How to Gauge Brake Pad Wear?
 

Is there a way to tell how much pad you have left without taking off the wheel / caliper?

I used to be able to do this using a tiny mirror and a flashlight on my other car; however, on a first try I wasn't able to see a whole lot through BRZ's caliper. Anyone have any suggestions?

most pads have a warning indicator that will rub and make noise when ur pads are worn too much

Look at the inside of the caliper, between the caliper and the bracket. You should be able to see the pad.

Try to gauge the TOTAL thickness of the pad, including the backing plate itself. Your flashlight should cast a shadow of the backing onto the rotor. If the shadow is more than 2mm or so, you're good. Alternatively, if the TOTAL thickness appears to be more than 7mm, you're good.

A new pad has roughly 9-10mm of pad material, and the backing is another 5mm.

This is really helpful, thanks! :happy0180:

I measured my Hawk HP+ today and they have about 7-8mm of pad material left after 2 track days. I guess OEM tires don't really put that much stress on the pads lol. I've been searching around but can't find what is the thickness of a brand new HP+ pad. I'd like to know how much I've worn them down.

http://imageshack.us/a/img22/2091/kujy.jpg
http://imageshack.us/a/img29/4359/v8t3.jpg
http://imageshack.us/a/img32/9341/s9ey.jpg

@raul: looks like you've used about 30% of them. If you get stickier tires (or as you start getting more comfortable with the car), you're going to need a dedicated set of pads. We have several options :)

CSG Mike, in the past ive used the center groove thats used to vent gasses as kind of a wear indicator. is that somewhat accurate?

Certainly is, but not all pads have that center groove :)