for those changing to ebc pads/discs

klarky

Active member
today i have my new ebc discs and green stuff pads fitted and brake fluid changed, slight problem when i went to collect the car and the rear was locked up tight, seems the pads had bonded to the discs. after the technician got busy with the mallet and free'd them up a longer drive was required and i gave the pads a bit of a work out, nothing too heavy, just normal braking and where there was no traffic i was braking from 60 to 40 a few times.

basically the garage who did my fitting only did a 30 mile trip to check everything was ok, which seems wasnt enough to take the coating off the new discs, and when the car was left to stand the pads locked themselves against the discs, so all i can advise is a good long drive, i did an extra 40 miles but was working the brakes a bit more. they probably wont be bedded in until another 150 miles so no heavy braking for a while !
 
That is the opposite to the advice from http://www.zeckhausen.com/bedding_in_brakes.htm where the running in procedure is very, very different.
 
yeah seems you get very different advice depending on what you look at, the leaflet in the box just says take it easy for 200 miles. id read somewhere (someone using yellow stuff pads) to drive normally to remove the protective layer, then do four hard stops braking from 60 to 10 miles another one after another then drive for 15 mins to allow cooling.

tomorrow i think ill do something similar to that link you posted pvr, ive defiantly got the coating off the discs now, just gone and put the car in the garage and is all moving freely. these are only greenstuff pads so nothing special, even with just a trip today they are noticeably better than oem, or at least when i bought the car in feb, but then the pads were worn and discs were already on the shopping list. luckily there doesnt appear to be any damage to the surface of the discs - only problem is i dont think i can find anywhere safe around here to do 60 - 10 mph braking, unless i go out at 3am!
 
EBC Website said:
9. Bedding in EBC pads
In Street use situations …
Bedding in when the red EBC surface coating (marked on the pads as Brake In) is applied.
Best procedure is to drive gently avoiding harsh braking unless in an emergency for first 100 miles. In the second 100 miles (up to 200) you can use gently increasing brake pressures when using the brakes.
Only after 200 miles urban driving (not 200 miles on a freeway where brakes are almost unused) should you attempt to apply heavy load and heat to the brakes. To do this final bedding on a QUIET ROAD in safe traffic apply the brakes and slow from 60 to 10 MPH five times in a row. Then drive slowly for a few minutes if safe to do so to allow the brakes to cool. Try to avoid coming to a rest whilst the brakes are heated.
A smell may be noticed from the warm brakes, this is normal. Repeat this procedure a second time after the brakes have TOTALLY cooled down. EBC pads get better with miles. Even after this bed in procedure it can take up to 1500 miles before the pads are at their best. In the meantime the pads will be good and safe but true potential not realised. EBC makes performance pads that last, they do not bed in within 5 minutes driving. Noises will be more likely during the first 1000-1500 miles use whilst this chemical bedding takes place.

NEVER attempt to sand or scotchbrite brake pads to assist it bedding in or noise reduction,this will only make things worse by taking the pads "Off-Flat" and require hundreds of miles driving to seat them again during which time the brakes will feel very dull. The only way to seat pads is against the rotor they will be used on and by following our bedding recommendation.
 
cheers mmm-five, seems a combo of what i was doing and what is in pvr's link is whats called for. not to worry, i was expecting it to take time !

maybe im mistaken, but i dont remember reading all that on the box or on the leaflet. not a problem as its not like im throwing the car round a track (yet). god bless the internet, makes life so much easier :thumbsup: :thumbsup:
 
If you do any heavy braking during the first few miles and then park up, you'll find the pads will bind a little as the bedding in agent has heated up but not been used enough to be burnt away properly.

Some other manufacturers don't use this initial 'paint' and only require 50 miles of bedding in.

Don't come to a steaming stop and then park up for the night either. Try to do the last 1/2 mile barely touching the brakes and coast to a stop. Park it in gear/park once you've put it in position for the night and release the handbrake.
 
waaaay ahead of you there, it did flash into my brain about the hand brake, i originally thought the hardbrake pads may have stuck to the new discs also, so was parked up and left in gear once i got home. as i live in a small town i have 5 mins of driving at sub 30mph to let things cool a bit.

seems so obvious when you think about it, but at least if anyone else has issues this thred will help, seeing as quite a few people are looking at ebc as replacements. at least i now dont have to fear idiots who pull out onto bypasses round here and decide not to get up to speed for a mile or so, a few times ive almost ended up someones chuff, foot flat on the brake repeating the words "stopstopstopstopSTOP!"
 
Handbrake is independent. I hardly ever use it as it is not the greatest and I leave the car always in (reverse) gear.
 
sammyz said:
Garage did a 30 mile blast and welded your pads to the discs :)

pretty much! although to be fair it wasnt what id call a blast, they got the mpg up rather than down! wont be an issue next time as ill be doing pad changes myself, just couldnt be arsed to buy tools, dont even have a suitable jack at the moment. that will change in a few months, going to lay my hands on a service manual and do the minor jobs myself, ive held off on tinkering with this car.
 
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