Rear - EBC pads

[Grant]

Anyone tried these?

Are they a direct replacement for the rear?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 5653.m1253

[stonefish]

got these fitted to mine...yes they are direct replacement...i cant compare to standard pads because they have always been fitted since i brought the car..

[rip]

A location in your profile would be useful here.
There is a far better choice of rear pads in the US than the UK.

They are greenstuff though. They are the only like for like rear upgrade available in the UK.

[HJ2]

I Have the greenstuff as well.
This winter i'll take them off and try something else, as I am not very pleased with them.

Tips welcome!

[inkitin]

They are greenstuff though. They are the only like for like rear upgrade available in the UK.

Not quite Rip. EBC Yellowstuff for the rears are also available here (I've bought a set for mine to go on later this year) but bizarrely the Redstuff rears aren't available in the UK , only in the US.

[dapinky]

I have done a fair bit of looking into availlability and use of all sorts of pads ('cos over the years, I've got sadder and sadder)......

....besides which, I like to know that I've got the 'best' fitted for what I use the car for at the time (track, fast road, race, rally or commute) - my findings are not reserved just for the elan, but my Vectra, Peugeot and Triumphs as well - each has different uses and needs different brake materials to get the best out of them....

The first thing to mention is the 'availlability' in the UK vs Europe vs USA.

Most stuff you find on the shelf is availlable (obviously!), but may not be the best suited, or even legal for road use. Many brake compounds exist, and despite everyone stating that kevlar are the best, followed by 'organic fibre' (whatever that is!) then stuff from Halfords I still maintain that the actual best material to use for anything remotely sporting is asbestos. But you won't find any on the shelf at your local stockist 'cos it's illegal. That said, i can still occassionally find a set for the Triumph as Old Stock, and if i do, I snap them up, but wouldn't use them for everyday use, and they get reserved for pure track use.

Anything sold in UK has to comply with EU regulations, which is why if you see a set of Mintex Xtreme for the elan (or Astra!) they cant legally be sold here for road use, but they can in USA or Asia. They never passed EU regs and so the compound was slightly adjusted and marketed as 1144 (but the Xtreme are a tad better in my opinion).

Without getting into my usual arguement about standard vs upgraded brakes, and trying to keep somewhat on topic, yes there is a better choice of pads in the USA for the rear of the elan (as the Elan rear callipers were the front ones on certain GM cars of the era), bu tthey may or may not be legal to buy/sell in the UK.

That said, just 'cos they can't be bought (well officially, sold for use) in the UK doesn't mean that you cant use them. Legally, if you fit them yourself, and the material & performance complies with EU regulations, then you are fine, it just means that the manufacturer hasn't submitted them for EU testing. Well, why should they go to that expence when the only EU car that would need them is the back end of a plastic sportscar, and they wouldn't sell enough to make it worthwhile.

As such, the limitation is due to the number of European makers who have developed pads for the US market and sell them over the pond, with a few over here for us to get.

Personally, I use Mintex in the blue car and Greenstuff in the red car, but for the amount of work that the rears have to do in an Elan, anything will do, as long as it ain't totally cr@p. The only real differences between them won't be noticed in normal use, and it is only at the extreme end of their use that there is a huge benefit in 'perfectly matching' the front to the rear - and that doesn't mean fitting the same make/model of pads, as the front get hotter than the back, and cool quicker, and it is a matter of trial and error for any given application - just 'cos its perfect on the road doesn't mean it'll be perfect on the track, but if it's perfect on the track, it'll probably do on the road.

Oh, and I wouldn't fit Red Stuff on the rear of the Elan - they'll never get hot enough in normal use to work to their full potential, so whilst they'd do the jib, it would be a waste of cash.

If you want a personal opinion (and it's worth every penny that you are paying for it), I'd put Mintex 1144 or Ferodo DS2500 on the front, and Mintex 'standard' on the rear, but to be honest, will it make a huge difference in what you use it for?