Applicable to: '90 - '97 1.6 liter
I didn't like the feel of my Miata's brakes when I first bought the car. I had planned on upgrading to the big brakes but decided to try better pads first. I read up on the Axxis Ultimate pads and decided to give them a try. I've been happy with the Axxis Metal Masters I've used in the past and expected to be satisfied. The first thing I noticed was that these pads that came in a box that said "racing pads" included a bright orange sticker that said "Not for use while racing". That certainly struck me as odd, but since I never planned on taking this car to the track, the issue was moot. Once I put them on and seated them, I was VERY impressed with how well they worked. The brakes had an immediate bite to them and the car now stopped with authority! My only concern was that they were very, very dusty. This might not have been a big problem if I didn't have BBS basket-weave wheels on my car and red-painted brake calipers... all of that was a real pain to clean. Fortunately, the dust was easily removed. Unfortunately, they'd turn clean wheels almost black in less than 200 miles of driving.
All in all, I thought these were great pads for the money, provided that you don't care about cleanliness or plan on doing a lot of cleaning. They worked well enough to make me decide not to upgrade to the big brakes. I did eventually get tired of the mess, however, and replaced them with EBC Greenstuff. I can't really say that there is a major performance difference between the two pads (but then, I never really tested them either). I'm just happy to have wheels that stay clean.
Under 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97 '99 + 1.6 liter 1.8 liter
Axxis Ultimate high-performance ceramic brake pads
These brake pads are the top of the line from Axxis. I decided to purchase these pads after reading all the reviews here on Miata.net. These pads dust severely during the first 500 miles, but after that they dust about as much as OEM pads. Great initial bite, great fade-resistance... I'm no longer scared of braking!
Lubricate your slider pins since you're already working on the brakes!
Under 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97
Axxis Ultimate Brake Pads, front and rear
I purchased Axxis Ultimate Brake pads from Brakewarehouse.com. These are the top-of-the line "sporty" pads from Axxis. The pads appear to be well-made and installed easily in place of the OEM pads. The pads do not come with new shims or springs, so you'll have to reuse the old ones, or buy a new set from Mazda. I reused mine with no problems. The rear pads do come with wear sensors attached and are marked "inner" and "outer," so you know to install the wear sensors on the inside. Initially, the pads were a little grabby and noisy. However, after just one day of gentle driving they are much improved. Now, they do not grab suddenly and they are quiet, no grinding or squealing. The pads give even and easily- modulated braking. They seem to have a bit more stopping power than my 3/4 worn-out OEM pads. For example. its now slightly easier to activate the ABS on my '94 M-edition (but not annoyingly so). The pads were installed along with new Powerstop cross-drilled rotors and Russell SS lines. I used brake grease on the shims and the springs (in addition to on the caliper slider pins), which is supposed to prevent squealing.
I'd rate these pads highly based on their stopping power and lack of offensive noises. I've only had them on the car for a few days, so I can't comment on longevity. However, I used the same pads on my previous car (a '91 MR2 Turbo) and they were holding up well at 20,000 miles of spirited driving when the car was destroyed by a hail storm (no kidding!) and went to the junkyard. The MR2 pads and rotors were about the same size as the Miata's and the (2nd gen) MR2 is heavier, so I expect similar life from these pads on the Miata. Overall, these are a nice improvement over OEM pads without any of the bad behavior (short life, poor cold stopping, noise) of more race-oriented compound pads.
Under 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97 1.6 liter 1.8 liter
"performance" brake pads intended for agressive street driving and light auto cross. increased grab when at operating temperature and increased effectiveness in wet conditions.
I installed these brake pads along with new OEM replacement rotors and then flushed the brake fluid using Castrol GT LMA. I'm completely satisfied with the upgrade and have no regrets. there is an increase in "grab" which reduces pedal effort. I can lock up the brakes much more easily now and at will. this (increased effectiveness) is what I was hoping for so mission accomplished. I'd even recommend these pads if you don't drive agressivly because of the increased effectiveness. my wife, who doesn't drive anywhere near as agressivly as I do, said that the increased effectiveness of the new brake pads makes her feel more secure when braking.
prior to deciding on these pads, I had contemplated upgrading to the 1.8 disks/pads. I decided not to upgrade the brake size but just replace the pads. in retrospect, this was the right descision because I don't feel that the larger brakes would have added anything other than extra expense. I bedded the pads in exactly as described here. smoke came billowing out of the wheels durring the final heavy braking. the next day, I awoke to a highly effective set of brakes: http://www.carbotecheng.com/faq-pad-q3.htm
Over 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97 1.8 liter
Performance brake pads billed as dual purpose for street and track use.
