I have a 99 TL that I am having some brake issues with. When brakes are cold it seems to brake fine but when they warm up I get a severe pulsating feeling in the pedal. Is this possibly due to the rotor warping issue with this generation?

If so what brands of non-performance rotors and pads do you recommend? Thanks in advance for the help.

 

Sounds like a warped rotor or two. When you change all your rotors and pads, make sure to ensure your calipers float freely on their mounting bolts. I had one caliper seize up and it wore one of my pads down to the "screech" tab without me ever knowing it was binding (until the hideous screech started).

 

Vibration can be caused by Warped Rotors but only at SPEED if you feel vibration while going -40mph then most likely you have air in your brake lines which makes the ABS pump work overtime = Vibration while braking.

Non performance? stick to Brembo Blank Rotors and Raybestos or CARQUEST Pads < They are made from Raybestos but the compound its exclusive to CQ which is wayyyyy better than Raybestos originals.

 

Very good information on the first paragraph.

I personally would be withdrawn from anything that rhymes with asbestos. I'm sure it's a fine product and has undergone rigorous testing. I still wouldn't be able to tell anyone "I just installed these awesome pads, they are made by Raybestos.

 

^ They are actually pretty good if you compare them to say: OEM? and Cheap too! Before I ran EBC exclusively I use to test a lot of brake pads for kicks obviously staying with Ceramics only..

Raybestos "Professional Grade" OEM? = CRAP CRAP UBBER CRAP they work nicely the first 10 miles (Every time you start the car) after they get hot?? OH JESUS the Brake Fade is completely intolerable even doing stop to stop braking you knew they were fading hard. They last long but the braking performance when HOT is completely unreasonable = Replace ASAP.

Raybestos (CARQUEST "Blue Pads") Compound? = Much muuuuchhhh Better the initial bite is good and they resist fade up until you start to drive very spiritedly which is good for OEM Like pads.. ZERO Dust and compared to the OEM Raybestos crap the CARQUEST edition is 100x Better.

ACT/HAWK Pads? Initial bite was less than desired but they hold strong until you start to drive aggressively brake fade resistance is good pretty much like the CARQUEST Pads nothing to write home about.

EBCs?
Yellow Stuff??? = Glorious GLORIOUS PAD! Initial Bite will make your neck hurt in no time if you DARE to install them as daily drivers you will never need to press more than half brake anymore.. Initial Bite is not only strong but pretty much INSANE fade is none-existent.. CONS? DUDE THE BRAKE DUST! Brake dust is equivalent to their braking performance you will need to clean your wheels on daily basis, I would dare to say on Hourly basis and they will eat your Rotors in no time.. also they don't last long expect 12,000 miles in extreme cases.. 9-10K is normal.

Red Stuff? Initial bite is less aggressive than Yellows but still there and much stronger than any other "not yellow stuff" pads I used, brake fade is controlled but still there when driving like a total maniac... Virtually none existent dust and rotor wear is controlled. They last more than 15K up until 20K and 25K in extreme cases.


^ Hope this helps out!

 

I have, after this post, become more familiar with break pads than I have with my wife.

My apologies to Mr. Skirmich.

 

Thanks skirmich. What about rotors? What about good non performance rotors?

 

^
I used OEM (In my Early Days), Duralast (Autozone crap 1 time only), Brembo Blanks, EBC and DBAs...

OEM: Lasts EONS!! BUT the iron is made from is very cheap and susceptible to brake fade (It holds temperature for too long) and Add our crappy 1 Pot caliper you will have Warping like XMAS.

Duralast: Yeah yeah I made the silly mistake on buying these they are kinda like the OEM but worse and that's to say a lot..

Brembo Blanks: Pretty good! The iron is by far the best of the "non-performance" rotors out there and they don't seem to hold heat for as long like the OEM or Duralast.. I NEVER WARPED a Brembo Blank! Even with the 1 Pot Caliper but the "looks bug" hit me so I had to:

EBC 3GD: Great Rotor with Great Looks! The EBC is made from a higher end Iron even better than the Brembo Blanks! So it fought brake fade like any other Rotor I had (Until DBA) Never Warped and the wear is pretty nice! I had around 25K on them which 10K were using EBC Yellows and the rest were Reds..

DBA 4000XS: MOTHER OF ROTOR! By far the best 1 Piece Rotor I ever used on the Mountains.. The rotor not only looks good but it performs better! I don't really know which grade of Iron they used but it seems more like blend with something else cuz they look solid and better casted than the EBCs. Brake Fade? If anything is completely brake pad dependent because I never felt brake fade since I upgrade to them (Using RED stuffs).. They are Expensive but Worth it!

Hope this helps!