Brake pads Bosch or OEM Mazda

So far I've been happy with Bosch brake pads.

Bosch Quietcast pads. They have good stopping power, are quiet (so far) and have low dust, so they are great for my daily driver.

I used rockauto and got.

BOSCH BC433 ceramic Brake Pads on my front brakes.

They have been real good.

I also have those Bosch pads on my Tundra and they are really good, quiet, low dust, excellent overall.

I think the Bosch pads work fine.

Last year a shop replaced the rear brake pads and disks but since then handbrake never was like before. They kept telling me it will get better which I believed at the time but it never did. Last month I've passed inspection and they told me that the rear left handbrake was almost out of spec and I'd need to check it out although it passed.

So a month later I've bought a Bosch kit, sliders, pads, grease, toolkit etc and replaced the 1 year old ferodo pads. Now handbrake is like it should be and I'm happy with it but take a look at the old pads...

Both inner side alignment pins (caliper side) are bent.

Last month I've passed inspection and they told me that the rear left handbrake was almost out of spec and I'd need to check it out although it passed. So a month later I've bought a Bosch kit, sliders, pads, grease, toolkit etc and replaced the 1 year old ferodo pads. Now handbrake is like it should be and I'm happy with it but take a look at the old pads...Both inner side alignment pins (caliper side) are bent.

I replaced front pads and rotors on my Tiguan, and afterwards, when going between D <-> R and applying the brakes, the first brake application causes a "clack" on both sides at the front. Pads are Bosch 1633A. spring clips (integral to pads) are seated properly. Pads and rotors were bedded properly. Wheel lug bolts torqued properly. I have the official instructions from VW. I've probably done ~20 brake jobs in my life, mostly Volvos (over half of those were sliding-caliper designs like the Tiguan's). What I tried (with no success): searching and searching and searching forums, only found 2 other people with a similar issue on FCP's Brake Replacement YouTube video measured and compared all latereral dimensions of the pad's plate between new and old, same dimensions re-installed the pads all bolts are torqued properly (caliper carrier 200 Nm; caliper pin bolts 35 Nm) found a Tech Bulletin from VW that mentions there are inner- and outer-specific orientation for the pads. This appears to apply only to the Genuine (labeled TRW) pads, as all 3 Bosch pads are identical in every way that I can discern bought a set of Genuine VW pads (labeled VW), ensured the correct orientation of pads according to the Tech Bulletin, and they still clack. pad backing plate dimensions are the same as the Bosch. Ack! More money! bought a set of genuine caliper carriers (with the thinking that perhaps when I wire-wheeled the old caliper carriers to remove rust, it took off too much material). I didn't install them because I measured all the dimensions that interface with the pads and the new are identical to the old.

Surprisingly, it needed brake pads and rotors at 21k miles, and at $1,100 at a trusted local mechanic, it wasn't as cheap as I expected. When I bought the car with 1,400 miles on it, the piano black trim inside the car was already scratched, and it looks quite a bit worse now. I also have to echo the thin paint comments from above, I've never seen a car that scratches so easily. The car's manners on the highway at 70 mph+ are a little nervous for me. On the plus side, I've always enjoyed the way the car looks and drives around town. The interior does look way better than the original MSRP would suggest (even with scratches). And we've had no surprising issues, other than the early brake job.

I've been replacing the brakes on my 2019 since it hit about 25k or so, rear have been done twice (I'm at 62k now and just did them the second time) and the front were done around 30k. My dealership outright told me Mazda brakes are garbage and these vehicles are not made for Canadian winters (regardless of what their advertising says). This new set is aftermarket so hopefully better but seriously my brakes have been so corroded it's unbelievable.