Pads affected discs.

The pads didn’t simply lose their friction material – it adhered to the surface of the disc. The disc surface became ridged and corrugated, reducing the pad to disc contact area, resulting in poor braking performance, uncomfortable noise and judder.

Other samples of the sub-standard pads had friction material that was highly resistant to wear. Although these pads were long lasting, they were also extremely abrasive and the discs quickly became thin.

With less metal to dissipate the heat generated during braking, this combination of abrasive pads and thin discs suffered badly from fade. Thin discs are also more prone to fracture; cracks can soon develop at the disc’s weak spots, and in extreme circumstances, the metal will shear.

With these cheap pad samples, a driver would experience a long brake pedal, some anxious moments and, potentially, premature disc failure.

The conclusions

The tests showed that cheap pads were inconsistent, with rapidly wearing and adherent or highly abrasive friction material that shortened disc life considerably. The discs would have required replacement far earlier than usual and negated any savings made on the pads. More critically, braking performance was significantly compromised.