Need (Yes, actually need) Better Brake Pads

I've got a very heavy rig w/ 16" wheels. Their used to be a 3 cylinder caliper BBK which fit 16" wheels, but apparently isn't made anymore.. So I think better (grippier) pads are my only option.

I've been reading about pads all night and see all the trade-off's. Dust, noise, cold vs hot stopping power. I don't care about dust or noise. I need more stopping power. Currently, I cannot lock up my brakes. I slam the pedal down, and it rolls to a stop (on dry pavement).
I kind of need both cold and hot stopping power. I need to stop on short drives around town. But I also need to stop on looooong mountain passes where things definitely heat up.

TRD pads used to be the default recommendation here, but they have been discontinued. I believe they were semi-metallic.
I've been reading about Hawk LTS, and EBC Yellow, which are both truck pads, semi-metallic. Seem to have a decent balance of cold stopping and heat resistance.
I've seen Akebono ceramic pads recommended. OEM are ceramic. Ceramic seems to have a lot of benefits and all around good performance. But the OEM pads are ceramic, and like I said... I need something w/ more stopping power than OEM.
I also read some things about carbon fiber pads, but seem to have closed those windows and can't find the names.

Any suggestions from people who have experience w/ various pads?

 

Pads and material won't give more stopping power, but will dissipate heat better.

Personally I'd make sure the parking shoes are always manually adjusted as close as possible. Some people on here think they self adjust for some reason.

I'd run hawk pads, just personal experience, always positive.

I'd also consider braided brake lines just to enhance the brake pedal "feel". I have no tacoma experience with these. Lots of threads on her with it.

 

I'd get an accurate loaded weight and then contact Hawk and EBC directly for their recommendations. Vehicle weight is a huge factor in pad selection

 

Well, pads can improve stopping power.. at the cost of eating away the pads and rotors. But I'm willing to make that trade-off.
I think Hawk and ECB would recommend the two pads I'm looking at.. They are specifically made for 'heavily loaded trucks'. But if it helps anyone else w/ recommendations, I've added about 2000 lbs. (you can see my forum pic.. It's a camper rig).

I know the increase in stopping ability will be marginal.. maybe 10% better.. But it's something.

 

I’m thinking something is wrong. Can you lock it up on wet pavement, dirt, gravel?

You could try a brake fluid flush, basically like an oil change for brake fluid. If you do it yourself, be extra careful to not let the reservoir go empty. During the flush, you might see air bubbles come out.

I think they’re called self adjusters, and you’re right, they suck at self adjusting. The procedure is something like manually adjust until tight, then back off 17 clicks, something like that. I didn’t think mine needed it but after doing it the pedal is now higher and firmer, the hand brake engages sooner.

 

Are you talking about adjusting the rear drums?
I've read a lot about the self adjusting.. which apparently happens when you engage the parking brake. And, I did some 'tricks' like backing up w/ the parking brake engaged. (well, giving it a little pressure in reverse). That's supposed to kind of force it to tighten. But, I have not taken the wheels off and manually adjusted them.. maybe I'll look in to that. But, I do think they're OK. They're basically dragging.. I can't spin the drum w/out a wheel attached.. W/ the mass of the wheel and heavy off-road tire, I can spin it.

Edit, and yes, I can lock up the brakes offroad and in the snow.. Not sure about wet, I haven't tested that.
I had toyota do the big 90k service on it, which included flushing the brakes and new pads.. there was no change in performance before/after. That was 20k miles ago now, and no change in performance since then either....

 

How heavy is your truck?

Mine is 5.5k and over 6k when camping and I stop just fine with the 2015 TRD Pro 4Runner "big brake kit" and OEM pads.




14WG calipers IIRC and rotors are the same size as my Uncle's 2010 Tundra.

You do need 17's to clear them though.

And as was stated above check, clean, and adjust your rear brakes!

The drums actually work quite well when they're adjusted properly!

 

It’s a little tricky but not impossible. You need a brake adjustment tool or screwdriver and something to push the lever away from the star adjuster like an ice pick or straight oring pick. To make it easier, pull the drum and adjustment port plug off. Then stick the tools you plan to use through the port so you can look from the outside. I need to do this to tighten. I need to push this and do this to loosen. Remember what angle you used to push this.

 

Definitely over 6k when camping.. 17" wheels isn't an option at the moment, though. I like my 16" wheels.. But more importantly, just bought tires.

