Ceramic brakes - expected life and cost to replace

[JonW]

All

I feel bad asking this as I’m sure I could find it on the forum if I searched long enough, but

What would be the expected life (in miles) of a set of Ceramic brakes (as on a Stradale), and how much do they cost to replace? Is there a difference between front and rear in terms of either life expectancy or cost?

Thanks in advance...

 

[conaero]

First off, the difference is massive. They just bite and stop. OK the Strad is a fair bit lighter.

Costs, I believe the pads are £400 an axle, I thought it was per wheel, but have been told that its both sides.

Rear pads do wear quickly due the traction control constantly braking the rear wheel.

Discs are horrific. I believe they are £2-2.5k each but there is a company in Germany that reburb them for about a grand each and they also warranty the work.

Now, we are led to believe the discs last the life of the car but that simply is not true. My Strad at 21k miles when I bought it had 50% meat left on the front pads so working on a 75% rule, you will be looking at replacing pads circa 30-35k miles.

Front discs I would say, with moderate use will last upwards of 50k maybe unto 100k miles but abuses cars less.

For a carbon ceramic disc to become worn does not mean it gets thin, it usually translates as the surface breaking up and bits fall out, sort of chipped away.

My mate Adam who tracks his F488 has already gone though rear pads at 6k miles so like anything its how you treat them.

Personally, have a car inspected, if they are ok, drive it spirited but not track and dont worry about it.

https://www.rebrake.de/prozess/?lang=en

 

[JonW]

First off, the difference is massive. They just bite and stop. OK the Strad is a fair bit lighter.

Costs, I believe the pads are £400 an axle, I thought it was per wheel, but have been told that its both sides.

Rear pads do wear quickly due the traction control constantly braking the rear wheel.

Discs are horrific. I believe they are £2-2.5k each but there is a company in Germany that reburb them for about a grand each and they also warranty the work.

Now, we are led to believe the discs last the life of the car but that simply is not true. My Strad at 21k miles when I bought it had 50% meat left on the front pads so working on a 75% rule, you will be looking at replacing pads circa 30-35k miles.

Front discs I would say, with moderate use will last upwards of 50k maybe unto 100k miles but abuses cars less.

For a carbon ceramic disc to become worn does not mean it gets thin, it usually translates as the surface breaking up and bits fall out, sort of chipped away.

My mate Adam who tracks his F488 has already gone though rear pads at 6k miles so like anything its how you treat them.

Personally, have a car inspected, if they are ok, drive it spirited but not track and dont worry about it.

https://www.rebrake.de/prozess/?lang=en

Thanks Matt, so it would make sense for a car to have say 30% wear on the front pads, but maybe only 50% on the rear pads

 

[conaero]

Depending on how its been driven yes. Adams Ferrari had its rears replaced first due to the active rear braking.

 

[azapa]

I drive mine like I have just stolen it, and the brakes seem fine. Out-braked a F812 last weekend on the track. Video to follow.

The disks are quite easy to remove and weigh, the minimum weights are stamped on the disks, so you can track wear quite easily.

I love 'em. One of the cars high points.

 

[Felonious Crud]

I drive mine like I have just stolen it, and the brakes seem fine. Out-braked a F812 last weekend on the track. Video to follow.

The disks are quite easy to remove and weigh, the minimum weights are stamped on the disks, so you can track wear quite easily.

I love 'em. One of the cars high points.

Agreed. How are yours in the wet? Mine bite just as well, but with an alarming millisecond of lag.

 

[JonW]

I drive mine like I have just stolen it, and the brakes seem fine. Out-braked a F812 last weekend on the track. Video to follow.

The disks are quite easy to remove and weigh, the minimum weights are stamped on the disks, so you can track wear quite easily.

I love 'em. One of the cars high points.

Thanks Azapa - I’m at the very early exploratory stages of considering a car, so am trying to make sure I know what it means when the dealer tells me that the front brakes are c. 25% worn, but the rear brakes are just over 50%...

 

[Rwc13]

Stradale or something non-Maserati I wonder..........?

 

[Zep]

Matt and Azapa have it bob on.

Have the discs weighed and you will know the wear condition.

I believe there is going to be reduction in the cost of refurbishing the discs as the volumes are going up, you can now buy a (relatively) run of the mill Audi with carbon discs.

 

[Strad]

I heard it was 90,000 miles for CC discs but even if it’s a bit less, my man maths kicks in and says that’s £12k over a lot of miles and probably many years whereas in 90,000 miles on steel discs, you will replace maybe 3 sets of pads (after some fun!) and a set or two of discs. Probably not much in it........

M.

 

[azapa]

Agreed. How are yours in the wet? Mine bite just as well, but with an alarming millisecond of lag.

Hardly ever driven the car in the rain to be honest, not much of it down here!