# NRS brakes - who's got experience



## JeremyJ (3 mo ago)

Brake experts, I need your help! I need new pads on my GLI and I’m hoping to save some $$$ and do the wrenching myself, but I don’t know where to start with selecting pads.

I’m not looking for crazy performance or track work, just a solid, daily driving pad.

I’m guessing some of the things to care about are expected life, dust, and noise, but I’m not sure what to actually look for.

My buddy recommended NRS, can anyone confirm if they’re solid?


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## miktip (May 19, 2012)

Never heard of NRS...I use powerstop Z23.


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## kirk_augustin (Jul 21, 2012)

I never by expensive brake pads, and instead always by the cheapest ones. The reasoning is that the cheapest ones are the softest and last the shortest, but do the least wear on the rotors, which are the more expensive and harder part to change.
The most expensive brake pads are ceramic, and they quickly wear out rotors.


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## h62962 (6 mo ago)

I too used Power Stop pads on my BMW and I'm happy with them. Available from Amazon and very reasonably priced. Plenty of DIY videos on YouTube


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## RoutanDaddy (Apr 25, 2009)

I’d recommend nothing but Pagid brake pads for a GLI, as it is at the end of the day a performance model and Pagid pads are the OEM performance pads for Porsche, VW, and for Audi from the year 2000 right through the 2016 model years. After that, they detoured into ceramics, using Akebono OEM. Bad idea… 

Unfortunately, as a brake parts expert for 42 years, I would not recommend products like Power Stop, or anything that’s made in China, when you can buy German made, European R90 pads for very reasonable money. In fact, OP you’re welcome to contact me directly, and I can hook you up with the proper parts. 

Instagram: Brakeparts

www.alretta.com


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## wascallyrabbit (Jun 22, 2005)

Carbotech or Performance Friction have worked well for me. They have street all the way through full race pads. call them and see which compound they recommend for your driving. My local O'Riley's carry PF pads.
Most modern cars are designed so you get one set of pads for one set of rotors.


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## RoutanDaddy (Apr 25, 2009)

PS: NRS is a Canadian firm that’s known for their patented anti-shear technology on the brake plate attachment to the friction puck. While at many levels they are a fine vendor for basic building blocks of steel backing plates and hardware, they have no particular background in friction materials. This whole brake pad line is corporate’s way of leveraging their other technologies into finished goods that they can then market, but I have not seen any market penetration thus far, as they are relatively new in the marketplace. There’s nothing special about them at this point.

Geoff


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## dan.hatton98 (Jul 4, 2015)

JeremyJ said:


> View attachment 230790
> 
> Brake experts, I need your help! I need new pads on my GLI and I’m hoping to save some $$$ and do the wrenching myself, but I don’t know where to start with selecting pads.
> 
> ...


When I replaced the brakes on my 2016 Performance Package GTI, I took my local shop's recommendations on an "upgraded" pad for the fronts. The next month, I experienced so much squeaking when I applied the brakes that I went back to the shop and asked them to put stock pads back on. I've been happy every since. I would recommend stock pads from VW.


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## spitpilot (Feb 14, 2000)

Buy ceramic pads! I've fought brake dust forever...you scrub your wheels and they look "crudy" again in no time. Bought some Akebono Ultra pads and wheels look great all the time! Didn't notice any drop off in performance, but then you don't see me road racing anymore!


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## broccolirab (Jun 13, 2013)

Finally someone w


RoutanDaddy said:


> PS: NRS is a Canadian firm that’s known for their patented anti-shear technology on the brake plate attachment to the friction puck. While at many levels they are a fine vendor for basic building blocks of steel backing plates and hardware, they have no particular background in friction materials. This whole brake pad line is corporate’s way of leveraging their other technologies into finished goods that they can then market, but I have not seen any market penetration thus far, as they are relatively new in the marketplace. There’s nothing special about them at this point.
> 
> Geoff


Finally someone who knows their friction companies and technology

I can vouch that the friction material on these pads has been extensively tested at LINK labs and will exceed the OE pad in a multitude of testing (j2784, j2707,j2521)

positive mold, correct j or slot chamfers, burnished where applicable etc.

Yes made in Canada and not in china sold to the lowest bidder.


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## trampas (Oct 9, 2011)

miktip said:


> Never heard of NRS...I use powerstop Z23.


What's year?.... I have used browned for free, just you pay fright.


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## tpink (Nov 11, 2012)

RoutanDaddy said:


> I’d recommend nothing but Pagid brake pads for a GLI, as it is at the end of the day a performance model and Pagid pads are the OEM performance pads for Porsche, VW, and for Audi from the year 2000 right through the 2016 model years. After that, they detoured into ceramics, using Akebono OEM. Bad idea…
> 
> Unfortunately, as a brake parts expert for 42 years, I would not recommend products like Power Stop, or anything that’s made in China, when you can buy German made, European R90 pads for very reasonable money. In fact, OP you’re welcome to contact me directly, and I can hook you up with the proper parts.
> 
> ...


