaging. The purchased product should not have obvious technical flaws, such as chips, cracks, bruise and curvature of the metal part, as well as defects of the friction linings. The same applies to the packaging box, the tidiness of which should reflect the very essence of the acquisition of quality goods. In addition, a sign of compliance with ECE R90 standards must be indicated on it, and inside, in addition to the pad itself, accompanying documentation (instruction, delivery note, etc.) is contained.

Rating of the best brake pad manufacturers

Nomination	a place	manufacturer	rating
Top brake pad manufacturers for aggressive driving	1	ATe	4.9
	2	Brembo	4.8
	3	Otto zimmermann	4.8
	4	Ferodo	4.7
The best brake pad manufacturers in terms of price / quality ratio	1	TRW	4.9
	2	Akebono	4.8
	3	Jurid / Bendix	4.8
	4	Sangshin	4.7
	5	Hella pagid	4.7
	6	Allied nippon	4.7
	7	TEXTAR	4.6
	8	Nisshinbo	4.5
The best low-cost brake pad manufacturers	1	Sts	4.7
	2	Rosdot	4.4
	3	EZATI	4.1

Top brake pad manufacturers for aggressive driving

ATe

Rating: 4.9

The first place goes to the ranking of the old German company ATE, whose history began in 1958. However, during this time the concept of producing brake equipment has not changed much: with the inherent burden of creating everything perfect, the Germans continue to develop (the company is constantly at the development stage) its own technical and technological capabilities. It turns out well: at least in Russia, their pads were to consumers.

The characteristic difference from other companies in ATE is adherence to the use of hard alloys with alloying with titanium, chromium, nickel and cobalt.In some cases, this could lead to very rapid wear of the brake discs, but German engineers have foreseen this nuance, having optimally worked out a pair of friction to reduce the intensity of abrasive wear. But perhaps the most important representative of the company is still a line of ceramic pads, produced specifically for installation on sports cars and premium cars.

Brembo

Rating: 4.8

The only representative of Italy in the ranking, specializing in the development of brake pads and discs for elite sports and industrial sports cars. It is the title supplier of consumables for Ferrari production lines.

It is reliably known that at the time of this writing, the Brembo block catalog contained more than 1.5 thousand models that had been homologated according to ECE R90 - the main world quality standard. Under the style of aggressive driving in this compilation almost half of the developments fit in, but in more detail we will focus on the new Brembo Xtra concept. The fact is that these pads were made specifically for lovers of sports driving while maintaining comfort and safety. The basis of the friction linings is a composite material BRM X L01, containing 30 components, thoroughly tested for compatibility in operation. The result of such a union was the minimum dust separation, a high coefficient of friction, and with it the resistance to rapid wear (there would be enough of such pads for 150 thousand kilometers).

Otto zimmermann

Rating: 4.8

One of two representatives of Germany within the category, the brake pads of which are prepared for serious tests on difficult landscapes and high working speeds. Otto Zimmermann is a premium manufacturer of brake equipment, working on supplies for conveyors (for example, Volkswagen Group), and on the retail market in more than 60 countries of the world.

Since the speech in this category affects precisely the aggressive driving conditions, we will single out two of the most suitable groups of developed pads:

1. under Zimmermann Sport wheels - wear-resistant semimetallic and metal models with a low level of dust formation and maintaining friction coefficient (0.4-0.5) in case of overheating.
2. under bimetallic lightweight discs Zimmermann Fusion / Formula - soft in their action, but very tenacious pads based on ceramics or metal.

The development of new concepts from OZ is in full swing - the geometrical parameters of the friction clutches, segmentation, as well as the liner formula are being improved towards solid composites. the only problem with the entire range of the German company is the high price. However, the quality and safety of this is not a pity.

Ferodo

Rating: 4.7

A very popular British company in Russia that has established mutually beneficial cooperation with leading companies in the development of brake equipment.He is an active initiator of research in the field of wear resistance of pads, the result of which, about 8 years ago, was the creation of a friction material unique in its structure. Being embedded in subsequent experimental models, it showed exceptionally high performance, allowing you to increase the service life of the basic configuration products by 50%.

Oddly enough, but the pads from Ferodo are regarded by consumers as an inexpensive product, even though the company belongs to the premium segment. In combination with excellent braking qualities, the price is the main driving force for the purchase, and very often the British consumables replace (it seems, the best) factory.

The best brake pad manufacturers in terms of price / quality ratio

TRW

Rating: 4.9

The American corporation TRW, operating in Russia and Europe under the brand Lucas. Its feature, as well as the most important advantage, is the adherence to classical production methods with gradual quality control, which naturally affects the brake pads and their performance.

