John ButlerAre you looking for brake pads that provide a little more bite than the stock pads on your daily driver? You don’t need to spend your next paycheck on high performance brake pads. There are some entry level aftermarket brake pads that perform much better than OE pads. These brake pads are a big upgrade from stock pads, and they don’t break the bank. Read on to find out which aftermarket brake pad brands are the cream of the crop for daily drivers.
High Performance Brake Pads Are Overkill For Daily Drivers
When people hear “aftermarket brake pads”, they usually think of high performance brake pads. You know, the ones that are built for track racing or heavy towing. For example, pads that provide:
- Really high friction levels
- Fast bedding
- Stability in extremely high temperatures
These pads are usually very expensive – twice or even three times the price of OEM pads.
What a lot of car owners don’t realize is that there are some entry level aftermarket brake pads that:
- Perform better than OE brake pads
- Are made for daily drivers
- Cost about the same as OE brake pads, give or take a few bucks
Upgrading to quality entry level performance brake pads often does the trick for daily drivers. If you go with a quality brand, you’ll notice some improvements in your vehicle’s braking performance. Improvements like:
- More bite
- More longevity
- Less dust, noise, and fade
Our Recommended Brands
OEM brake pads can be somewhat satisfactory parts. Yet, there are some aftermarket brake pads that provide so much more value than OE pads. With OE brake pads, you’re paying a premium price for average pads. You can pay the same price for a quality set of aftermarket brake pads and get more value. Several brands of aftermarket brake pads offer advantages over OE pads, such as:
- More bite
- The ability to absorb more heat
- The ability to disperse heat more evenly
- Less fade
- Less dust
- Less noise
Upgrading to a quality set of aftermarket brake pads can improve your car’s braking power. The problem is, there are so many different aftermarket brands to choose from. It can be hard to decide on a quality brand that will provide the most bang for your buck.
That’s why we put together this guide. As experts in brake parts, we live and breathe brake pads. We’ve evaluated many different aftermarket brake pads. We also handpicked only the best ones to stock in our inventory. If you’re looking for the best brake pads for your daily driver, we can help with that. Below, you’ll find a list of the best aftermarket brands that make quality brake pads for daily drivers.
1. Raybestos
Raybestos is one of the oldest brake parts brands. In fact, they have been around since 1902. This brand makes many different types of brake pads, including:
- Pads for towing
- Performance brake pads
- Parking brake pads
- OE-equivalent brake pads (but with improvements)
Let’s focus on the OE-equivalent brake pads by Raybestos:
The Replacement Grade Brake Pads are “original-equivalent”. That means these pads are designed as closely to OE brake pads as possible. Yet, Raybestos made sure to add some improvements to these pads, including:
- Slots to allow brake gases and debris to escape
- This promotes faster cooling and longer brake pad life
- Noise-dampening layered shim
- This cuts down on brake pad noise, making these pads quieter than OE pads
Otherwise, these pads perform like OE pads. They’re even made with the same brake surface compound.
The Raybestos E3 Hybrid Compound Brake Pads are a bit more expensive than the Replacement Grade pads. It’s because these pads offer:
- More stopping power than OE and Replacement Grade brake pads
- Less noise, fade, and dust than OE and Replacement Grade brake pads
- More durability and pad life than OE brake pads
If your daily driver is strictly a daily driver, the Reybestos Replacement Grade Brake Pads will do just fine. If you engage in light towing and/or light performance driving with your vehicle, you may want the E3 Hybrid Compound Brake Pads.
2. Akebono
Akebono is an USA-based brand that’s known as a pioneer in ceramic friction technology. The brand specializes in ceramic brake pads. Some Akebono brake pads are formulated for performance. Other Akebono brake pads are entry-level pads that are perfect for daily drivers.
We carry a set of Akebono brake pads that provide superior performance for European cars. These pads are Akebono Euro Ultra-Premium Ceramic Brake Pads.
These environmentally friendly brake pads are formulated for the following European vehicle applications:
- Audi
- BMW
- Fiat
- Jaguar
- Land Rover
- Mercedes-Benz
- MINI
- Porsche
- SAAB
- Volkswagen
- Volvo
These pads are ideal for normal driving and performance driving. They offer some improvements over OE pads, including (but not limited to):
- More bite (shorter stopping distances)
- Less dust
- Longer brake rotor and pad life
Here’s a fun fact: Akebono is the OE supplier for many North American vehicles. So with a set of Akebono brake pads on your car, you’re getting OE-quality pads that offer better performance.
3. Centric
Centric is a well known brand that produces quality brake parts for street vehicles. Centric brake pads are not as performance-oriented as the pads produced by the company’s division, StopTech. Instead, Centric brake pads are geared toward daily drivers and light performance vehicles.
We carry many different Centric brake pads that work great on daily drivers. These brake pads work like OEM pads, but with improvements like:
- Better stopping power
- Less noise
- Longer pad life
- Less dust
- Less fade
We even have Centric brake pads for muscle cars built between the 1960s and 1990s. The line is called Centric C-TEK 102 Semi-Metallic Brake Pads. These pads offer superior performance to OE pads. With a set of these pads on your classic Muscle car, you’ll enjoy the following benefits:
- Longer pad and rotor life
- High noise abatement
- High anti-dust capability
- High friction level at all temperatures
- Resistance to fade
Do you need help finding the best brake pads for your daily driver? You’re welcome to get in touch with us. We’ll be happy to help you!
