Brake pads POWER STOP or OEM Mazda

I use Powerstop Ceramic brake pads. Ceramic pads last longer, brake smoother, and little to no brake dust on rims ????????

Powerstop Z23 front combo and Brembo rotors with Akebono ceramic pads for the rear on a 2013 Golf TDI. Both ends seem to be really good.

I threw a set of drilled/slotted Z23 model PowerStop brakes on my 2013 TDI Beetle for shits and giggles because I had some extra cash and they've been superb. A bit loud but mashing them hard almost puts me through my windshield.

Powerstop track kit with ceramic pads. They have solid and Drilled/slotted rotors available both options. Around $300 for both front and rear. I run these on multiple cars when it’s time for brakes always an upgrade over stock.

Ive seen people go the full spectrum of pads, from cheapos to expensive. I’d go oem at a minimum, remember these are big heavy trucks that need a lot of stopping power. I’ve had a lot of luck with powerstop so far.

I use Powerstop Drilled and slotted. Been the best for not developing a squeak and glaze.

I recently-ish replaced my pads and rotors with the Powerstop Z26 stuff. Works fine, and makes a lot less dust. Can't say I've noticed a huge difference in braking force.

Ran this set for the last 3 years, about 20,000 miles. They look and work great with factory calipers (I painted mine while I was installing).

So I just got my powerstop kit installed yesterday. It was $355 from autoparts warehouse and they threw in free shipping. The kit looks pretty good the nickel plating looks very clean but they don't look as agressive as some of the other kits I've seen. The install was not bad at all although I ran into a snag resetting the rear calipers (I didn't do my homework on what tool to reset them with but I eventually got some help). On my first drive I was not impressed with the stopping power of the ceramic pads and the slotted cross drilled rotors (I was thinking it would have this incredible improvement because powerstop claims the pads don't need to be seated to be at peak performance). I beg to differ they were no different than my oem brakes at all yesterday while driving but after having put about 100 miles on them I am starting to see a lot of improvement in my stopping distances without having to mash the pedal. The pads were pretty noisy at first but today are dead quiet (unlike my oem pads). The pedal doesn't feel any different as far as weight but I don't have to press in on it as much to make sudden stops (I thought I was going to see my lunch again today while in Charlotte traffic at one point). Overall I think it isn't a bad upgrade for somebody on a budget like me who wants to have more performance out of your brake system that functions as an everyday driver or could be used on an autox day. I think I'm going to try it this year . I will try to post some pics of the car with the kit installed and keep you guys updated on how the kit feels if there is any changes over the next few weeks or any brake fade.

In my experience the OEM Mazda Miata "Value" brake pads have absolutely horrible initial bite characteristics and require much more pedal pressure to achieve a given level of deceleration than aftermarket performance oriented brake pads.