Put $115 Powerstop Z23 Brake Pads on my SQ5 - Are They Junk?

[@LastHumansGarage]

Z23's are my fav pads. i have run them on my last 3 cars

[@kellinpatler]

I ran Stoptech rotors and Akebono pads on my B8.5 S4. Then I got a B8.5 SQ5 and switched to GiroDisc 2 piece rotors and these Z23 pads. I was pretty blown away by their performance and limited dust.

[@knoxvitela2277]

I have to change brakes myself. When I tell a shop what I want ! They always tell me “oh buddy your just driving on the street” First of all I’m paying , second of all … I’ve needed my brakes a few times and it’s saved me from getting in an accident… sometimes we just want actual stopping power for safety not just for everyday track use Brake shop mechanics will literally try and up sell you . 900$ just for my front brakes and rotors😂? Long story short I was forced to learn how to do brakes myself

[@blkeclipsel2400]

I'm kind of in the same situation. The last time i went to have my brakes serviced, they charged over $900 to replace my components with their most moderately priced rotors and brake pads. They weren't even coated. My rotor hats were rusted to shit within a week. I had just bought the car and I wasn't confident in doing my own maintenance. Now I do all my own maintenance because shops are rip-offs. oftentimes, you pay more for crappy parts and their labor versus good/great parts and doing it yourself. Case and point, I've recently learned that I can upgrade my brake system from 1 piston calipers to 4 piston Brembo calipers with bigger rotors. That blew me away. Upgrading from 4 pistons total to 16 pistons total, bigger rotors with more surface area at the same price they charged me for garbage. The new calipers bolt directly on. The only modification needed is trimming or replacing the rear brake shields. Granted, I bought the calipers used from a car with fewer miles than my own and got ahold of some powerstop slotted rotors and z23 pads. Ultimately, It's a big brake kit, and since the calipers are closed one piece, swapping pads out in the future will only be that much easier. Basically, if you want something done right or better, you have to do it yourself.

[@yorkiepit]

Yup. Brakes are something anyone can easily do if they have the tools and the ability to safely raise the car off the ground. The price service centers attempt to charge for a simple brake job is obscene.

[@7SeasEvents]

I have the Z23 rotors and pads on my VW Passat. No dust, better breaking, no rust on rotors like stock VW/Audi. They do squeal first thing in the morning, but after the first stop sogn no more noise. Will buy them for all my cars.

[@inverno06]

I run Brembo pads and rotors on my S5 and the dust they produce is insane. I would need to wash the wheels every other day to keep up with it. They do however stop very well.

[@ProjectZGarage]

yeap i use the Brembo on my ml350 and Hawk on my f150 and they produce a ton of dust and are noisy.

[@alohacoralreef]

I got brembo pads and they so damn loud 😭 😒

[@Anywaays]

Yeah that's the thing they're performance oriented not comfort

[@dzeeeeko]

I ran the Powerstop trackday pads on multiple cars with great success! They're an awesome product for the price.

[@IgnitionTube]

I didn’t realize they had track day pads!! Good to know

[@megaetk]

I got the Z23 front and rear with coated blanks and they’re a nice upgrade over the stock VW pads. No dust and great bite.

[@Vikturus22]

Bought the Z23's for my mk6 gti. Really big difference from what I had previously. The old ones were generic garbage no names. I did not replace rotors as they are all in great condition so will replace when they get bad

[@Wanderer25]

I ran Z23 pads and rotors on my C7 A6 for about 30k. Big improvement over stock. Better initial bite, consistent brake feel, shorter stopping distance and very low dust. Only negative is the rotors got warped, they're midgrade quality. But for such a cheap price it was worth it. Liked them so much I ended up buying a second set, right before I sold the car 🤦🏾‍♂️

[@willie123811]

@goated313 what if you mess up the first time can you redo it again?

[@AlfredsDumins]

There is cheatcode for rear calipers. Since it's a common DC motor - just connect battery to a caliper and it will retract, obviously if it goes wrong way - change polarities. After you're finished with reassemble everything back - activate the parking brake and it will go back to normal automatically. Tested on Audi Q7 2016 4M generation.

[@IgnitionTube]

Is there a worrry of overextending/retracting the caliper too far?

[@elantra45]

​@IgnitionTube Leave the caliper and pads in while doing it to prevent overextended. You will need to retract all the way to have room for the new pads anyway. 9 volt battery and alligator clips work just fine.

