Brake pads Akebono or POWER STOP
My oem rotors warped around 45k. Had an Indy install Stoptech rotors and Akebono ceramic pads and they lasted over 100k, with no brake dust.
Z26 power stops with oem 1.8 brackets / calipers. They’re carbon ceramic brakes, they produce almost no brake dust, they don’t squeak at all and they brake REALLY good for street driving. ( get the power stops by rockauto as they’re way cheaper and you’ll get the better model for the price of the z23’s. Be sure to put in the 1994 year and not your 1.6 car so you get the bigger brakes Then get the calipers from treasure coast Miata ( they’ll be like 25$ each) . I just did that swap on my car and it’s phenomenal. ( I also got steel braided lines which makes the pedal feel so much better ). They fit perfect under my stock 14” daisys, the only thing I had to do was bend back the little brake dust guard on the rear brakes so they could clear it. ( because they’re made for 1.6’s. It takes about 10 minutes then you’re done )
All in all the brakes and calipers were about 500$ plus another 100$ for the steel braided lines which were definitely worth it. I’d just swap it all at once because your brake lines by now are expanded and unhappy.
Also I’d consider upgrading your cars brake fluid from the stock DOT 3 to DOT 4 which has a way higher heat tolerance and is good to drive on the streets. ( I recommend pentosin DOT 4 fluid which is what I run in my daily )
AKEBONO PRO-ACT ULTRA PREMIUM are available at Napa and I hear are some of the quietest brake pads you can get over the life span of the pad. They're ceramic pads which won't make your miata sound like a school bus
Yes, they're excellent brakes.
Very little dust. Excellent grip. They do take a few min to warm up when cold/wet but it’s not noticeable at all.
Powerstop z23 or the z26 for the slotted rotors. I run them on all of my cars and we sell them at my automotive shop, great brand
I paid < $250 for brakes/rotors (Akebono ProACT pads + Raybesto Element3 coated rotors).
I’ve used dozens of different pads on VWs and other makes, for regular driving with low dust and massive pad and rotor life? I’d use Akebono, made in USA and no pads are higher quality but some can be equal. Are you running it really hard? You’re gonna be replacing whatever you put on so semi-metallic can't be beat,cheap and has the best feel as well because it wears the rotor and pad together!!! Pagid or Bosch QC are hard as a rock and fade free with great feel but dusty. More importantly you need to do the job correctly, the pad is the least of your worries if you’re new to doing it, find YT brake vids for your car if you are, I still watch them to find my mistakes.
I believe if a VW dealer replaced your pads they’d be semi metallic, stop quickly, and have a good amount of brake dust. I went with Akebonos and yes they have a tiny bit less bite. But I have virtually no brake dust and I hear they last a fair bit longer. I’m happy with them
I have had power stops before on my firebird formula and they were great, it seems for the imports they are not as good.
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