Brake pads Brembo or DIXCEL

For brakes, you're limited to whatever you can fit with your wheels.. I doubt you'd fit Brembo's with them, so you may be limited to 4pot/2pot or just rebuilding your current calipers with good street pads and rotors.

On my WRX, I use Dixcel ES pads front and rear

Upgraded rotors (paragon 2 piece) and dixcel type z pads.

Ric also got Renault to use Brembo brakes when he was racing for them.

Couldn't answer your first two questions, but the last question about Brembo being reliable is a very solid "yes".

Brembo directly supply Mercedes with their brakes.

The camaro SS uses brembo pads which are really good hence the price tag (imo the quote you got is pretty reasonable). If you want a more cost effective alternative, hit up MSW autoparts and ask for Zlatko. They have EBC brake pads which are also really good aftermarket pads.

Brembo make some fantastic road-orientated sintered pads, they improved my Street Twin loads.

Running coated rockauto rotors (rust belt life) and brembo ceramic pads. Stops well for under 250 for all 4.

Brembo low dust pads and oem rotors on my 330ci. Rotors tend to warp easy on these so I figured I'd stick with bmw.

The amount of dust from Brembo pads never fails to drive me absolutely insane. Phenomenal brakes, but my god is cleaning the wheels constantly brutal.

So akebono also makes original mazda brake pads. You see the stamp on the box and brake pads it self. Brembo sucks for normal cars. Had brembo and with in a year less than 15k miles, they need to be replaced.