deandorsey

THANKS to 'GoBig' for finding these pads as a viable replacement, and letting us know.

original thread

all information as well as step by step instructions can be found there.





























sorry about the blur...


pads are great and silent so far.

easiest pad replacement i have done.

cM3go

Seems even easier than regular brakes, good job, thanks for the pics!

GoBig

Yes...great job! Did you re-use the shims? At first I didn't and they squeeled, (even w/ the squeel stop), then I put them on and the squeeling was gone...well almost.

deandorsey

yes, i did re-use the shims...i only put the anti-squeal under the area that the shims cover... i have not heard one noise yet... the pads have been great so far.

i havent cleaned my rims yet...i'm excited about less brake dust : )

PPLAPW

Thanks............this will be useful in the future.........

deandorsey

ok..ive got squealing now...but no brake dust!

SouthernBoy

Under what conditions do they squeal? Did you bed them in according to Hawk's recommendations? Do they still squeal?

My stock pads on my Brembo TL brakes do not make any noise at all. But the dusting is really bad. That's what I would like to get rid of.

How is the dusting with the Hawks now? Did you go with the Hawk HPS pads?

coop1018

I installed the Hawks and they are great. I broke them in pretty seriously. DId 10 hard stops from 60mph to 5mph and then 7 runs to 60mph and completely cruching the brake pedal. Lit the hawk pads on fire. I forget where I got this information on how to break them in but they are working incredible. I did not believe my buddy who is a mechanic that it was ok to set them on fire. I just have an occasional squeal, no brake dust for a month now.+

a_bu_lo

Sorry, I am a bit noob here.
Where can I get the breaking pad cover? which is black comes with the word "acura" in white.
Are they the sport package break?

3PUTT

good job guys!! i just hit 25K miles. i will be changing my pads and brake fluid when i hit 30K miles.

questions...

1. has anyone tried the G-Stop SS brake lines??
2. does anyone know where to get replacement rotors (slotted, if possible)?

Stoptech

Here are bed-in procedures

http://www.stoptech.com/whitepapers/bedincontents.htm

Usually a bed in will help with noise issues.

3PUTT

i just ordered the pads from tirerack. it was a little more that the other place but after the shipping costs, it cost cheaper. import-racer.com wanted $14 for shipping. tirerack only charged $8. import-racer.com is located in NY and they were just going to ship it to NJ.

besides, tirerack will also be sending me new lug nuts for the wheels i purchased from them. i noticed that some of the lug nuts they sent me from last year started getting rusty.

the 1st part for my 30K mile service has been ordered...NEXT!!

PRacing

Hawk pads are known to squeal. They do on most of the Mazda6's that have them installed, as well as other vehicles.

However, dust is greatly reduced, braking is cooler, improved.

Rotors, email me, I may know a plac that has some for the 05 TL

Nitrotiger

I just installed the hawk pads and after bedding them in they grab nice i can not wait to the fully brake in. i will be running pocono long course next weekened that will be the altimate test

Stoptech

What kind of Hawk pads did you get?

On any track day you will probably overheat the Hawk HPS or HP+ pads. Only lightweight cars or driver's that don't drive very hard can get away with it.

Track situations are a whole new ball game where the temps that are reached are way higher than the street or some backroad spirited driving. This requires different pads which operate at different temperature ranges. Running on the track with street pads has the potential for pad deposits and worse off ruining a set of rotors. See this link for more details
http://www.stoptech.com/whitepapers/...otors_myth.htm
This is what sometimes happens to the rotors with street pads that are taken over their temperature threshold

Nitrotiger

I just ran watkins glenn with stock pads and i beat the hell out the brakes. all i had to do was change the brake fluid so i would no over heat the brakes and it worked. A lot of people forget to change the brake fluid before they go to these events I also have the brembo set up which kick ass

Shoot2Thrill

First: Thanks for this thread. ( and GoBig)

FYI I replaced the stock with Hawks about three weeks ago. Not one peep. The only additions I can suggest is cleaning the back of the pads and both sides of the shims. Then apply a layer of the same Brake Quiet evenly between the pad and the shim with complete coverage but no excess. Let set for the two together for 10 minutes before installing.

I did the traditional break in right after and got it smoking hot and drove to let it cool down uniformly.

I think it brakes better. Definitely not worse! Plus, I have not seen a new Brembo pad but I believe it has a big entrance and exit chamfer (Most likely to prevent squeaking) so the Hawk put down significantly more pad at least for the first third or so of the pad life so that all in all is a good thing.

bTwix

You might want to check out this thread before you get the SS lines.
https://acurazine.com/forums/showthr...tainless+brake

subinf

^you do realize he posted that August of 05.

