Too often have I talked to people about their brake pads, and I heard that they just picked up whatever was cheapest at the local auto parts place.

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One of the first performance modifications for any car should be a nice set of brake pads and good fluid (and really the fluid should be flushed every 24 months at a minimum). Too often have I talked to people about their Mustang’s brake pads, and heard that they just picked up whatever was cheapest at the local auto parts place. It’s worth looking into some better options, not only for your Mustang, but for the other vehicles in your family garage as well. Spending an extra few bucks on brake pads could mean the difference between a fender bender and safely stopping short of an accident.

If you need some help understanding what the best option for your car is, check out this quick video by Engineering Explained. Jason takes the time to go over the key characteristics of brake pads and how they can affect your ride. Keep in mind what you’re using the car for, too. If you do a lot of driving in the mountains, you may want a pad with a higher temperature threshold. If you are mostly driving in stop-and-go traffic, you might want a higher coefficient of friction at lower temperatures for better initial bite. If you’re running autocross, you sacrifice all high-temp braking for initial bite, and have a pad that works great at lower temps.

For a numbers guy like me, it is endlessly interesting and entertaining to discuss different brake pad compounds. Maybe next time we’ll talk about why you shouldn’t put cross-drilled rotors on your performance car.