Poor braking, new pads and discs needed.
 

Hi All,

More expense I’ve been trying to avoid, but it’s time to replace the discs and pads, after only 10k miles...

It was fitted with new discs and pads when I bought it, however I’ve never been overly impressed with the performance; they are just OK in normal conditions, however with a full tank of fuel & loaded up they fade pretty quickly, and need a noticeable amount of extra distance to bring the car to a halt.

I think the admittedly lighter, and brand new V40 the main dealer loaned me a few weeks ago really showed this is up, as it stopped beautifully, progressively and with hardly any pedal travel compared to mine.

The discs all round look like they’ve overheated (unevenly) and the fronts particularly are covered in pad marks. I’m not a particularly ‘sporty’ driver (the car doesn’t really allow this!), and I generally remember to let my foot off the brake pedal for a moment when I stop at junctions from motorways & national speed limit roads to prevent hotspots on the discs.

Taking a closer look revealed that the pads are made by Apec (I’m guessing the discs too), a brand I’ve never heard of, but research has led me to believe they’re a basic motor factor brand, and there’s not much positive feedback online from users of them!

I think our trusted local garage’s reaction of disgust compounded the fact that they’re no good when they asked what’s currently fitted...

I wanted to get original fitted, however the garage have recommended Pagid as being an excellent choice at a much lower cost than original.

I can’t find any real bad feedback, they’re a known brand and OEM to VW, so guessing they’ll be fine, and hopefully perform a lot better than the currently Apec.

Has anybody else used them, and got any thoughts?

Thanks,

Nick

I have mintex disks all round and pads on the front, Volvo on the rear. Excellent braking performance, even towing the caravan.
Disks were half Volvo price so even if you use Volvo pads I use mintex disks.
Pagit, while I've not used them I have heard good things of.

Paul.

I'm not disappointed by the performance of my original Volvo discs. I don't know how long they'll last - I've only driven a quarter of a million kilometers so far. But they are very efficient in locking up the wheels on any surface, so my brake performance doesn't depend on the brakes, but the road grip.

Pads I've replaced, but I got Volvo's once again.

All standard road brake wearing parts perform about the same, EU rule, the difference is price and longevity. Go for a recognised make. Good ones include Pagid, Mintex, Textar, EBC - these are made in England. Shop around you will get a good deal. Its diy.

Definitely go for Pagid. Im using them currently on my volvo and even though Iv used mintex in the past, I think Pagid are better. Brakes feel more responsive but I found they are dearer than mintex. But definitely worth it.

On the bigger Volvo's - especially XC model - Volvo original disks and pads are the best quality part available by far and the only way to go if you don't want the risk of having to do it twice (as the OP is having to).

Yes they are more expensive (not so much from Volvopartstrade on e-bay) but perform better (substantially so in some cases) than pattern parts.

And i am talking from personal experience of my own cars (XC90, XC70, XC60 & V50).

I agree. Front discs did 108k on my V70 D3.

There is no doubt that Apec is of 'standard' motor factor supply, and my experience of them equates to that of the OP when we had them fitted to our daughter's non-Volvo some years ago. Such was the difference in braking efficiency over those originally fitted new that we chose to throw them away after just a couple of months, and replace them with main dealer pads. Chalk and cheese!

Brands such as Mintex and Ferodo were once very well respected premium brands, but certainly as far as Mintex is concerned (and I believe Ferodo) this brand is now a bought-out brand name only, so for us oldies who used to respect them, it's a case of think twice. Made in UK???

For me, if I don't buy main dealer pads at discount, then I go with one of the EBC grades.

Just replaced my rear discs and pads, went with Brembo from euro car parts. The disc centres came well painted so no rust showing through the wheels.

On my xc70 they lasted just over 60k.rears a little more.

Mintex disks, £57 a pair, Volvo £85 each.
Volvo pads are EBC if the legend on the back of the removed pads is to be belived.
Even if the disks do not last as long as the Volvo ones you are still quids in using the mintex, it's not as if it's a hard job to change disks and pads.

Having used both mintex and Volvo disks on my previous v70 I can honestly say I saw no difference in brake performance or longevity but a huge difference in my wallet when using the mintex.

Paul.