Tried fixing my beater with generic brake pads instead of name brand ones, huge mistake

After burning through a set of no-name pads in under 6 months on my 2003 Corolla, I swapped to Wagner thermoquiets for $38 and they actually stop me now without squealing - has anyone else had way better luck with mid-tier brands over the ultra cheap stuff?

2 comments

2 Comments

carr.xena4d ago

Haven't you ever just felt that gut punch when you realize cheap parts are gonna cost you more in the long run? I feel you on this one. That's rough when the pedal goes soft on you, especially after you already tried to fix it. I've had that same thing happen with some no-name rotors once, warped in like two months. The mid-tier stuff just works better, plain and simple. Sometimes you gotta learn the hard way that saving twenty bucks up front means way more headaches later.

oliverbailey6d ago

You ever had parts that just refused to seat right? Put cheap pads on a buddy's old Civic once. They bedded in like they were made of chalk dust. Had to bleed the whole system twice because the pedal went soft again. Grabbed a set of Centric coated rotors and some mid-grade pads. Night and day difference. Sometimes the basic stuff just isn't worth the headache.