In the TRW research departments, engineers are engaged in the spot work on the weakest performance indicators, regardless of what affects them: the configuration or geometry of the friction plates, the composition of the working mixture, or any flaws in the metal. According to consumers, all the most running blocks from the American company (and the original factory) show a surprisingly even result in terms of wear and tear in operation. Their working life is limited by division into segments, and at a maximum reaches 80-100 thousand kilometers without a drop in efficiency. But the main nuance is that the quality indicators of the pads are highly dependent on the country of manufacture, since the corporation’s factories are scattered around the world. This explains the presence of negative reviews and ongoing discussions, which, however, does not negate the fact of TRW coolness.

Akebono

Rating: 4.8

Premium brand with high prices for products, the main advantage of which is excellent working performance regardless of the brake pad model. The choice of the user is absolutely any configuration of the working part and the compositions of the friction linings: organic, composite, solid metal or ceramics, as well as intermediate "enhanced" formulas.

All this magnificence though differs in the big cost, however is put once and for the extremely long term. Especially thrifty car owners say that one pair of Akebono pads (composite) can be enough for 50 thousand kilometers ... and the ceramic ones go through all 200, however, for this you need to try hard. Perhaps the last and most important advantage of Japanese pads is the constant increase in technologies used for their manufacture. More information you can always find on the official website, we only conclude: Akebono definitely deserves such a high place in the ranking.

Jurid / Bendix

Rating: 4.8

United divisions of Honeywell Inc., responsible for the production of other brake equipment. It is noteworthy that in this union Jurid is responsible for the premium samples of pads, and the budget segment, albeit produced under the first brand, is produced at Bendix factories. This little nuance can significantly spoil the mood for inexperienced and unobservant consumers, since all the difference is expressed in the last letters of the product designation.

In principle, in its class, the pads have fairly even and stable performance, without any obscure and abrupt reductions in braking parameters. Premium honest work for 60-100 thousand kilometers, and cheap from Bendix (subject to careful and unhurried driving) can live 10-30 thousand. Given the cost of acquisition - this is not such a bad option for buying, which is often resorted to by ordinary users.

Sangshin

Rating: 4.7

A large manufacturer from South Korea, the most popular in the assortment of which use the rear disc pads. It is a premium manufacturer and is in good standing both in the consumer segment and large automobile concerns.

Sangshin loves to experiment with his own products and often improves it by adding (for example) additional dust removal channels, or fine-tuning the composition of the friction lining. The latest update of the series was the technology of Kevlar reinforcement of metal and organic bases, which made it possible to significantly improve the wear resistance of the pads and extend their service life to 100 thousand kilometers (for example, Sangsin Brake HP1399). In addition, in the assortment of Koreans you can find products of premium series, made of ceramics, suitable for tough operating conditions. Consumers like the high quality of the range, and also quite satisfied with the price - in terms of quality, the benefits are enormous.

Hella pagid

Rating: 4.7

Hella Pagid Brake Systems is a nominally German company that donates products for release to China and takes consumers in bulk rather than incredible indicators of quality and durability. The range of this company is more than 23 thousand brake pads for various automotive brands, recreated using more than 50 different patented formulas. According to the official website, such a diversity in terms of the composition of the friction part allows you to cover all the features of individual car brands, including the climatic features of their use.

Coupled with the composition of Hella Pagid actively experimenting on the form of interacting with the disk parts, reducing the time for lapping to ensure the nominal performance in the shortest possible time. From the point of view of experts, a very important advantage is the fact that each batch undergoes thorough quality control by arranging stress tests, within which the pads are tested for 1 thousand hours or receive a load at 200 thousand miles. It becomes obvious that the company is committed to ensuring security, and for that alone alone deserves inclusion in the rating.

Allied nippon

Rating: 4.7

The largest Japanese manufacturer of brake pads, actively supplying the global market with spare parts for hundreds of different brands of cars. Despite, in general, excellent results of passing functional and various stress tests, Allied Nippon brake discs and pads are not widely used in the domestic retail market, but you can order them in almost any catalog.

According to experts, a large part of the range of the Japanese company is sharpened for city driving, which is characterized by constant acceleration and braking during movement in the stream. Until recently, the main disadvantage of their shoes was rapid wear (50-60 thousand kilometers), as well as intensive dusting. The situation was resolved by applying for the friction blocks a new composite material - ferrocarbon - which made it possible to keep the braking characteristics at the same level, but to a significant extent, to increase the mileage on one pair of pads. Until now, the company has managed to “travel” on the application of this technology, but with the intensification of competitors and the proposal of conceptually new solutions to the problems of inhibition, the Japanese can have a non-leader race.

