ThermoQuiet Pads: Where's the beef?

Status
Not open for further replies.
B

barlowc

Joined
Mar 16, 2009
Messages
2,159
Location
Southeast Michigan
So I just got a set of Wagner ThermoQuiet QC913 pads that I'm going to put on the VUE this weekend when I do a complete front-end job. (i.e. new pads + new rotors) I purchased them on eBay and they arrived in the Wagner box and were shrink-wrapped inside. I was a bit surprised by how little meat these pads seem to have. Each of the four pads seems to have about 8-9 mm of material on them.

At first I found this strange given the the specs on AAP's site were a tad more than 16 mm, which was basically the same as the Akebono equivalent. Maybe that spec is for a pair of pads?

The pads have TQ111FF stamped on them. Is that FF the friction-rating?
 
FF is the friction rating.

The Factory service manual usually lists the thickness of new brake pads, what does it say? 8-9mm does sound a little low for fronts, but the set of OE Miata pads sitting next to me do measure that when new. Usually new front pads are 10-12mm, 16mm does not sound right at all.

There was a rumor a while ago, that Thermoquiet pads have less friction material because the one-piece insulator (pad material on the backing plate) took up more space. But I am not sure how true this is.

Lastly, I've read on the iATN forums that a number of people have had noise and quality complaints with TQ pads after they moved their manufacturing offshore to Brazil.
 
I had a complete set (front and rear) of Wagner's TQ pads on our 2007 Town & Country and wasn't impressed with them at all. And that was a while ago; they could have been made anywhere for all I remember. They did squeak and they didn't stop all that particularly well.
 
Put them all the way around on my Firebird and they squeak pretty bad and really do not stop that well in my opinion. If I was to do it again I would have gone with the Wearever Golds or Platinums.
 
I have Thermoquiets on my Pathfinder's front (along with Wearever rotors) since about 4k ago and they seem fine so far. No noise, not much dust, braking power seems good.
21.gif
 
I've run them on several vehicles including my rather weak braking Suburban. I always apply an anti-squeal product to the back to assist the short lived factory coating. The brakes seem to take a long time to fully break in, but end up a satisfactorily strong pad.
 
Originally Posted By: 72te27
I've run them on several vehicles including my rather weak braking Suburban. I always apply an anti-squeal product to the back to assist the short lived factory coating. The brakes seem to take a long time to fully break in, but end up a satisfactorily strong pad.

That would defeat the purpose of the coating, but at the same time it is unfortunate that you had to "re-engineer" the pad.

One more reason I just buy OE parts so I do not have to deal with this nonsense. Or, purchase quality aftermarket parts such as Akebono or Centric 100 series to prevent these kinds of issues.
 
Originally Posted By: Towncivilian
I have Thermoquiets on my Pathfinder's front (along with Wearever rotors) since about 4k ago and they seem fine so far. No noise, not much dust, braking power seems good.
21.gif



I have had great experiences with Thermoquiets as well. I currently have about 20K on the set I installed at 107K miles on my truck. I just did a pad slap, no rotor work. No noise, good braking feel, no complaints. This truck tows and hauls payloads of 1000 lbs.+ frequently. I would definitely use TQs again.
 
My Grand Marquis and Jeep Liberty both have them front and rear and i love them.No added anti squeal on either and they are quiet and stop well.My Suzuki SX4 is getting them soon too.
 
"That would defeat the purpose of the coating, but at the same time it is unfortunate that you had to "re-engineer" the pad."

I get them cheap with discounts through the AAP website, they have a lifetime warranty so the next set is on them, and I put anti-squeal on anyway, so they work well for me.
 
Originally Posted By: barlowc
So I just got a set of Wagner ThermoQuiet QC913 pads that I'm going to put on the VUE this weekend when I do a complete front-end job. (i.e. new pads + new rotors) I purchased them on eBay and they arrived in the Wagner box and were shrink-wrapped inside. I was a bit surprised by how little meat these pads seem to have. Each of the four pads seems to have about 8-9 mm of material on them.

At first I found this strange given the the specs on AAP's site were a tad more than 16 mm, which was basically the same as the Akebono equivalent. Maybe that spec is for a pair of pads?

The pads have TQ111FF stamped on them. Is that FF the friction-rating?