Very good advice! 
Brake pads and tires are what stop your car quickly and safely when you really need it. 
Think about it. 
Get good pads and tires. Save money elsewhere.


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## CT4000Q (Nov 24, 2014)

To me, the primary decision factor for brake pads is the friction pad compound. There's three types you can choose from: Organic - which is OEM on most cars as they are "softer" given a good initial bite and easy modulation - but the trade off is more dust, shorter pad life (relative to other types) and more fade after repeated hard braking. This is the best choice for daily drivers. Semi-metallic - this adds metal to the friction pad to improve heat resistance and lowers dust but trades off feel and increases rotor wear. Worst choice of the three IMHO. Ceramic - this replaces the metal with ceramic materials which offers superior resistance to fade, has low dust (in fact the dust is tan vs black) at the trade off of initial bite (more effort required for light braking). This is the best choice for harder drivers. As to brands, NRS's big push is galvanized metal in the backings - I've never had a rust issue on any other pads and generally use pads that have shims / teflon pads to eliminate squeal so I don't see this as a huge advantage. So once you choose which compound fits your needs, then you can shop brands and use the recommendations from the posts. Personally, I've gone full circle on this and I'm back to OEM organic (then again my CC's wheels are gray to begin with


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## Genebaby (Jul 13, 2020)

I'm not in the market for a while yet for my GTI but this does interest me as I really want to keep the brake feel the OEM pads are giving, which are TRW on my car. So I was looking at perhaps another TRW I can buy that is similar rather than the dealership where they up the price so much.

So I think organic is for me, it's a daily driver that will never see the track.

Over here I've never heard of Pagid, is there a pad you would recommend for standard street driving?


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## Bezserk (Apr 13, 2017)

I use brembo pads from ecstuning.com , dont buy parts on amazon or from china when you have a much better source available. I have ECS's own 2 piece rotors on front and brembo rotors on rear, my braking is really powerful and has lasted a long time despite what people say about ceramic pads and drilled/slotted rotors


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## SloopJohnB (Dec 25, 2014)

JeremyJ said:


> View attachment 230790
> 
> Brake experts, I need your help! I need new pads on my GLI and I’m hoping to save some $$$ and do the wrenching myself, but I don’t know where to start with selecting pads.
> 
> ...


Keep it stock. VW went to lotsa trouble to pick out the pads for your car. FWIW I still uses OEM Textar pads on my E46 M3 vert.


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## Butcher (Jan 31, 2001)

As a professional, my biggest concern in any brake pad is for them not coming back. Brakes are a fairly easy job but have a high tendency to come back. 40 years working on German cars, there is no magic that a technician can do to prevent noises. I've done all the tricks and it comes down to what you are installing. Using cheap pads is a guarantee comeback. Since I pick up/deliver my clients cars, you might as well right off 4 hours of work.

As for rotors, it seems that the Germans have specs that a rotor will last 2 brake pads. I highly doubt if any will last longer than that. Maybe the older rear brake pads since they did not do much braking back then. I have had some clients that need rotors every brake pad replacement, but they are really aggressive drivers, not the norm.

Akebono can make noises after abut 18 months. That is why I do not use them on my Mercedes clients. I use them on my wife's 91 Cabriolet [Scirocco 16V brakes] and she does not have a problem. Factory Mercedes brake pads made by Akebono are junk, they ruin the rotors in 6-8 months. Seen that twice. Textar are regularly good, but are dirty. Pagid.....heck no! They are noisy. TRW/Textar, 50/50, mixed results. Bosch were terrible about 10 years ago. I went to a seminar and the Bosch representative indicated that they had a new 'cake mix' and the noise problem was a thing of the past. I waited for a few years so the old pads would filter out of the system and started to use them. They seem to work ok. Ate pads can be noisy if it is their really small pads but then again, small pads can be difficult to keep quiet. 

Without a doubt, the brake pad that NEVER comes back and is cheap [and made in China] is OEF3. My warehouse keeps them in stock. They are usually all the same price and less than $28. This company goes against everything I stand for. They are cheap, made in China, and are a no name brand. The fact is, they absolutely work and I cannot tell you why. I have never had a comeback EVER. I have used them for a couple years now and have hundreds of brake jobs using them. I have no idea why they work, but they do. They absolutely should not.





OEF3 - Brake System







www.oef3brakesolutions.com





The rest of their stuff is junk. Rotors, calipers, etc. I will not use a rotor that is not painted. Nothing sucks more than looking at a brake job you did 6 months ago and see rust.

I would never use brake pads that I cannot warranty quickly. Clients do not want to wait weeks to get something resolved. Heck, they do not want problems from the beginning. Can you imagine that?

BTW all companies that sublet the job to other vendors go with the cheapest vendor. It's not the Chinese fault that the company picks them. I have seen the Chinese make really good products and they also make junk. It's the companies fault that they are accepting the cheap parts from their suppliers.


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