Very surprised that you guys are fans of Akebonos... Had them in the wife's Z4 and found the initial bite and overall braking performance to be much much weaker than the OEM BMW pads... It was bad to the point that I removed them a couple months in and just got Pagid pads for it...
Reviews of Akebono brake pads
1351 votes
I ran Akebono pads on my ZHP coupe and they were great. Slightly less initial bite than stock, requiring a slightly firmer foot on the pedal, and also need to warm up a bit for full grip - but beyond that, clean as a whistle and they wear forever.
Centric rotors are typically good quality. A few years back I started using Akebono pads (after trying brands such as EBC & Hawk). I don’t think I’ll ever buy anything other than Akebono pads anymore, they stop amazingly well and have less dust than previously mentioned pads.
I had an issue with the inner pads sticking on my Golf (same as A3 platform), but when I took apart the caliper and cleaned/regreased all the caliper pins the problem went away. If you've already done that, I really have no idea what it could be. It's definitely not normal though. What pads/rotors are you using? I've been using the Akebono's and they are great. Very little wear and dust.
Will they fit? Probably. But without the slot you can't use the anti-rattle springs. I purchased a set of Akebono's from ECS a few years ago and ended up sending them back because they don't fit as the car was designed to work (if that makes sense?).
Like others have said, these are great if your looking for less dust, but definitely lack the bite of OE pads. They will still stop just fine, but just don’t expect that crisp initial bite you get with OE pads.
I run them on my 03 325xi. So much better on break dust. They don't have as much bite as the OEM pads, but I think they're super close.
I run them, they’re amazing to me. Good stopping power, no dust.
I love the way Akebonos keep my wheels clean
I hate akebono pads. They last a long time but feel like crap and don't stop the car nearly as well.
Write your review about brake pads Akebono
Help others - share your experience with this part.