I got my Panther Plus pads on the front. I'm waiting on the back because I didn't have any reason to have it apart, didn't have the right Torx socket, and don't need much rear brake. I'm sure once I get them all around it'll be better.


There were nubs on the back of the outside pads that needed to be ground off before installation. Other than that installation was a snap, like any pad. Since I'll be taking them off and putting them back on again soon, I didn't bother with backing plate goop or slide pin grease, and it sounds like it. Hopefully the noise will go away with a proper brake job. They're loud with a light touch, but the squealing goes away under harder braking. They dust a LOT. Bedding them in and some hard test runs resulted in a quick darkening of my wheels, but it washed off easily.

Then there's the grip. They're very nice. The first stop in the morning is a bit slow, but that's all it takes to get them up to temp and they grip like mad when warm. Modulation is excellent, and I'm 139% (+/- 2%) better at threshold braking (no ABS at the moment) with these pads vs. Ford. I did get them to fade, but it was really hard - I think I'll be okay at the Glen.

Overall, this is a very streetable pad. Assuming the noise goes away with a proper brake job, and you don't mind some dust, that is. Cold torque (and I hear rotor wear, but time will tell) are certainly up the task of everyday driving. And they are the best pads I've used on the Contour for hard driving, by far, so it's worth a little dust and noise to me.


-Philip Maynard '95 Contour [71 STS | Track Whore] '97 Miata [71 ES | Boulevard Pimp] 2006 autocross results