i didnt do the rears
around 60% of the stopping force comes from the front brakes...those pads wear out way quicker and also warp the rotors.

 

Yes I definately agree and the harder you use the brakes the more force it puts on the fronts up to 90%...in fact if its 60% for you, you do a damn good job of braking easy. With my cars its typically 70ish percent which isn't bad...but I"ve never managed to get a 60% ratio out of them.

 

Needle nose wouldnt work on my rears and i dont think anyone would call me . The 5th gen design is a lil different, it has 4 grovves in it. I tried for the longest time too cuz i didnt wanna spend anymore $ but i finally just gave in and bought a brake piston tool from autozone.

 

They're identical (95 - 03). I have both those years and they're exactly the same same Checker tool works on both of them.

 

oh ok my bad

 

I actually need to buy one of those rear caliper tools too. I think they cost about $8 at Autozone. They certaintly make the job easier and quicker.

 

I paid ~8$ @ Checker. I have 2 of them

 

dude they were good when it comes to stopping power. i loved them, but as it goes through its mid-life crisis, i start hearing squeaks and sometimes it just shimmies. it could be just the fact the pads are going but so far, im happy with my stock maxima pads/brembos.

I will check on those WEAREVER PADS which is basically the nissan pads though.....

 

never go with hawk hps pads you will not be setisfied.

 

umm...care to back up your claim? Just about everyone that has them seems to be pretty satisfied...If you're going to say 'Don't buy this' then you better have reason to support your suggestion.

 

i dont know how many times i have to repeat about the hectic situation that i went through by having the hawk hps with brembo blanks. i ended up getting OEM pads i still got hawk hps that i drove only 2000k on them and they are sitting in my closet getting rusted nobody wants to buy them not even for 15 bucks. the consequences of those pads were horrible. first of all too much dust on my chrome front wheels another complaint is too much squealing, whistling, etc etc. I admit that stoping power is better than OEM but overall performance zero class.

 

U know the complete poles in customer satisfaction in hawk hps is really strange. Most people absolutely love them while a seldom few wont come near them w/ a 10 ft. pole. I find it really odd.

 

So you would rather have a good appearance then have effective brakes?

That makes good sense.

 

Thanks for telling us why you don't like them. To each his own, I guess. My brake pads right now (PBR metal masters) dust like a mother, and I don't really mind it..I just clean off my wheels in between car washes and they're good as new They also squeal but that's annoying as hell...it has a lot to do with the way they're installed as well, and I'm pretty sure when I installed mine I put the anti-squeal stuff in the wrong spot (whoops) so hopefully I can get it right when I get hawks...

 

whats wrong with akebono replacement or OEM pads? i dont understand that why we always gotta run toward aftermarket parts when we can get the OEM parts for less cost. ya the appearance is important to me because i dont like bending over all the time and wiping that brake dust off my wheels just because i want extra 20% of stoping power? no thats not worth it. i would rather pay for something more quiet and clean than something called HAWK"S hps. and by the way after getting the OEM pads installed i have not noticed the huge difference in performance comparing to hawk's pads.
OEM is your best bet.

 

Did you break in the pads correctly when you were using the HPS?

 

followed the instruction that was printed on the box.

 

To be honest the OEM brake pads are not bad at all. What I don't like is the price of the OEM rotors. Definitley overpriced. Last time I did my brakes on the rear wheels I used Duralast rotors from Autozone with OEM pads and never had any problems. Dust of course, but no squeaks. I will need to do the front in a few months and I am planning on trying brembo blanks and either OEM pads or I might try Satisfied Ceramic pads which I bought recently for my wife's Altima. I will see how they work out on her car before making a final decision.

 

So which one is it, You can't have it both ways?

 

you are one of the few people that think that

 

ya at least i am not the only one. btw does anyone know how good is raybesto's brand in rotors?

 

Anyone know if I can use an oversize rotor on the fronts and if so how big can I go? Can I get an 04+ rotor on without issues?

 

you will need the caliper relocation bracket
http://www.mattblehm.com/relocation_kit.htm

 

THank you for the link and the help on this...I'll probably be going with the brembo's for pricing concerns...

and did you get to watch the red and white game a couple weeks ago?

 

sounds good. you are welcome

sure did...gotta love ESPN. cant wait to move back to OKC next summer

 

Why did you move away?

 

im in the AF
http://forums.maxima.org/showthread.php?t=517080

 

The stock caliper relocation brackets are for 2000 & 2001 cars only.

 

I can't vouch for Satisfied ceramics but compound ones performed better than ceramic Akebonas. They were almost dustless and didn't squeal unlike akebonas.

You can get 6th gen calipers and rotors as well they are plug and play. Though, you have to have at least 17'' 5.5gen rims so that you have enough clearance between rotor and rim.

 

The OEM pads are garbage... They are the reason most people get the brake "judder", it is not the rotors at all.

The OEM brakes transfer pad material to the rotor, giving an uneven braking surface making them judder and shake. On one month old brakes I had to make an emergency stop on the highway (75mph-->0mph) and after that they were were shot. I have been running Hawk HPS pads for over a year now with some much higher speed stops and they still are flawless, not to mention the brakes don't fade when they get hot. The HPS pads are actually better once you get them nice and hot.

 

exactly!!

"warped rotors" is just pad material collected on the rotors. HPS wont do that which is why i got new rotors too.

 

Now with the Hawk PADS on the front Do i have to use the OEM shims that came with the stock pads, or the SHIMS that are built onto the pads just fine?

 

Basically.....and i can vouch for that one. I remember i had to make a emergency stop like that on the highwy at about the same speed.

 

i still used the OEM shims

 

sooner those shoes are BA.

 

front ones (black stripes) are mine...rear ones (white stripes) are my sons

 

Only problem I've ever had with rotors that are a bit cheaper is that sometimes they're not quite as thick (so next time you need brakes you have to replace them rather than having an option to turn them), and also some of the cheapy rotors aren't packaged very well from the factories and stacked. I've gotten some sets (as well as drums) that were out of spec from factory! Its possible to get warped rotors/out-of-round drums right out of the box. If you buy your hardware from a decent shop (a napa or similar) they can check them before you stick them on your car. Sounds superfluous, I know, but just from personal experience I've been burned before and its no fun tearing everything back apart!

 

dammit, and I've long since thrown out my old OEM shims.....I wonder if its worth going to the dealer for some OEM shims...but then again I would prolly be forced 2 buy the OEM pads as well

 

where are you geting your hawk pads from

 

the first pair i got from EBAY....but the seller was autopartswarehouse.com

so it was from an autopartswarehouse.com EBAY AUCTION...this last set i picked up from PEP BOYS because they had em in stock......