Mintex Brake pads? Yes or No?
 

I heard from a friend that the Mintex Red brake pads are good performance, low dust and won't squeal like the Original Pads. Anyone using these? He also told me he purchased from www.gtautoparts.com. He said that he used the "request a quote" form and they lowered the listed prices. I sent in a request for quote and they quoted me $100 for front and rear. The listed price was $112 and change. It sounds like a good deal. Should I buy these or is there something better at a reasonable price? Thanks for your help.

William

I got Mintex red box for all 4 brakes...they are good semi-metallic pads. Very easy to DIY although I had to super glue the shims to the back of the pads. Works fine with no squeal/noise and very little dust....btw, I do drive like a maniac, so you should be ok with Mintex. I heard Pagid, EBC and PBR Metal Master are also good.

I'm using mintex pads too. Not bad, but they do dust the wheels... maybe not as bad as factory pads, but I'm forever cleaning dust off my new carrera lights.

They seem to wear well and don't squeak much unless I haven't washed my car lately. I always blast the pads and rotors with fresh water from the hose every time I wash the car and this has nearly eliminated my brakes from squeaking. In fact, when they start squeaking regularly I know its my reminder to hand wash the car :)

I once had Mintex Reds on my A4. They were comparable to the stock pads. FWIW, the wheels had 10 inch flames coming out of them at the end of the front straight at Second Creek Raceway here in Denver. See
http://pictureposter.audiworld.com/7507/patsparks.jpg

I've driven many pad compounds on A4s. If you want to keep your wheels as clean as possible, go Mintex Red. If your priority is to stop quickly, however, look into Pagid Blues. They are good for agressive street/light track driving.
Do they make your wheels dusty? Hell yeah.
Do I like dirty wheels? No.
Would I sacrifice dirty wheels for ultimate stopping power? Definitely
That's why I run Ferodo DS2500s for my street/track do-it-all pad. If I were to never drive on the track again, I stick with Pagid Blues for better stopping power when cold.

I have these Mintex front pads in my 2.5 for 2 years. They did not have the holes for the sensors, but I drilled them. The friction rating is EE which is lower than the FF oem pads. I have noticed no difference compared to the original pads.

I think I put Mintex in my car earlier this year... not the red box, though.

They work well enough for daily driving. Haven't had a chance to stomp on 'em hard...

They do squeak sometimes, tho.

+1 on the Ferodos. They are quiet and low dust. And they were in stock at my local O'Reilly's.