TEXTAR

Rating: 4.6

Production company Textar, a member of the TMD Friction group, was founded in 1913, and in more than one century of history, it managed to collaborate with the best automakers of the whole world: from Ferrari to Mercedes-Benz and premium representatives of the VAG group (Lamborghini, Porsche, etc. ). Thanks to its own research laboratory, the German Grand is on the path of continuous improvement of manufacturing technologies, introducing more and more new concepts to the market to provide more accurate braking.

In particular, the latest development of Textar were aimed at reducing dust emission and noise, and included changing the geometry of the friction plates, working on the composition and even variations of the iron body. Refinements of the latter, by the way, gave the world lightweight EPAD pads aimed at improving fuel economy. Yes, the cost of the company's products is far from budget, but due to the high quality of manufacturing and continuous improvement, it is completely leveled, giving consumers a lot of positive emotions.

Nisshinbo

Rating: 4.5

Japanese manufacturer of "premium" class, whose products have a comparable ratio of price and quality. It actively cooperates with the British company Ferodo, partially borrowing the production technology of friction linings for the universality of the behavior of the pads under different driving conditions. In turn, the reverse course (from Nisshinbo to the British) is followed by methods of assembling sporting braking elements oriented to the most severe operating conditions.

The result of such mutually beneficial cooperation is obvious: consumers speak highly of the braking characteristics of Nisshinbo pads, including after a good warm-up. Reliable clutch friction with the disc is provided after 8-10 braking, which indicates high safety standards.It is noteworthy that the lapping pads is slow, and may require up to 4-5 thousand kilometers. But a minor flaw in the Japanese brand lineup, judging by the feedback from the same consumers, is the aesthetic moment. The vast majority of products give a lot of dust, which negatively affects the cleanliness of the brake disc - however, safety issues in this case still come to the fore, and this should be considered.

The best low-cost brake pad manufacturers

Sts

Rating: 4.7

The leader of the category of budget manufacturers of brake pads is another Russian company, actively cooperating with the German masters of the production of brake equipment. The situation of this brand is very similar to ROSDOT, however, STS qualitatively and quantitatively outperforms its direct competitor.

The situation is further reinforced by the fact that EsTiEs is trying to bring its products to the level of European standards in order to begin the processes of supply to the relevant market segment. Currently, the company is actively cooperating with PJSC AvtoVAZ and other representatives of the alliance, while not forgetting to throw off part of the pads for retail sale. There, by the way, comes the product for the Korean and Japanese car industry (in addition to Nissan and Mitsubishi), as well as a large number of pads, suitable for older models of German brands. Consumers are actively advised to purchase products from STS, talking about the good parameters of durability, wear resistance and the concomitant low price.

Rosdot

Rating: 4.4

The second line of the rating goes to ROSDOT, which manufactures brake pads for VAZ cars and production alliance partners (Renault and Nissan). It enjoys high popularity among domestic consumers due to its low cost, as well as good braking performance, even when heated.

The high quality of the product of the Russian company is due to the technology borrowed from more competent European colleagues in the workshop. So, from the Italians ROSDOT got a unique composition of the friction layer, preserving the wear resistance of the level of semi-metal (or even metal) pads, but giving much less noise and dust. In addition, it also allows to significantly reduce vibrations without destruction, as well as to resist the appearance of resonance at certain speeds and modes of movement of cars on the road. Unfortunately, in a number of other aspects, the company has succeeded in not too much - classic models of pads, according to experts, have completely different performance indicators, and can fail, simply could not withstand even nominal operating loads.

EZATI

Rating: 4.1

Domestic representative of brake pad firms, operating exclusively on the domestic Russian market. EZATI is one of the few brands of the budget segment that pays attention to the quality of the manufactured goods and follows the path of continuous improvement of production technologies. In particular, the asbestos company adopted and strictly took into account directives to limit the content of this substance in the brake pads, releasing as a clear confirmation a number of elements of the braking equipment without its participation.

As a protection against tampering of the pads, EZATI has provided two methods of indication: the first is the unique technology of painting the metal part, and the second is the differentiated factory designation and the presence of a sign of compliance with European standards. In general, motorists express satisfaction with the work of the products of this company: in particular, special attention is paid to good work during heating, which is explained by a slight decrease in the friction coefficient and allows braking in the rhythm “fast acceleration / deceleration”.

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Attention! This rating is subjective, is not advertising and does not serve as a guide to the purchase. Before buying, you should consult with a specialist.