Brake pads: organic, ceramic, or semi-metallic

Pads differ in more than price. The friction material decides how they brake from cold, how much dust they produce, how they sound, and how fast they wear the disc. More expensive here does not mean better — it means different.

Organic

Composition: fibres, resins, and fillers with little metal.

Upsides: quiet, progressive, gentle on discs, inexpensive.

Downsides: they wear faster themselves, hold less well when hot, and produce more dust.

Suits: calm urban driving and modest mileages.

Semi-metallic

Composition: a substantial proportion of metal fibres.

Upsides: they hold well when hot, stay consistent under load, and last.

Downsides: noisier, harder on discs, and less effective from cold.

Suits: hard driving, heavy cars, mountains, and towing.

Ceramic

Composition: ceramic fibres with a small metal content.

Upsides: little dust (and it is pale rather than black), quiet, consistent across a wide temperature range, and gentle on discs.

Downsides: more expensive, and weaker for the first few metres from very cold.

Suits: everyday driving where clean wheels and quietness matter.

How to choose

The main rule: match the vehicle specification. Pads intended for a heavier or faster car do not make the brakes better — they change a balance the ABS is tuned to.

The second rule: replace both sides of an axle together. Different pads left and right produce different forces — that is pulling under braking.

The third: never mix materials on one axle.

Bedding in

The step almost everybody skips, and it affects the entire subsequent life.

Why: new pads must transfer an even layer of their material onto the disc. An uneven layer is judder under braking; the mechanics are in the brake judder article.

How: a few dozen moderate stops from medium speed without coming to rest, with pauses to cool.

What to avoid for the first few hundred miles: emergency stops, and holding the pedal at lights after heavy braking.

Signs they need replacing

Squeal from the wear indicator — a metal tab deliberately contacting the disc.

Grinding — that is metal on metal, and the disc needs replacing too.

Thickness below the minimum — measured visually or by sensor.

A longer pedal — covered in the spongy pedal article.

Wear sensors on some cars — covered in the pad monitoring article.

In short

• The material sets the balance: stopping, dust, noise, disc wear.
• Dearer means different, not better; go by the vehicle specification.
• Replace both sides of an axle together and never mix materials.
• Bedding in builds an even layer and prevents judder later.
• A squeal is the indicator; grinding is already the disc.

Download the app — ABS codes and wear sensors are read with an ELM327 adapter over Bluetooth SPP on Android.