EDIT: Pads and Disks bought - Review on lower post

My brakes need changing all round on my st170, should I get EBC turbo's or Black diamond Combi's and their respective pads?

 

I got 40 groove disks and EBC Green Stuff pads from CRN last year and they were very cheap, around Ł230 only thing i would say is dont go for Green Stuff Pads within 6000 mine were knackered. I got Red stuff now, much MUCH better.

 

I'm a massive ebc fan, but agree 100% with above greenstuff isn't much cop, redstuff ceramic, or yellowstuff is vastly better, I use yellows, but previously reds, reds are much dustier than yellows, my yellows have done over 30,000 miles.
tabetha

 

I was too chicken to try Yellow stuff i think im too wimpy on the brakes to get decent heat into them

 

I got EBC ultimax

 

dont bother with ebc they're crap.

i've spoken to loads of people with ebc stuff including ultimax, all warped, all shockingly crap.

also, one of my uni lecturers (teaches the motorsport stuff) tested ebc against ferrodo when he worked in a touring car team and the standard road compound ferrodos out performed the "better" ebc stuff by miles! ebc had no modulation and then the coefficient of friction shot up and they locked up WAY too quickly and suffered from heat massively. ferrodo had loads of modulation, high resistance to heat and better braking power before they locked up.

ferrodo all the way! why do you thing the ferrodo 2500 is soo much more expensive than ebc

 

AFAIK you can now buy Brembo OROs for ST170, that's a goooood choice

 

I went for EBC in the end, can't really talk about them as I've only done 20 gentle miles on them, I shall report beck when they're bedded in next week

 

Don't be to gentle, will be best after cooling down from thier first roasting, during bedding in the pads will actually transfer some material onto the disc surface.
Ferrodo, I get FREE, but don't use them myself, why someone thinks touring car brakes are relavant to road brake temperatures, just goes to show why somepeople pick the stuff assuming it's better because it's more expensive, now let's see.
A manufacturer makes a product and has the chance to sell it at any price he wishes, wonder what he'll do, interesting to note yellowstuff IS police approved not one single ferrodo is.
I used DS2000/2500 and found them to have zero feel, took ages to warm up then another 5 minutes later they faded, was always fading them on the road, only happened once with the yellows.
I gave them away as I did my 1155, to al ie retro al, had a few hundred on them that's all, would buy and use many many others before using FREE ferrodo.
tabetha

 

interesting stuff there tabetha, i was mearly quoting a test done comparing the two manufacturers and as you rightly say the temperature differences do mean its not a valid test for a road car.

other things to consider are the car its self and more importantly its weight and use.

i found y ferrodos to be pretty good on monday at a track day but then i've never tried ebc and i only stay away from them from what others have said. i will however be trying red dot dics and pads next as they are getting very good reviews from friends doing track days with their road cars (focus rs, escort cosworth).

 

Another picture to make out the grooves. should have really thought about this before I put the wheels back on

 

Perfectly timed this thread, looking to change all round on my 170. Thanks

 

any one used zero sixty i have them on mine at the moment wiv mintex extreme pads works pretty wel wel compared to standard st set up. I'll be changing over to compbrake 330mm 6 pots soon tho.

 

Well I've been bedding the brakes in for a while and after a quick check today they looked ready for a real test. Took the car out for a spin and my god are the brakes good. From 60-70mph to 10mph the deceleration is relentless, there is no doubt that the new brakes are better than the old ones. After a while of extreme braking there seemed to be no fade what so ever, they were still biting had and making the car squirm on the more bumpy tarmac of my local roads. I stopped to have a look at the brakes and the disks where roasting (obviously) but there was no smell of burn brakes.
All in all I'd recommend my setup to anyone and I hope this thread helps anyone thinking about a minor (no resizing) brake upgrade
Just a recap of what I have:
EBC Turbo (grooved, Dimpled and vented) Front
EBC Turbo (grooved, Dimpled and solid) Rear
EBC RedStuff all round

 

The newer redstuff are nowhere near as dirty as the older formula, which really needs wheel cleaning every week, due to dust from pads.
Did you notice how well the brake in coating works as well when brand new ?
You can get different material discs to make even better but only in certain sizes, but they wear really really quickly, lotus used to use them.
tabetha

 

I was fairly soft on the brakes to start with but when I did have to brake reasonbly hard they seemed to be working ok, at least as good as the standard setup. The Zinc coating is only left on the centre of the disk and the outsize 1-2mm