Pure Adrenaline

iTrader: (2)

What did you use to get the pins out?

jmbnova

Great DIY... i just replaced my brake pads this morning in under an hour. Very easy and simple to do. Pistons compressed with no problems at all. just wanted to bump this for people and tell them how incredibly easy it was to do...

redrum4me

well after my fourth bed in procedure on my Hawk ceramics the squeal is finally gone. Next time I'll look into some other pads that don't cause quite the same embaressment. (I didn't turn the rotors so that might have something to do with it.)

Is anyone else still having probelms with their hawk pads?

01tl4tl

If installing Hawk pads on old rotors- you MUST clean the rotor surface first to remove old pad contamination
The complete and CORRECT bedding procedure can be found at www.hawkperformance.com
You do a series of slow downs- not complete stops- to warm then super heat the pads so you transfer a layer of material to the rotor
Failure to do any part of this will result in noise
If still noisy- there is a special hi speed re-bed procedure
PM me for details

cheepung

Per Hawk,

Burnishing Instructions on HPS

After installing new brake pads, make 6 to 10 stops from approximately 30-35 mph applying moderate pressure.
Make an additional 2 to 3 hard stops from approximately 40 to 45 mph.
DO NOT DRAG BRAKES!
Allow 15 minutes for brake system to cool down.
After step 4 your new pads are ready for use.


Hawk did not indicate slow down but Stop. Can you PM or post it here about the hi speed re-bed procedure?

I think i need to do it again. I still have some low Jet engine-die-down noices by stopping the car.

Alex911

Is Hawk HPS the best pad you can get? i had them on my Cl they were really dusty, but braked amazing

01tl4tl

Depends on your rotors what pads are best.
The HPS make a fair bit of dust- because they work so good
If you want even better- go to Racing Brake rotors with
Hawk HP+ thats Plus series pads.
Will destroy normal rotors so usually for track use- they work perfect with the special alloy in the RB rotor and cause no abnormal wear

Kennedy

iTrader: (2)

01tl4tl,

I'm about to order my RB/Hawk+ pads... Did you do the stainless lines too?

There seems to be quite the controversy on using those on a street car...

01tl4tl

If you are driving a normal TL (non Brembo brake which have mostly solid metal lines)
then the SS lines will give a more solid ~FEEL~ under hard braking
Not actual increase in brake pressure- keep reading

What happens normally is the high pressure from aggressive application of brakes- we are talking when things get really hot mind you- will actually expand the rubber brake lines, giving pedal that mushy feel
The SS lines have a center Teflon core surrounded by braided steel line to protect it, some makers include a plastic layer on top of that to protect the Stainless!!
That means the inner diameter remains constant
DOT Approved is the key
Whatever brand MrHeelToe has (stock varies) will be fine and for the extra 100 bucks- something I should have done the first time I tore into the brakes- but that would have taken all the fun out of working on my car repeatedly!!!
Maybe I like bleeding the brakes- you dont know!!!

Stoptech

I wouldn't necessarily call the HP+ track pads.

The HPS pads are a street pad and so are the HP+ pads. The difference is that the HP+ pads are an aggressive street pad which produce more dust than the HPS. The reason why we don't call them a track pad is because the temperature range is limited. They go up to about 1000 deg. It's the same w/ the Axxis ULT pads.

The temps reached at the track are far higher than the temps reached anywhere else. The tamer track pads have max operating temps of about 1200 deg and they go up to 2000 deg. Some of these track pads don't start to work until 300 deg or more.

01tl4tl

Let me clarify my staement
HP Plus series pads are designed to handle track DAY use- not real racing
They work awesome on the track and still allow you to drive home without changing pads at the end of a long day of fun- as they are designed to do!

For normal rotors- the aggressive pad compound will destroy them in short order
On the RacingBrake rotors (and probably others I am not aware of)- there is not that issue

For serious racers there are plenty of track only compounds as Stoptech is indicating

Wid-TL

To OP for the photos, I FINALLY installed my Hawk Pads and it was a breeze!

Wid-TL

Darn passenger side is starting to squeel LOUD under mild pressure when hot. May try a re-bed...

