My 06' Hummer H3 needs front brake pads (45K Miles) and my dealer is offering ceramic brake pads as an option to the original equipment. The original OEM replacement pads installed are $289 (per axle), and the ceramics are $60 less. The ceramics are said to be quieter, last just as long, and do not produce that black dust on the wheel. Performance is the same according to the dealer. My biggest concern is that ceramic pads may wear down my rotors faster because ceramic material is much harder than the metal alternative. One advantage I like is that the ceramic pads run cooler than the metal. Anybody have any input on this?

 

I've never been happy with anything but OEM pads and rotors with my GM's. They seem to always have the best compromise of performance, feel, quietness, and durability.

 

I have heard that ceramics add up to the OEMs just as well. I am not too sure about the H3, but I know a couple people who got them on their sedans and like them. Their wear is about the same, but they make a finer dust that usually doesn't stick to the wheel as much.

 

I just put ceramic's on my 06' H3 and they are great! i can't really tell a difference from the OEM's and these

 

im about ready to do mine and all i want is the best "grab", the best stopping power with lite pressure. me h3 doesnt seem to stop as well as other cars i drive.
i typically just go to the zone and buy good stuff but dont really know what grabs the best,,,dont care about wear,ther'e cheap enuf the do and ez i hear on h3

help

tom

 

I can honestly say that the new ceramic brakes I bought do really well. The best thing to do once you get ceramic brakes is to brake them in a bit which takes like 5 mins. Once you install them (which yes is very easy), speed up to about 30-35mph then slam on your brakes without letting the ABS or traction control kick in. If you do this a few times it wears off the film from the old brakes you had, and then allows the new brakes to form to the rotors really well.

I actually changed mine on a day it was raining, and well where I live lets say the drivers kinda suck, so I definitely needed brakes that day, and well mine worked OUTSTANDING!!! Def will replace these when it's time with another set of ceramic's.

An like you drtom, all I did was go to Advanced Auto Parts and grab the premium set from them for like $70, and it was like a 30-45 mins job.

Hope this maybe helps your decision a little bit.

 

that seems like a high price for a fairly simple job. I've changed all 4 pads on my '01 mustang in an afternoon, rigged up a "special tool" to compress the piston. But I read in some article that the H3 piston doesn't need a special tool. Could save yourself a lot of money, only costing you the price of the pads from AutoZone.

 

When changing out your brake pads it seems some folks don't machine their rotors, they just take out the old pads and pop in new ones. It really is important to have your rotors machined to a perfectly flat surface before installing new pads, OEM or ceramic. A machined rotor surface will insure maximum surface contact with the new pad, provide better stopping performance, and also extend the life of the pad due to more even wear. I have just replaced the front brakes on my '06 H3 with ceramic pads. They are quiet, cleaner, and the braking performance appears to be the same as OEM. My Hummer dealer charged $279 for the front with ceramic pads and it took 3 to 4 hours this past Saturday. I would recommend both the ceramic pads and having your dealer do it correctly, brakes are the wrong place to try and save a few dollars.

 

I replaced mine myself with ceramics which were $85 for the front set and they took my 45 minutes to put in if that. Doing your brakes yourself is easy and inexpensive. just get get yourself some brake cleaner aswell.