michaelpsmith

All,

Having fairly large amounts of brake dust - wondering if you all are experiencing the same?

Wondering if we have aftermarket options for brake pads which produce less break dust...

Anyone / vendors recommendations?

Thanks all

les2015

I am having the same issue but I use Armor All wheel protectant after washing the wheels, only be sure wheel is dry before applying . It will protect them for a few weeks.
I will not recommend changing brake pads because of the warranty implications.

michaelpsmith

I too have been using the armor all protectant as well (and it works very well to just wash off the dust) but been looking to reduce dust between washes.

I am surprised to hear that changing pads might have warranty implications (I didn't think of that).

profi

My wheels are black so it's harder to see the brake dust!

JoelSolid

I disagree! The brake dust is shows up like a rusty brown rusty coating that drives me crazy! I have purchased the armor all protectant but haven't tried it yet because I read somewhere online that it doesn't work well on matte black wheels. I read it basically works great on factory silver finishes only.


Any factory black wheel people want to chime in this?

michaelpsmith

I have the silver multi-spoke forged factory wheels...dust still shows up as black. But comes off very easy with a hose...also easy to clean...I would imagine the same on black wheels. I had a 2015 C7 with the black wheels and yes the dust shows up as a brownish-red on that car.

JoelSolid

The brake dust will be the same color regardless of what wheels you have. I was referring to that the armor all wheel protectant. I believe that it leaves a film/residue on the wheel that is visible on black wheels and invisible on silver wheels.

Gizmo AMG

I couldn't stand the dust on my 335i so I bought Akebono ceramics long before I needed new pads. Would do it all over again. They are worth every penny.

JoelSolid

I also had the Akebono pads on my last car. I had the ProAct line vs. the performance line. They were awesome for brake dust. Very minimal.

larvid

Any reduction in braking performance when using the Akebono ceramics vs OEM pads?

les2015

I have been using Armor All wheel protectant on matte wheels of a E63S without problems.
My C63s wheels are grey. no black, ditto perfectly fine with Armor All.
I think that by far BMW is the champion of brake dust on Rims.

theclutch

As a rule, the cleaner the wheels, the less braking force. This means you'll have to step on the brake harder. I've used Akebono ceramics as well as Hawk ceramics or any ceramics that the Tire Rack has had to offer. DEFINITELY cleaner wheels! But definitely less stopping power. I would still buy them... but after I wear out the current ones!

JoelSolid

Clutch,


You are the first person that I have seen report that Akebono pads have less stopping power vs OEM.


From my experience and most others that I could find online said the stopping power was the same if not better with the Akebono pads.


To be honest I seriously doubt Akebono pads would be so popular if the stopping power was diminished vs. OEM.

ProjectC55

This is 10000000000000% correct!!

ProjectC55

Clutch never commented on the akebonos being bad or good he made a general factual comment on why a brake pad would give less or more brake dust.

theclutch

Akebono CERAMICS. Dunno about non ceramics. Any ceramics will have less stopping power. I have 20+ years driving schools... I would know. Wife who also did driving schools even noticed (not saying that just because she's a woman she wouldn't notice...in case she reads this). But we keep buying them since we like cleaner wheels and we simply step on the brakes harder to compensate.

Ejbrock

Ejbrock
I use wheel wax on my rims and have reduced my brake dust significantly.
I have a BMW 5 series with Akebono pads. They truly reduce brake dust.

Sanch

I have the same issue with the break dust. My wheels are black and they start looking browish after 1-2days. Apparently the ceramic breaks don't produce much break dust... I might have to opt for that next time!

profi

Would changing brakes void any warranty anyone??

SBH-

Guys, Im having the same issue as well. Wheels are having a brownish black look after a day or two. The problem is that when I wash the car, all the black residue will pile up on the ground and seriously it looks as if the car is leaking!

Any recommendations on what to do? Fyi, wheels are the black matte, and coated with ceramicpro nanotech.

godrealm06

I use Daiblo Gel from Chemical Guys. It's the best cleaner I've used to clean my wheels after trying different brands/products. I don't remember if they work on matte wheels though but I know they have matte wheel specific cleaners. If you want a really good one though I recommend the Diablo Gel. I use it weekly and it cleans the wheels, calipers, tires, and under carriage area very well.