I read about these pads on Roadster Performance's web site and thought I'd give them a try to improve my Miata's frightening wet braking with the OEM pads. I also knew I'd be attending the Thunderhill drivers school. I ordered the pads and put them on in early January.
They leave a lot of black dust that easily washes off and they tend to squeak around town. But wet braking is vastly improved over OEM pads, judging by my seat of the pants (no more of that scary delay until the pads bite the rotors). At Thunderhill, the instructors asked if I had ABS. No, just fabulous modulation at incipient lockup. No fade either in repeated high-speed braking. Two long days at the track used up about a third of the pad material on the front, but didn't appear to chew up the rotors. Rear pads appear to have at least 90 percent remaining. I'll definitely buy them again.
Under 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97 1.6 liter 1.8 liter
Axxis pads billed for use in street and light track applications.
Scott @ RoadsterPerformance.com recommended these when it came time to replace my Porterfield R4-S pads. My experience with the pads is much the same as found in Ben Reyes' review. In short, the pads work exactly as billed. Between some aggressive street work and a two-driver track day, the pads just did not give up. When cold, they aren't noticeably different from the OEM compound, but they are markedly better as temps increase. When hot, they bite nicely; not quite as hard as a "true" racing pad, but harder than the R4-S, and most decidedly harder than stock. They also seem to have better longevity than the R4-S as well, not showing the crumbling that is typical with the Porterfields.
...And if the track performance wasn't enough, the dusting characteristics are wonderful to boot. They dust quite a lot more than stock, but somewhat less than the Porterfields. What impresses me most, though, is the quality of the dusting. With R4-S', I had to SCRUB the wheels to clean the dust off. Not so the Axxis Ultimates. I'd say that ~80% of the dust simply washes off with the hose, and the rest comes off with just a trivial swipe of a rag. I haven't seen another pad compound that can touch these for hot and cold performance, durability, dusting, and price. A great deal!
Under 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to: '90 - '97 '99 + 1.6 liter 1.8 liter
These are the new design on AXXIS brake pads. They are packaged as the ultimate road and track pad.
If you would like the full write up and experience with the pads please email me for the full txt file. "Third day of testing. This is with out a doubt the toughest day of testing. The first session was run on Kuhmo V700s. I was impressed that they didn't require any warm up time at all. They seemed to hold the same coefficient of drag through out the braking cycle and at all heat ranges. They didn't have all the confidence inspiring grip that warm blacks do, but they didn't scare me (turns 6/9 is a hairpin, the braking zone ends sharply at a wall) at any time during this session. Towards the end of the session I noticed a slight amount of fade. It came on smoothly and was not a steep drop in grip like the OEM pads. I ended the session the brakes were still holding on though and I still had confidence in them. The wheels were not cleaned all weekend and were still cleaner than one session with Hawk HP+s. The rotors appeared to have very little wear in them."
Looking at the wheel I noticed some grease which looked a lot like wheel bearing grease. That could have caused the brake pulsing if some of it got onto the rotors. The rotors and pads will be pulled off and looked at some time this week. All weekend long they didn't seem to make any noise or have any grinding like hawks do. We came away totally impressed with these pads and determined they would be just about perfect for miatas on weekends like this with a variety of drivers driving it. For tracks with harder braking zones and cars with big turbos they may be less than perfect. NOT RECOMMENDED FOR FULL RACE PADS, but highly recommended for some one that does one or two track days a year on their otherwise street Miata.
Under 30 minutes to remove completely
Applicable to '90 - '97 1.6 liter
Semi-metallic high performance brake pads. Previously available as Repco Metal Masters.
I bought a set of these pads in preparation for a track event. What I was looking for was a good street/occasional track use pad. I chose the Axxis pads in part because they were the least expensive high performance pads I could find (about $70 plus shipping from PBC, both ends). The pads I previously had on my '91 Miata were okay for street use, but faded badly after extended hard use.
My first drive on the Axxis pads was on Mt. Hamilton. This road is a tight two-lane with lots of blind corners, and coming downhill is a real test of a car's brake system. With the Axxis pads, even after repeated heavy applications they would still stop the car very quickly; quickly enough that the speedometer was still descending after the car was at a full stop! (This was from about 60 mph.)
These pads work pretty well on the track as well. At the event I bought the pads for, at Sears Point Raceway, I never noticed any fade even though I was really working the brakes. There are a couple of spots at Sears where you have to bring the car down from pretty high speeds (from approx. 90 to 40-45). I had no problems doing this.
Only downside to these pads is that your first couple of stops in the morning require a little more pedal effort. Other than that, they make a good street pad.
Over 30 minutes to remove completely
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