01tl4tl

wild
did you machine resurface or clean the rotors with 130 grit sandpaper followed by soap and water wash as required by HAWK before installing their pads?
If not there may by cross contamination of materials- the hawks are picky and bedding does make a transfer layer of material

Also here is the awesome hawk bedding procedure- goes beyond their instructions which are not very clear- writtten for RacingBrake rotors users but applies to all

http://heeltoeauto.com/httech/YaBB.pl?num=1184261899
Brake Pad Bed-in Procedure, recommended by Heeltoe
07/12/07 at 10:38:19
First it is important to know what pads you have, and what they are capable of. Heeltoe Automotive recommends Hawk Racing pads. Find out more about the differences in pads under product descriptions on Heeltoeauto.com
The following bed-in procedure is drawn from our personal experience in breaking in pads, and from technical information gathered from the Racingbrake Website.

All brake pads must be bedded-in with the rotor they will be used against. Even though those performance street pads have been burnished at the factory, a transfer film must be generated at the pad and rotor interface for optimal performance. Whether it is new or used rotors, you must follow the bed-in steps listed below to maximize brake performance.

STREET PADS, example Hawk HPS, Ceramic, and HP+


After installing new brake pads, confirm pedal pressure before driving car. On an open road with no traffic, make 6-10 heavy slow-downs, NOT complete stops, from 30-10 mph then fast accelleration and repeat with increasing pedal effort/brake effort each time until just shy of ABS activation. The idea is to heat and maintain that heat in the pads and rotors during the procedure.

On an open road with no traffic, make an additional 2 to 3 hard slows from approximately 45 mph to 5 mph applying firm pressure. Do not drag brakes or come to a complete stop. Engagement of ABS or threshold braking is not required.
Allow 15 minutes for brake system to cool down by cruising at normal speeds.



Do not sand or grind the brake pads or rotors after this burnishing procedure has been completed. Your performance street pads are now ready for driving! I generally recommend to drive the car normally from here on out. I do not recommend using the brakes as a way to slow the car down, but rather use them as a way to CHANGE SPEEDS to a lower one. Keeping this thought in mind while braking will prevent you from making long gradual stops that raise brake temperatures above the desired level for street pads. When street pads get too hot, they can glaze the rotor surface or put inconsistent pads deposits on the rotor which will cause a shimmy.

Also, be aware that Racingbrake rotors have a special metallurgy that may require up to 500 street miles before break-in is achieved. You will need to get these rotors HOT!

Lastly, do your best not to engage the ABS system within at least 300-500 miles of bed-in. If a shimmy should develop, one should reapply the bed-in procedure listed above.

thanks to Marcus at MrHeelToe for this article

Wid-TL

That's great info, thanks!

No cleaning of rotors, I'm admittedly lazy and tried to get it done as quick as possible. I'll do it right this weekend if the noise persists.

01tl4tl

It will- thats why Hawk made those specific cleaning instructions- down to:
130 grit sandpaper using medium pressure....

TLspeed

I installed Hawk pads w/o turning the rotors. Followed all the directions for installation including the recommended break-in procedure. I did not do any sanding of the rotors, those instructions were not in any Hawk literature that came with the pads.

Although the brakes work great, these pads began to create a lot of noise (squeaking) once they've warmed up. Is there anything I can do (short of turning the rotors) to eliminate the squeaking?

I'm a little confused by the comments above, in that they say not to sand or grind the pads after the burnishing process. Can I start over? Pull the pads, sand away any glazing for a nice new surface. Sand the rotors as described above. Then reinstall, and re-bed the pads?

Any suggestions are greatly appreciated.

01tl4tl

Ok- lets work the various issues
Which Hawk pads?
What shape are the rotors in? any shiny face or ridged edge or grooves?
Why dont you want to resurface them? How many miles on them?
resurfaced before?

Depending on all that - you can do a higher speed rebed to clean to surfaces and establish a new transfer layer
With Hawks pads it really is a good idea to at least sand the rotors to remove old pad residue -
Here is the Hawk page on the subject- their FAQ section talks about noise too
http://hawkperformance.com/performance/hps.php#

TLspeed

01tl4tl

I replaced the OEM pads with Hawk (performance ceramic) at 35K. There was still about 2mm of original pad left, and the rotors were in good condition (they've never been turned). No ridges or grooves were on the rotors and there was no warping so I elected to merely drop in the new pads.

Went through the bed-in process as instructed. The squealing only occurs at low speed. I'm pleased with the reduced dust, but the squealing is annoying to the point that I'm willing to start over if it is something that can be cured w/o the need to have the rotors turned.

01tl4tl

At 35k I would suggest turning the rotors- there is a lot you cant see going on
2MM pad remaining- sounds like they were past that slotted wear indicator!
read the heeltoe article on brake pads and proper brake useage- then do a series of 70-30 slow downs to clean the glaze and a set of 65-40 med slow downs to do a transfer layer
Should fix you right up!!

robbie82

Great write up! Sticky it!