Hawk HPS + OEM Rotors - 2007 Mazda 3 2.0L

[zmz3]

Hi,

Yesterday, I replaced my brake rotors (OEM) and pads with Hawk HPS and bleed the brake system completely.... Master Brake cylinder was changed and fluid was run through it 3x to make sure no air bubbles were remained... hopefully..

I have put about ~50km on the car, and the brakes were bedded by a mechanic but the brakes feel squishy... when I am in city driving and hit the brakes, the bite isnt as good as you'd expect from a new system... and brakes just feel squishy in stop and go traffic...

anyone has past experiences with this setup? air bubbles should have been cleared since the system was bled...

Thanks

[shu5892001]

Try bedding it in again, following the procedure on the hawk boxes. Also HPS is not one of those pads where you get a high friction initial bite, it's more like a linear bite in which the harder you press the hard the bite will be.

[RedRaptor]

Try bedding it in again, following the procedure on the hawk boxes. Also HPS is not one of those pads where you get a high friction initial bite, it's more like a linear bite in which the harder you press the hard the bite will be.

+1.

Hawk HPS don't have the initial bite of the OEMs but has better performance with its linear properties. It just takes time to get used to. Took me a few weeks.

[zmz3]

Thanks to the guys who replied :)

Additional info:

I have spoken to Jimmy about it, and he mentioned that he might have glazed the rotors/pads during bedding (surprised about this....) ... so he said he will sand paper them and see how that improves the result...

In the meantime, it seems that when I am on the highway, the brakes have to pressed hard to get full stopping power... It almost feels like I am braking on cold mornings/ rainy days all the time now... The pads just dont seem to be gripping... almost as if the material is too hard for the rotors...

any ideas on how I can get those brakes to work properly? (other than Jimmy's idea of sand paper)

Thank you for your help in advance !

[MajesticBlueNTO]

Thanks to the guys who replied :)

Additional info:

I have spoken to Jimmy about it, and he mentioned that he might have glazed the rotors/pads during bedding (surprised about this....) ... so he said he will sand paper them and see how that improves the result...

In the meantime, it seems that when I am on the highway, the brakes have to pressed hard to get full stopping power... It almost feels like I am braking on cold mornings/ rainy days all the time now... The pads just dont seem to be gripping... almost as if the material is too hard for the rotors...

any ideas on how I can get those brakes to work properly? (other than Jimmy's idea of sand paper)

Thank you for your help in advance !

you NEED to bed in the brake pads before they come to their true potential. bedding in the brakes allows for material transfer between the pad and rotor -- the pad material fills in valleys in the rotor so that there is a better contact surface between pad and rotor.

there are many sites that outline how to do this.... the gist of it is to find an empty road (i.e. somewhere where another driver is not going to rear end you), get the car up to 80 km/h and then slam on the brakes as hard as you can WITHOUT engaging ABS. Bring the car to a rolling stop, you do NOT want to come to a complete stop while standing on the brakes as this will create a hot spot on the rotor and "warp" it.

rinse and repeat until either the brake pedal starts to fade or you feel like you're going to vomit. ideally, this is about 4-6 times. after the last bed in attempt, drive your car for 10 to 15 minutes without touching the brakes - do this on a stretch of road where you can go 80 km/h+ as this will allow for better cooling. the last thing you want to do is bed-in the brakes then park it and pull up the parking brake.

[zmz3]

you NEED to bed in the brake pads before they come to their true potential. bedding in the brakes allows for material transfer between the pad and rotor -- the pad material fills in valleys in the rotor so that there is a better contact surface between pad and rotor.

there are many sites that outline how to do this.... the gist of it is to find an empty road (i.e. somewhere where another driver is not going to rear end you), get the car up to 80 km/h and then slam on the brakes as hard as you can WITHOUT engaging ABS. Bring the car to a rolling stop, you do NOT want to come to a complete stop while standing on the brakes as this will create a hot spot on the rotor and "warp" it.

rinse and repeat until either the brake pedal starts to fade or you feel like you're going to vomit. ideally, this is about 4-6 times. after the last bed in attempt, drive your car for 10 to 15 minutes without touching the brakes - do this on a stretch of road where you can go 80 km/h+ as this will allow for better cooling. the last thing you want to do is bed-in the brakes then park it and pull up the parking brake.

Thank you for your reply.

Could it have been possible that the pads/rotors are now galzed due to improper bedding? or perhaps incomplete procedure? Jimmy did mention that it could have happened... I wonder if I (or Jimmy) can re-bed it without damaging either part?

Thanks!

[MajesticBlueNTO]

Thank you for your reply.

Could it have been possible that the pads/rotors are now galzed due to improper bedding? or perhaps incomplete procedure? Jimmy did mention that it could have happened... I wonder if I (or Jimmy) can re-bed it without damaging either part?

Thanks!

try the bedding procedure again, it will get rid of any 'glazing' if there is any. it's easiest to do at night when the roads are clear... try that before going to see Jimmy. and, don't worry, nothing is damaged.

[zmz3]

Thanks to everyone who replied on this thread. Many thanks to MajesticBlueNTO.

After some bedding by myself, I still felt that the brakes weren't grabbing as they 'should' be, which I understand is relative. I went to Jimmy and he bled the brakes once more, which showed slight improvement in rear braking.

In that meantime, I was also able to drive other Mazda 3's, one with stock OEM rotors and pads, and one (Phil's) Mazda 3 with Hawk HPS and OEM rotors...the OEM did certainly grab better, much like what I expected, and like my Mazda3, Phil's performed the same. I guess I am really not used to the way the Hawk pads perform as most cars I have driven have a very good inital bite.

Needless to say, brakes are performing better and the initial grab issue is not an issue per say, but it certainly takes some time getting used to. The braking power is gradual, with much more power after ~40% pedal travel...

Special thanks to Jimmy and Phil05GX :)

Phil drove from Etobicoke to help out with the situation... what a genuine guy !