Has anyone replaced their drum pads? I've replaced the front pads a few times.. Never the drums, and they still don't need it. Maybe they aren't doing much.

 

They're probably not doing much then, because my rear shoes wear out about three times as fast as my front pads, and the right side wears out faster than the left side, that all has to do with the vehicle stability control and the ABS and traction control pulsing the brakes to stabilize and corners and with wheel spin.

 

an old basic sedan comes with bigger brakes

Good luck with stock size

 

Do not know what year your Tacoma is but on my 09 towing a 26 trailer over 5000 lbs and then a 3000 boat with no trailer brakes I went to Powerstop drilled /slotted rotors and z36 pads and they helped along with braided brake hoses. Changed out at 55k and they could have gone another 10k but I am proactive on stopping also. Note no rotor cracking at the drilled holes as some others warn about. I still had less than ideal grabbing so rebuilt my calipers (OEM seal kit about $25) and new fluid and that helped too. Pad burn in/seating is critical when you first install new pads and rotors and the manufactures spell it out clearly for you - skip this step and most pads will still suck.

You should hear the ABS firing and feel it when you mash the pedal down quickly if all your sensors are correctly working so figure that out first.
Many brake combos and opinions on the forum so good luck as that camper looks like a beast to haul around.

 

I did this too a few years back. Can’t say that I perceived a difference but I’m sure there must be some improvement. Also did fluid flush (with Amsoil) and just did rear pads and shoes with another amsoil flush about a month ago.

 

ABS definitely functions when I am on a type of ground where I don't have traction.. But when I do have traction, it never senses any out of control motion, because I'm always just slowly rolling to a stop, heh...

Camper is awesome other than the brakes.. I've re-geared it, so it has plenty of power. Can keep up w/ the 80MPH speed limits out west. Can make it up mountain passes. It does struggle at the highest altitudes... But I think most vehicles do. It has custom suspension designed for the weight, so is good in corners and off-road.
And the brakes aren't horrible. I've been in emergency braking situations, and did fine... But barely. I want to hear some tires chirping when I slam the brakes, and that doesn't happen in this rig.

 

My truck has 500+ pounds of tools and parts 24/7. 37" tires. It tows boats often, most are around 3,000 lbs, but has gone as high as 8,000 lbs. Whether it's towing less than 2,600 lbs or not towing at all it stops on a dime. All factory Toyota parts except for 1 small part. It's been installed for a long time now and no failures or anything else negative to say about it.
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/my-2006-tacoma-brake-upgrade-edited.652471/

 

It's been to a few different dealers over the years and I've had them check the brakes while there, and they say it's fine.. Expected for the weight. I don't think you can quite compare it to towing, where your trailer also has brakes.
And, I'm probably under estimating the weight. I'm counting the 2k lbs for the camper. But, it also has a heavy ARB bull bar. Winch. Has a super heavy leaf spring pack. Not sure if the flat bed weighs more than the stock bed. Has an extra fuel tank... etc, etc..... So, maybe more like 7k lbs.. I need to get it weighed.

DG92071, I like your idea of swapping the master cylinder/booster. Wonder if that would improve things w/ stock calipers/rotors...

 

Incorrect. Out of 50+ boat trailers I've sold and the couple dozen I have now 3 of them had functional brakes. Most of those were never equipped with brakes. As far as stopping 7,000 lbs (truck + tow in my case) it stops on a dime. Like now.

 

The larger diameter rotors you've got are likely making a huge difference.. Just a little more diameter makes a big difference. Like using a longer wrench. 17" wheels aren't an option for me at the moment.

 

Almost sounds like there's an issue with the brake system itself. I hate telling someone to throw parts at something, but it might be time to rebuild your brake system. If a new Master Cylinder doesn't help, then you might need to start looking at the lines and such. Also, you might want to look into a different brake bias, especially if you have a LOT of weight in the rear. A rear disc setup might also benefit, but only if you can get something that can keep up with the front brakes.

If you hit the panic pedal while on water, does the truck get really oversteer happy, or does it really understeer? Also, you might want to have someone look at the ABS system, it could be causing this issue if there's a problem with it, but I'm not that familiar with how the Toyota ABS systems work.

 

I think if on dry pavement, if you go say 50 mph then stand on the brake pedal with all your might, you should get a quick scree scree scree sound of the abs quickly locking and releasing. If not, something isn’t right. Oil contaminated brake friction material, air in the system, severely worn rotors, drums, shoes, pads, tires. Yet you say it does it on a low friction surface, odd.