[@hyper8545]

I go with ebc or hawk usually with stoptech rotors

[@sq5_dad687]

2018 SQ5- installed the z23 pads and Zimmerman coated rotors. After 3,000 miles on them here are my thoughts: -minimal to no brake dust! -initial bite not as strong as OEM -when cold not as confident as OEM but no issues after it’s warmed up -no brake squeaks like OEM

[@kassem277]

Im contem[lating installing on an S5, I'm concerned about the initial bite and overall stopping power compared to stock. Can you give more details regarding your experience with the stopping power? Thank you

[@VegasStacker702]

My b9 sq5 needs rotors and pads already. So I appreciate the review thanks for the great content.

[@robertbaron3242]

Thanks for doing this video as it's very timely for me. I appreciate your knowledge and experience so maybe you can answer a few questions that would help me immensely. I have a 2019 A4 Quattro premium plus with the sport package (red calipers) and I'm having a difficult time finding ceramic pads for the car. Akebono and Brembo both said they don't make them and FCP, ECS, Deutsch, etc. have no options so now I'm looking at PowerStop as my last resort. The car has 338x30 front and 330x22 rears. We bought the car new and the brakes were a problem the day we drove it off the lot. I'm in Wisconsin and when the temp drops below 45 the brakes squeal embarrassingly at every stop when speed drops below 5 mph. The car only has 16K miles but brake pulsation has been addressed twice by the dealer and it's back again a 3rd time. As you mentioned Audi dusting is obnoxious and the car has the Audi 10 Y-spoke wheels which makes for 60 crevices to clean and I'm pretty neurotic when it comes to detailing the car so yeah, a nightmare. Your video helps a lot and instills some confidence for me in the Z23 pads. One question is were you able to maintain the brake wear indicators with that pad? Everyone I've spoke with including a non-technical person at PowerStop says that to maintain the break wear indication I have to use the EuroStop pads which are the Z17 compound which is still ceramic but not CF/Ceramic like the Z23. I need rotors too due to the pulsation so I'm thinking of Zimmerman's (or PowerStop I suppose) unless you have another recommendation. This is a daily driver, not tracked, so I just want safe, reliable brakes that don't squeal in cold weather, don't make the wheels filthy in 50 miles of driving and stop the car without pulsating. I would greatly appreciate your thoughts or those of anyone with knowledge and experience on this issue. Thanks, Bob

[@motavice3499]

Did you find a solution?

[@robertbaron3242]

@@motavice3499 Yes I did. I bought the Power Stop Z17 pads and Zimmerman rotors. I don't track the car and decided the Z23's were not required and even a misapplication for my needs. I had concerns about potential rust with the Power Stop rotors as I live in Southeast WI where they use a lot of road salt. From my research Zimmerman is quality brand rotor that are made in Germany and might even be the OEM supplier to Audi. A VW dealer with an excellent service department that's less than 10 minutes away agreed to do the work and it turned out perfect. I planned ahead for the bedding in and did that immediately after picking up the car which required 30 stops from 30 mph to 5 mph and then a 30 minute cool down before further driving. So far the brakes have been perfect with no squeal, no vibration, virtually no dust and a nicer feel for everyday driving than the factory pads (not as grabby). The parts and labor cost less than $1000 so if they hold up that will be icing on the cake but I'm not too concerned as we drive only 6K mile/year with this car.

[@fartman10284]

Maybe you should convince FCP to carry powerstop

[@ChefS6]

On my second set of pads and rotors for the S4 from them. Have the Z23 as well. First set lasted me a little over 3 years. That’s with beating on it and a lot of highway driving with the local driving. Like you said for what they are good stuff if you’re not tracking.

[@kassem277]

I'm contem[lating installing on an S5, I'm concerned about the initial bite and overall stopping power compared to stock. Can you give more details regarding your experience with the stopping power? Thank you

[@mr.tall-man1573]

@@kassem277 Buy the Z26 pads. I use these on my G37 with their drilled/slotted rotors in the front, regular in the rear. They hold up a really long time with little dust and great stopping power. I've autocrossed on them twice too.

[@corycooper4955]

Nice review. I’m wanting 034 two piece rotors and red stuff or yellow stuff pads. I’m ready to see some go fast mod reviews!!

[@maddogmicknyatv]

Let me tell you something about Audi (not all of them i might add) when I worked for them they would get there pads from NAPA for ALL there cars in service. Every year I was there service would make more money for the company than any department would.

[@cesarlebron8152]

I put this same Z23 for my A4 B9 so far barely any brake dust. Good breaking

[@micksalfa1]

Mine are still in the trunk, but this is probably the motivation I needed. I’ve previously only used Akebono but I’ll go ahead.

