Brake Pad Opinions

[DiscoDriver]

Hi all,

The left rear brakes on my 00 Disco II have been squealing like mad when doing slow turns to the left. My LR dealer checked and said the pads/rotors still had 70% life left, and the only way they could fix the squeal would be to replace the pads/rotors. (At roughly $500/axle of course!) Last friday I pulled the left rear pads and found that the piston had worn through the anti-squeal coating on the back of whatever aftermarket pads the previous owner had installed. After applying a bit of CRC Disc Brake Quiet things have quieted down a bit. However I want to go ahead and replace all the pads for good measure.

What experiences have you all had with various brands of pads? I don't mind buying OEM pads if they're worth it, but what about EBC, Ferodo, Raybestos, etc.? Any words of wisdom?

Once I get the pads, I'll be bleeding the brown crap from the system and replacing it with Castrol LMA fluid as well. At least that's my plan, since many seem to recommend Castrol fluid.

Also, my dealer replace the inlet manifold gaskets a couple weeks back and, when refurbishing the oil, used Castrol 5W-30. Now I'm a die-hard Castrol fan, but I'd usually go 10W-30 or 10W-40 here in hot, humid Memphis TN. I was somewhat suprised the dealer went with that light of weight. Am I missing something?

Regards,

Mark

 

[Moose]

RE: pads -- I put EBC Green Stuff pads on the front about 5 months ago, and they are great! Hardly any wear yet, no noise, no pulsating, not a single problem. They also (IIRC) about 2/3 the cost of OEM.

 

[DiscoDriver]

Thanks Moose! I couldn't get the EBC's locally and didn't want to wait for mail order (yes, I'm impatient). I bought front/rear sets of Wagner ThermoQuiet pads from Oreilly's and installed them today. So far they're as quiet as a Church Mouse. I also gravity bled the brakes and replace the black fluid, yes black, with Gunk DOT 4. My Disco II has 92000 miles and I'm wondering if the previous owner every changed the brake fluid! The stuff in the master cylinder was dark brown, but it was literally black as I bled it from the rear brakes.

While I was feeling mechanically inclined I added a can of Seafoam via a vacuum line as well as one to the fuel tank. I'll add some to the oil about 300 miles before the next oil change to degunk things. I also cleaned all the corrosion off the battery terminals and added felt washers and some spray protectant.

Thanks to everyone for all the great info here on this site. It makes wrenching the Disco a lot easier!