Contour Enthusiasts Group Archives Forums Modifications Brakes EBC Rotors and EBC Greenstuff pads are crap

Several months ago I reported that I had put EBC rotors and and EBC Greenstuff pads on the front and EBC Greenstuff pads on the rear of my 96 SE. Well they turned out to be crap. I got them from The Tire Rack. The first set of rotors warped in less than 6 months. The Tire Rack replaced them and the new rotors warped again in less than 6 months. I complained to The Tire Rack and they agreed to take the EBC rotors and pads back and refund my money. Well, I shipped the rotors and pads back to The Tire Rack today so now I will see if I in fact to receive a refund.
I replaced the EBC crap with Mintex AF pads and ATE Powerdisk Multi-groove rotors from SP Motorsports. The rotors look great and cost $59.95 each which is an excellent price for these quality German built rotors. I will report again on how the ATE rotors are doing and if I get the refund from The Tire Rack.

Not trying to argue your claim against EBC, but I have a few questions first. Were the two sets of EBC rotors cross-drilled/slotted? Also, do you use a torque wrench when tightening your lug nuts?

The rotors were the turbo grooved with the drilled dimples. I made sure that the wheels were hand torqued to a maximum of 80 ft/lbs.

As long as the rotor is the same size and near same mass the same problem will exist. You are not going to change the name on the box and eliminate the problem. And if the 'green stuff' pads are more aggressive then you simply exagerate the problem by building even MORE heat. It's a visous cycle.

i thought the same thing about EBC and actually just posted my brake concerns too but dont be surprised if your car eats those newbies from SP as well. its not the rotors cause i have tried OEM and Bradi(Brembo) rotors with EBC and Mintex pads and warped each set within weeks each time. im starting to lean towards either a brake bias problem or that the pad is just too much for the rotors but thats gay cause the SVT is supposed to be all bad ass stock.

Plenty of people on here have used all types of rotor/pad combos and warped them...and many have used the same rotor/pad combos and not had any problems.

1st...you need to properly season your rotors. They need to go thru several heat cycles where the temperature of use on the rotor is gradualy increased and gradualy decreased. That means slightly heavier/more aggresive braking per use, in what you can deem as building up heat in a methodical way. But its equaly important to apply lighter braking in between these heavy uses to keep the rotor temp up. Heavy braking..like on the way to work...then non-use while you're at your desk all day allows the rotors too cool down too much, resulting in too much heat stress the next time you go out braking. Just as they need to be heated up gradualy, they need to come down to temp just as gradualy.

2nd...the wheels have to be torqued down to the proper ftlbs, gradually, and in the proper X sequence.

3rd...never wash your car/wheels after spirited driving.

I did this on my NAPA rotors 1.5 years ago, and after 50,000 miles, NAPA premium, Mintex, and Titanium Bendix pads, my rotors are good to go.

It is definitely a pad issue.

The EBC's, Mintex and KVR's simply create too much heat for the stock sized rotors.

I have found that the Bendix Titanium fit the stick rotrs well in that they provide excellent braking yet do not cause brake warp issues.

People probably think I am biased about them, but you only have to read the testimonials of other CEGer's to see that I am not telling lies.

What Mintex? A/F? 1144?

I have heard that both have caused issues - that's coming from people converting over to the Bendix Pads.

But for the most part it's the 1144's.

I'm surprised at what everyone is saying. I was very doubtful at the Greenstuff performace after getting some fronts that wore really quickly in 1 day at a track event. That made me try some 1144's but for some reason they did not survive another afternoon at the track. (After comparing temperatures which the pads could withstand on the BAT site and the Mintex site - I understood why. The BAT site was...let's just say over optimistic). When I went back to greenstuff, they survived and in my opinion did better than the 1144's. I run with Powerslots but I can't see them making any difference compared to stock or other rotors. I have never experienced warping. For the temps. I would be getting out on the track, I would have thought I would have developed warping there rather than on the street....who knows, maybe I'm just lucky. So why are other's warping?