[@kassem277]

Do you think they are about the same as the EBC red for daily use? If I drive this car spirited for daily use (no track), what are your thoughts? Thanks for the review!

[@hqganggreen]

How are the Z23 holding up?

[@mcphersonjohnathon]

The composite ceramic mix pads way less dust and work as good as any.

[@wongkid]

A cheat code what alot of mechanics do and what i actually do to retract those electronic calipers when i dont have a scan tool to put it in service mode is to unplug the caliper connector and 12v jump the terminals on the caliper

[@IgnitionTube]

Ok so it is common then! Had someone else mention that. Any concern with over extending /over retracting the caliper that way?

[@wongkid]

@@IgnitionTube you cant over retract the caliper. You just gotta common sense when you 12v the caliper. If it extends when you jump it, stop and switch the polarity

[@barfed64]

Have is the wear so far? Will need front brake pads soon for my A6 TDI

[@akellywright]

What rotors do you recommend? I know you had new ones from dealer but what would you get next? I have a ‘17 SQ5. Thanks!

[@DoctaM3]

I only use carbon fiber brakes. 😊

[@razz1976]

Lets hear about the tune!

[@texaspowerman]

I tried those pads on a heavy van, they didn’t work very well in that application, I ended up with the EBC yellowstuff pads.

[@IgnitionTube]

Interesting. I haven’t tried those yet!!

[@carterg1847]

Is the AWE touring exhaust on your SQ5 resonated or nonresonated?

[@IgnitionTube]

No exhaust installed yet! But I have the non resonated one sitting in my garage

[@kbucz9666]

Does OBD Eleven allow you to retract the e brake to change the rears?

[@IgnitionTube]

Yes but it costs credits

[@jamesk3565]

Hope to hear a update on these as you use them more

[@IgnitionTube]

I’ve used them for 6,000 miles as of the making of this video, will update as they wear out I guess!

[@edwincolon7782]

Put these in my wife's car. They stop well. Bought them for my truck. Hoping they last, but.fot.the price.vs OEM prices I'll take the risk, if not I'll just get others...

[@LvATLCeCe]

Has anyone purchased the Akebonos for their SQ5 B9

[@nexushexus4365]

EBC Reds or PowerStop Z23?

[@reynunez7425]

Z23 is a better bang for your buck, EBC Reds are good but they’re pricey.

[@ProjectZGarage]

I am running these on our Audi Q3 and they have been good so far.

[@deividmauricio5536]

Have the powerstop on the S6, and honestly for the price you can’t beat it. I don’t drive like a maniac anyways even at stage 1. Also the brake dust has reduced by like 95% I’m not exaggerating! Wheels been clean for 3 weeks now!

[@IgnitionTube]

Mine has been clean for like 2 months!!! Not sure if that’s just me neglecting washing the car though 😂😂

[@briangray9118]

Wow I’ve never been this early to a video 🤙🤙 wish I saw this before. Just spent $500 on OE replacement for my S3 for Pads and Rotors (front only)

[@IgnitionTube]

No way!! At least shop at FCP Euro to get the Lifetime Replacement Guarantee on brakes 🔥🔥

[@briangray9118]

@@IgnitionTube I should’ve buuuut I had a deal like you did with the dealer I bought from… except 3 months later and 2000 miles I discovered my pads were at 1mm and I’m not hard on the brakes at all. So I needed an immediate replacement 😑

[@edwin_aa]

I recently got a SQ5, but I’m having trouble finding exhaust/parts. Any recommendations?

[@revolutionday1]

Just be warned: if you ever actually have to deal with PowerStop's "customer service" , for any reason, they are an absolute clown-show!!

[@jmackinjersey1]

Wait. You only did a pad slap? You didn't even remove the rotors and have them turned? You absolutely need to at least have that step performed, because now you are only getting about 1/4th of the benefits of the upgraded pads. Your rotors are going to be set for the pads that you removed. The rotors will have the brake pad material left on them, plus, they are going to have the grooves in them that the last pads left on them, so you are not going to have all of the new pad surface hitting the surface of the rotors. Not to mention that your rotors could be warped, even to the slightest, or Nth degree. This is like you change from exhaust manifolds to headers, and use the old gaskets. It never seals properly because the old parts have molded to one another. Or better yet, brand new ToL running shoes and using old, dry rotted laces. You should have actually stepped up to the Z23 Evolution Sport Upgrade pad and rotor set if you want maximum performance.

[@willie123811]

Do you still recommend them? Did you have to do the bedding in procedure?