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MG MGB Technical - Best brake pads

I have been using Greenstuff pads on my MGB and they are now approaching the time to change. I would like a pad with a bit more bite. What suggestions have you good people?
Mike Howlett

I'm not sure if you'd get more bite as I've never used green stuff even though they're a local company but I'm on my second lot of Mintex 1144 pads and find them very good for road use fast or not, no need to heat them up.

I know others here use 1144 too and like them.

I had a mate that worked for Pagid (Performance Brakes) and he'd always moan about the test reports for Green Stuff saying the tests didn't reflect real use.

Of course if you improve the front brakes then you should balance this with improving the rear too to keep the balance (not that I have yet).
Nigel Atkins

Whoops, sorry Mike I thought I was posting on M&S but comments should still stand I imagine.
Nigel Atkins

Hawk blue 9012 ceramic----------if you can get them
Good bight and stable
I've heard they are a tiddle hard on rotors for road use probably a temperature thing but for club racing etc they're magic

willy
William Revit

My B is a V8 with Hawk 4-pot calipers and on the MG V8 register BBS one user highly recommends Feredo DS 2000, now called DS Performance. He wrote a good article on brake pads and found through experience that Greenstuff were inferior to those Ferodo pads. Anyone used those?

I have heard good reports of the Mintex 1144 pads before. The trouble is I'm not sure what the pads are from in my brakes. I think they are off the rear brakes of a Volvo 244, but I have emailed Hoyle Suspension to get the answer.
Mike Howlett

Green stuff are over-rated in my opinion, tried them, binned them. Gone with Mintex on both my V8's.
Allan Reeling

Green stuff are rubbish - squealed like mad on my V8 - Mintex are what I use.
Chris at Octarine Services

Mintex are great, but they leave behind a lot of dust. RAY
small

Mark Wanstall who now runs Hoyle Engineering can supply Mintex 1144 pads to fit my Hawk 4-pot calipers, so I am going to order them from him. Then I know they will fit. They are from a 60s or 70s Volvo but not sure which model.
Mike Howlett

I tried Greenstuff on my MGA a couple of years ago as I mistakenly thought that was what was old worn pads were.

I was really disappointed with them, they had no instant bite,they didnt get much better when they warmed up and the brake pedal felt like the pads were made of rock!

It turned out that the original pads had been Mintex 1144 and when I binned the Greenstuff ones after a few months and fitted some more new 1144s, the brakes were brilliant again.

I especially like the Mintex 1144s instant braking response and that they seem to have a progressive braking effect where the decelleration effect seems to increase even though you are not pushing any harder on the pedal.

Also they dont seem to give off any more dust than the Greenstuff, possibly a little less.

My MGA has no servo but it is still easy to lock up all 4 if I shove the pedal to hard.

So Mintex 1144 have my vote.

Colyn

Colyn Firth

My MIntex 1144 pads have arrived and on the box it clearly states
"This material must not be used on public highway"
Eh?



Mike Howlett

Racing pads? Not for public highway use? Not unreasonable?

paulh4

But on Mintex's own web site, the 1144 pad is described as Fast Road, and in numerous catalogues such as Merlin Motorsport and Demon Tweeks, they are described as suitable for road use. Mark from Hoyle Suspension who sold them to me, also believes them to be fine for road use. I know for a fact that many road cars are fitted with 1144 pads, both classics and moderns.

From Demon Tweeks "Mintex 1144 compound brake pads are designed for fast road and light track day use. These pads have a friction coefficient of just over 0.4 and are designed to work well from cold. Compared to standard brake pads they offer increased fade resistance and better brake modulation. These are a very popular upgrade."

From Merlin Motorsport "Material compounds available are M1144 for fast road, track day and light race use, "

I wonder if the comment on the box is designed for the US market, not here. Does anyone reading this know the truth of the matter?

AS an aside, the name Mintex Racing is just a trade mark and would be applied to all their products. It's like the oil I use in my V8, which is called Valvoline VR1 Racing. It's a marketing ploy.
Mike Howlett

Mike
If it's anything like here, we get that a fair bit here
All new cars have to meet the ADRs
Heaps of aftermarket items like wheels , brake pads,globes etc that have been produced without going through the rigorous ADR testing process go on the market here with "not for highway use" or "off road use only" marked on the packet
Most are quite good items that simply havn't been through the compliance process for use in new cars

An example would be---When your car was new it probably had heaps of asbestos in the brake lining material
You wouldn't get a new car registered now with asbestos pads----not here anyway

willy
William Revit

Replacement pads and shoes have to be tested for compatability to EEC reg 90. So the not for road use is just the americans coverng there backs.
john wright

Well I phoned Mintex technical services and spoke to a most helpful guy called Richard Barton. As Yorkshire John said above, since 1999 brake pads for road cars have to comply with the ECE R90 regulation, but cars made before that date are exempt.

The pads I have bought for my Hawk 4-pot calipers are designed for Volvo 240 and 260, both cars made before 1999, so the pads don't have to be tested and don't have to be marked. Unfortunately Mintex use a common label design which has the disclaimer on it. Mr Barton said they get a lot of calls about this, so I suggested they put a slip of paper in the box to explain when the pad is exempt.

Mintex clearly state that the M1144 pad IS suitable for road use and he sent me a specification sheet for the material which I am attaching here. As you can see from the friction graph the pad works from cold, which a proper racing pad wouldn't.



Mike Howlett

This thread was discussed between 24/03/2017 and 05/04/2017

MG MGB Technical index

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