Planet 9

Is anyone else going through brake pads in 3000 miles with no track use? I have just over 13,000 miles on my car and I'm on my 4th set of front brake pads! Either I drive this car way harder than I realize or these brake pads wear really fast....probably both.

That sounds like very unusual pad wear. I'd suspect something is wrong; maybe the calipers are not fully releasing. One person did report rapid brake pad wear a while back, so you might try a search.

I would say you're either very hard on the brakes - not uncommon when someone drives a car with good brakes - they aren't releasing as Jim says, or there's something wrong with your rotors that are chewing up the pads. I have 24k miles, including 5 track days in the advanced or instructors' group, and probably 15 autocrosses - hard to keep track - and still have plenty of brakes still on the stock pads that came on the car...

brad

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22-year PCA Member
PCA DE Instructor

I also remember reading a post where people were experiencing premature brake wear warnings from the wear sensors. Have you really verified that the pads are gone? Or is it possible that you changed them just because the light came on?

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Gator Bite
PCA Cayman Register Advocate

The pads are definitely gone. The pad on the passenger side has worn completely and cut into the rotor before so I know they are gone. All of my driving is city driving with frequent stop lights and when you redline 1st and 2nd in between every stoplight the brakes probably where out faster. However, I have had many other cars and my driving habits have not changed. I can't complain about the performance of the brakes or anything else about the car. I could drive it differently but changing my driving style is about impossible. This car is just too much fun.

I would definitely say something is wrong. I drive the wheels of my CS, and have 8K on the odometer and half pad life left on the fronts.

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Current Rides
06 Cayman S
06 BMW Z4 3.0
06 GSXR 1000

Former Rides
05 Boxster
05 SRT-4
05 GSXR 600 20th ann.

Does anyone know with how many mm's left you should replace the pads? I took my wheel off today and it looks like I still have a lot left but I'm not sure. I have 6 autocrosses and 2 track days plus 11 K miles. Thanks for any help you can give me.

Can those of you who have replaced your pads (due to wear and not as a performance mod) provide an estimate on approximately how many miles you drove before changing them/getting the warning?

Also how often would you reccomended to do a brake fluid flush?

Are you a left foot braker? If so, be absolutely sure that you are not resting your foot on the brake pedal. With the great brakes on these cars, it will only take slight pressure on the pedal to cause significant drag & wear. Otherwise, you need to get a dealer to check that the fluid pressure is fully releasing when you let off the brake pedal, as this is extreme brake pad wear. It could be a problem in the brake master cylinder or the ABS unit.

Also, you didn't say whether the wear is even between the left and right sides up front. Is the wear on the inside and outside pad equal. If there is unequal wear either L-to-R or inside-to-outside, then you likely have a binding caliper on the side that is getting the wear.

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L8apx

At 38,900 miles, I've just gotten my 3rd set of pads and second set of rotors, which got replaced when I finished the second set of pads, at my request. My mechanic said the rotors were still above spec, but getting close, and since I track extensively, I thought that a better choice. Curiously, on my '00 Boxster S, the rotors needed replacement with EACH pad replacement.

Greg