I posted earlier about wheel squeak in my 2007 2.0T A4, took it to the dealer and found out the front pads and rotors are shot after only 19k miles. Whatever.

I'm not going to pay Audi 580 bucks to replace everything, so I figured I could do it myself with the help of a family friend and a hydraulic lift. I'm considering these Centric rotors:

http://www.autopartswarehouse.com/sk...n+%26+Steering

Anyone have any experience using their products? Are they quality/comparable to the Audi ones?

Also, any recommendations for cheap but solid pads? I'm not looking to do the Autozone route (unless they aren't junk), although I'm wondering if there are any good alternatives to the Audi factory pads. I've also heard that ceramic pads can get too hot and warp the rotors even though they're cleaner than the semi-metallics. Anyone have an opinion on this as well?

Thanks in advance.

 

How many miles are on your car? My Jetta GLX, with essentially the same type of pad and rotor when 127,000 miles before needing new front brakes. My 06 A4 has 61,000 miles and is still on the original brakes. Granted I do mostly highway driving, which is much less hard on the brakes.

 

19,000. Yeah, I have no idea either. It must be a product of mainly city driving plus the original owner letting it sit a lot. Either way, the fronts are at 3mm and the dealership said the rotors are shot.

 

I had those rotors with Centric Ceramic pads. Nothing but trouble! They aren't compatable if you can imagine. The manufacturer admitted so much to a local parts shop. The problem is the pads cause deposits on the rotors that lead to brake pulsation that gets worse as time goes on. I could actually eliminate that pulsation by doing a full ABS stop from about 60 mph 2 or 3 times in a row. The deposits would burn off and everything would be fine for a few weeks, but the pulsation would come back. The Centric rotors I ended up using on my 2006 A4 2.0 are the Power Slots, used in conjuction with Centrics Powerstop pads. They have been working great, no problems yet after about 7,000 miles. I have inspected the pads and surprisingly, they don't seem to be wearing much faster than pads used with non-slotted rotors

If you are concerned about excessive wear with slotted rotors, I'd go with the Centric rotors you mentioned and the Autozone pads. That combo worked very well on my son's BMW. The reason I recommend the Centric rotors is the do seem to be well made, the coating seems to stand up well, and the rotors are easy to pull off the hubs because the coating doesn't promote corrosion (electrolosis)

 

So you're saying that the Centric rotors are OK, but just not to use them with the Centric ceramic pads? Also, is your son using the Duralast Ceramic pads from Autozone?

I'm also becoming very skeptical that my front rotors could be shot this soon, although I suppose it wouldn't hurt to change the rotors and pads in conjunction.

 

OK, based on a lot of searching, I think I'm going to order the either the Centric rotors I posted above, or these Zimmerman rotors which seem comparable but cheaper (free shipping):
http://www.purems.com/products/product.php/II=1633

Then, I think I'm going to go with the Akebono Ceramic pads seen here:
http://www.placeforbrakes.com/produc...&car_year=2007

If anyone has a similar set up to this, or any reason as to why I should avoid one of these particular brands, I'd love to hear it. Thanks again.

 

On the BMW we used a conventional pad.

I have had experience with Zimmerman rotors, which were very good. I guess what I am saying is ceramic pads have given me trouble. I can't say anything other than the Centric rotors you were looking at were not good with Centric ceramic pads.

 

You may want to look at EBC rotors and pads. Green stuff pads for street use and Red stuff pads for aggressive street use. I have not used on Audi yet but when the time comes I will consider going this way.