Hey forum, its my first brake job on my XKR175, of course they have the large RED caliper brakes with the R.

The brake pads low light just came on, so what I am asking are what pads work just as well or better then the OEM pads, and do the aftermarket pads come in red?

thX for the input...I am sure this topic has been discussed but I am still new here.

 

what is the OEM brand?

 

I have ebc red stuff pads on my '02 XKR, and couldn't be more pleased. I was expecting them to be superior to the OEM pads that were on the car when I bought it in Jan. '18, because I have used the ebc red stuff pads on many vintage cars and never found them lacking. For both my own cars, and those of customers, I've put them on modern and vintage Shelby's, high performance vintage Mustangs, and authentic vintage Cobras, and numerous vintage English cars. They need to bed-in to be 100% effective so there is a break-in period. Once bedded in, they warm up fast and are long lasting.

Z

 

Assuming the calipers are factory red, the they must be the Alcons, correct?
If so, (others can correct me) then Alcon makes their own pad for them as well.

OP... Not having the Alcon setup, I've not researched pads for it, however, I require a pad with a higher bite than OEM, so I use the EBC Yellowstuff.
EBC is not a performance brand of choice (I'd take Hawks any day over them) , but we seem to be limited in options thanks to our limited numbers. If you really want to step up your game, Porterfield can most likely make a custom set using their R-4 or R-4S compounds. Performance pads dust like crazy, whereas Ceramic (OEM anhd EBC Redstuff) are very low dust, and what dust they do produce is Light grey/tan so they don't 'appear' as dirty.

Regardless, choices are limited....

BOL
Vince

 

Nope. The OP has a 2011 XKR. The Alcon Performance Brake Package was never made available on the 5.0L models. It was standard equipment on the 4.2L North American-market 2008 XKR Portfolio models and was a $5,000 option on the 2009 XKR Portfolio models.

Alcon 6-piston front caliper (Brembo)

Alcon 400mm front rotor with crescent-shaped grooves

 

Each time my mechanic has put non OEM pads on either of my XKRs (X100 and X150), I could tell right away and found them mushier than the OEM pads among other issues like squeaking. In many other parts applications I'm not generally and OEM fan, but in brake pads, I emphatically am.

 

Wow... Had no clue...
So there were no brake upgrade options for the 2nd gen XKR? Mine's a single puck clamping on 15.75 inch rotors. (And I'm running Yellowstuff.)

 

AKEBONO...

 

The big ATE twin piston brakes on the 5.0 S/C models had very high friction pads from Jurid - compound reference 310 with DOT edge code GG. They are a bit dusty but they are extremely good. There probably isn't another road pad that is better and many are quite a lot worse. These pads were OE for the BMW M5 of the same era.

Some other Jaguars (earlier S-Types and XJs) also had Jurid pads (compound 233, DOT edge code GG) and they are again very good. Way better from normal warm than Redstuff (320Nm on the tester in place of 240Nm for the Redstuff on my S-Type). EBC are definitely very good at marketing. I'm not convinced that their product is any better than the competition.

OE is not always easy to better as an all round choice. You need to check what the original spec is before looking for an alternative.

 

It is a good question to ask. Whats peculiar is this is one area where I have not paid much attention. When the OEM pads need replacing, I replace them.

So I suppose the follow up questions are the ones that takes too much time to research;-)
Which pads?
Which Disks?
And did you convert to DOT 5? Or is there a magical DOT 4 or DOT 5.1?

 

I tried to tackle the pads question years ago, but found most companies like to hide compound data to prevent others from comparing against them. I was trying to capture not just braking force, but operational temperature range and where in that range 'peak' torque is found. (some have an initial hard bite that tapers off, while others ramp up near the high end of their temp range.
Also trying to note which pads used the NRS style back-plate (a personal preference) to prevent de-lamination. Frustrating enough I quit trying. Maybe I can try again some day.
As for disks, OEM or better. 'Better' as in from a reputable manufacturer, and not the cheap Chinese knock-offs on Fleabay. Safety equipment is not the place to pinch a penny just cause it looks warm and fluffy in some Fleabay pics.
For example, my XK uses StopTechs cryogenic frozen and slotted rotors.
(Note: It is best to assume DOT 5 is not compatible with our brake systems until proven otherwise.) Also. DOT 5 is terribly expensive and labor intense for so little gain over a High Performance DOT 4 fluid such as ATE 200, Motol 600 or Red Line 600. Even DOT 5.1 is stressed to match them.

 

One thing this Brake Pad discussion is omitting....... probably EVERY brake pad out there will stop the rotors from rotating, but it is the TIRES and the ABS that are mitigating factors.
Brake Fade and Feel would be a more interesting and relevant topic. Course, Fade is an indicator mostly of heat and heat dissipation as well as pad off-gassing, which could be attributed to vented-slotted-cross-drilled rotors...... so there ya go.

 

^ This
Very true, and a common saying. "Brakes stop tires... Tires stop cars"

 

Good brake fluids no doubt but wrong for our cars - we need the class 6, low viscosity types.

 

That's a hell of a good catch!
I never even recognized a class 6 rating! That bugger has half the viscosity rating at -40 Deg (F) over any 4+ fluids I could find. So anyone doing extensive driving driving in near zero temps, this is important.

The rest of the class 6 specification (viscosity at 100 deg F) is on par with my preferred fluids, so I guess I lucked out. (Sad that Class 6 drops the boiling point by 30 degrees over the performance stuff though)

Again, great catch nellir, and apologies to all for making recommendations not knowing this.

Vince

 

Apparently, the lower viscosity is primarily required by the ABS unit. As I don't track my cars and I'm not typically hard on brakes, I doubt that the boiling point is that relevant to me. I just go by Jaguar's recommendations

The reason I like the Jurid pads is that they have good feel and are easy to modulate as they are naturally grippy. They also seem to be less grabby and creak less when coming to a stop than the TRW pads I tried.