The TQ111FF is the AMECA Edge code, which referrers back to manufacturer number 38500 Federal Mogul (Wagner). It is not a friction number, just a model number, as far I know. It is the number they want if you have a brake pad failure or damage claim. See the link below:

http://www.ameca.org/wp-content/uploads/...s-May-20112.pdf

You should call Wagner at 800-323-5473, give them the 8-9mm specs and see if you have their product or a cheap china knock-off.
 
I put a Front set of ThermoQuiets on my daughters 05 Mazda 3 last fall. Big mistake, the squeal when cold is deafening.I'm with the Critic on this, Akebono or Centric is the way to go...
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
16mm does not sound right at all.

Federal-Mogul's site specs 0.634" (which is 16.1 mm) for both "FRICTION THICKNESS INNER PAD" and "FRICTION THICKNESS OUTER PAD". That's why the slim-looking pads I received seem strange.

Originally Posted By: Towncivilian
I have Thermoquiets on my Pathfinder's front (along with Wearever rotors)

That's the setup I am planning to use on the VUE.
 
Originally Posted By: DB_Cooper
Originally Posted By: barlowc
So I just got a set of Wagner ThermoQuiet QC913 pads that I'm going to put on the VUE this weekend when I do a complete front-end job. (i.e. new pads + new rotors) I purchased them on eBay and they arrived in the Wagner box and were shrink-wrapped inside. I was a bit surprised by how little meat these pads seem to have. Each of the four pads seems to have about 8-9 mm of material on them.

At first I found this strange given the the specs on AAP's site were a tad more than 16 mm, which was basically the same as the Akebono equivalent. Maybe that spec is for a pair of pads?

The pads have TQ111FF stamped on them. Is that FF the friction-rating?


The TQ111FF is the AMECA Edge code, which referrers back to manufacturer number 38500 Federal Mogul (Wagner). It is not a friction number, just a model number, as far I know. It is the number they want if you have a brake pad failure or damage claim. See the link below:

http://www.ameca.org/wp-content/uploads/...s-May-20112.pdf



The "FF" after the number appears is the friction rating, which is part of the marking. In the link you'll see all the edge code markings end with the friction rating of that specific pad.

Here's the code off a set of pads I installed not too long ago. BX-CT3-2-GG. The "GG" is the friction rating of these pads. The list linked above doesn't include this marking, but it includes the two that are close. It appears the linked document is just an update added additional numbers.

IMG_4615-1000.jpg
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: barlowc
Originally Posted By: The Critic
16mm does not sound right at all.

Federal-Mogul's site specs 0.634" (which is 16.1 mm) for both "FRICTION THICKNESS INNER PAD" and "FRICTION THICKNESS OUTER PAD". That's why the slim-looking pads I received seem strange.


They must be including the backing plate in that measurement. I have never seen/heard of a front brake pad friction material being 16mm when new. I would consult the factory service manual.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
They must be including the backing plate in that measurement.

You may be right about that Critic. The pad including the backing plate measures about 5/8" (0.625").

When I was at AAP picking up the rotors, I asked to look at a set of pads. She pulled a set of ThermoQuiets for my vehicle off the shelf and they looked identical in thickness, which alleviates my concern that I may have a gotten a Chinese knock-off

Also, you had mentioned something about their manufacturing being moved to Brazil. The box my pads came in says Made in USA.
 
Stephen - Who's GG pads are those? That is really grabby [great] for a street car - that is motorcycle territory!
I'm interested.

The 16+ mm is most certainly the WHOLE measurement, not just the pad.
 
We have been getting complaints about wag pads that were installed mostly on toyotas and nissans. Seems to be an issue with the friction material. My coworker returned her wagner pads after they developed a noise issue.
 
We are currently running 3 sets of TQ's on GMC trucks and loving them.

In our application (3500 series vans with BIG weight on board) they are terrific. Took a long time to break in properly but settled down to an excellent pad so far.

From the looks of them they're gonna last a long time too.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

N
Wagner Thermoquiet no longer has integrated shim for my CRV
Replies
7
Views
1K
lbhsbz
Cujet
Brake pad stopping power! Wagner ThermoQuiet Semi-metallic
2 3
Replies
53
Views
8K
nthach
M
raybestos element 3 pads seem odd
2
Replies
37
Views
5K
Hall
92saturnsl2
Wagner OEX pads, poor performance
2
Replies
34
Views
15K
killjoyz
R
New brake pad and rotor installation questions
2 3 4
Replies
69
Views
5K
edyvw
Back
Top