[Marty in NY]

Hi Guys,
2011 X3 35i with 80K miles and now its time to replace all brake parts. I just got an error of the ABS Chassis Stabilization msg and dealer said the wheel speed sensors have failed.

Sooo, been looking for replacements and will take the opportunity to go non OEM and get rid of the dust throwing pads. There are a lot of choices out there, any recommendations from those who have non OEM experience and are happy? or those who were unhappy with their choices?

Here are the OEM part numbers being replaced. ..

[wrp]

Zimmermann disc rotors and Akebono pads

[pungo]

Originally Posted by wrp

Zimmermann disc rotors and Akebono pads

Agreed

[Marty in NY]

What is it you like about the Zimmermann disc rotors and Akebono pads and which pads did you buy?

[pungo]

Zimmermann rotors = German made OE quality
Akebono pads = great stopping power with very low dust

[Marty in NY]

Originally Posted by pungo

Zimmermann rotors = German made OE quality
Akebono pads = great stopping power with very low dust

Thanks, I saw those two brands during my searches. There looks to be a ton of Akebono pads on the carid.com site, which ones are you recommending?

[pungo]

Originally Posted by Marty in Bgm

Thanks, I saw those two brands during my searches. There looks to be a ton of Akebono pads on the carid.com site, which ones are you recommending?

AFAIK there's only one front, one rear that fit our application.

[Marty in NY]

Originally Posted by pungo

AFAIK there's only one front, one rear that fit our application.

Got it, I sorted the results for my car and found one set, its these. .. are these what you installed on yours? I chatted with them and found out that these do NOT come with wear sensors - you agree?

.

[Marty in NY]

Done. Went with Akebono Euro 1561 front & 1473 rear pads and Zimmerman rotors. Only drove it four miles home so far, so no real opinion yet.

[Bilbofraggins]

Brembo....18 months after the original OEM rotors disintegrated....looking good and wearing well going into their 3rd Canadian winter..

[Marty in NY]

Originally Posted by Marty in Bgm

Done. Went with Akebono Euro 1561 front & 1473 rear pads and Zimmerman rotors. Only drove it four miles home so far, so no real opinion yet.

FYI.. .. Now I have around 500 miles on my new rotors and pads. The brake dust has been decreased around 80% and I cannot tell any difference in stopping power as compared to the BMW OEM pads.

[TEF]

I can't speak to Akebono pads and Brembo rotors, but replacing my OE pads and rotors with inexpensive ceramic pads and rotors (from Amazon), made a huge difference with dust and scored rotors. Also, I see no noticeable difference in stopping power. I am convinced that OE semi-metallic pads are a car manufacturer's (no matter the make) insidious way of selling replacement rotors. I have changed to ceramic pads in my Porsche, 350z and 5 series sedan and have no regrets.

[Marty in NY]

Originally Posted by TEF

I can't speak to Akebono pads and Brembo rotors, but replacing my OE pads and rotors with inexpensive ceramic pads and rotors (from Amazon), made a huge difference with dust and scored rotors. Also, I see no noticeable difference in stopping power. I am convinced that OE semi-metallic pads are a car manufacturer's (no matter the make) insidious way of selling replacement rotors. I have changed to ceramic pads in my Porsche, 350z and 5 series sedan and have no regrets.

My OEM rotors lasted 80K miles and in fact still had a bit of life left in them when I replaced them. IIFC, 60 thou is the amount of max wear before they are "worn out". For me, it was the dust that drove me nutz but I wanted to wait till I needed new pads before going to ceramic, never did I imagine my original OEM pads would last 80K! Ha ha, well, now after seeing the difference between the OEM and ceramic pads, I will immediately put ceramic pads on the net BMW and not wait like I did this time.

I had taken the car to a BMW dealer to get a quote on them replacing the pads and rotors. Their price was $1,500, ok, its a dealer but geez, that was way too much for such a simple job and had I been home and not on vacation, I would have done it myself. They offered me a discount when I complained about their price, so I asked if they could put ceramic pads on and they said no and handed me a nice shiny BMW color leaflet that speaks to why only OEM pads should be used on a BMW. I told him that was BS and walked out.
Found an indy who put on what I wanted so I went with the Akebono pads and Zimmerman rotors and am happy with the results.

[FranzX3M]

I need new rotors as well and tired of the chinese crap that warp after 6 months so will get zimmerman or brembo. too bad the zimmerman drilled rotors are not available in NA.

Where did you source the brembo rotors?

I have been using EBC red pads which have been good with better stopping power than OEM and low dust. I may get the EBC yellow pads with higher friction but they will have more dust.

[Lurcher]

Originally Posted by FranzX3M

I may get the EBC yellow pads with higher friction but they will have more dust.

So much more dust - but won't fade except for extremely heavy (read: track) use...

[evilchargerfan]

I went with the PowerStop KOE6039 kit. I opted to save about $100 over akebono/zimmermans

Stopping power did not decrease nor improve. When these die, I think my next set will be hardparked's adapters and run x5 front brakes.