[jsf721]

Other than cost are there any downsides to the BMW ceramic brakes?

Love the no brake dust on my other cars with ceramics.

[Egrunt]

I am sure others will chime in. I have a 2018 M5 with the steel brakes and I made the switch to the Porterfield brakes over a year ago. They produce less brake dust but it is still there and they are about 98% noise free. The stock steel brakes produce a lot of brake dust after they are clean and they make a loud squealing noise like a old school bus. If I went with another M5 CCB would be an option I would go with just for the clean wheels. I had a F80 M3 prior to the F90 for 4 years and it had the steel brakes and it never produced the amount brake dust the F90 does and the brakes on the F80 where noise free.

The only down side I could see with the CCB is if you track the vehicle a lot. The replacement for the CCB parts can be costly.

[TrevorM3]

downside is you can't track them. Unless you're dying to piss money away.

The only other thing is you need to keep an eye on, is for a worn down ceramic pad, worn down pads will severely eat the rotor. Thats really it. And whoever is working on the car, they need to use rotor protectors. Ding it with the wheel when removing wouldn't be good..

[Demon Barber]

Agreed crazy for the track unless you want the best performance money no object. However, who actually tracks an M5 regularly? For daily use, you get wayyyy less brake dust and crazy long rotor and pad life. I'm at 27k miles and they look new. No tracking, but spirited driving. Funny, the CCBs are actually far better suited to an M5 than the steels, given what they're used for.

[DrivenAgain]

2018 with CCBs. Ill never own steel brakes again.

[AHall]

If I could do it over again I would have gone with the ceramic brakes because of the reduced brake dust produced. My steel brakes are noise free BTW. I was told the ceramics were noisy so I did not order them.

[MackSea70]

Looking forward to trying CCBs on my on-order M5C.

I had steel on my F80C and they were pretty noisy at times. Fantastic brakes of course but w 666 wheels, well let's just say my wheel care routine took longer than the rest of the car (and that car was fully ceramic coated).

[DrivenAgain]

Originally Posted by AHall

If I could do it over again I would have gone with the ceramic brakes because of the reduced brake dust produced. My steel brakes are noise free BTW. I was told the ceramics were noisy so I did not order them.

I'm at 16k miles, bought it with 5800, been literally noise free. They are not dustless, but its about 80% less dust thats a much lighter color and easier to clean. They are literally fadeless after multiple hard stomps.

[Alberta]

Originally Posted by AHall

If I could do it over again I would have gone with the ceramic brakes because of the reduced brake dust produced. My steel brakes are noise free BTW. I was told the ceramics were noisy so I did not order them.

The steel brakes on my F85 X5M were not very good and they were noisy AF (I don't even mention the amount of brake dust, just crazy).

The CCB's on my M5 are 100% quiet and dust free.

I've never tracked my car and don't plan to.

[irablumberg]

The downside to CCBs all relate to cost to replace rotors and circumstances that may require replacement.

As noted, CCBs can be damaged by worn pads. They can also be damaged by road debris if you get unlucky.

For me, the biggest concern is that I intend to swap out my summer tires and wheels for winter tires and wheels and vice versa and I will do this in my own garage. I have read that it is all too easy to slip while changing out a wheel and ding the brake rotor. In fact I am sure over the years in previous cars I have done this. Of course with a steel rotor, no harm, no foul. But with CCBs, a slip like that can mean a destroyed rotor.

I have not checked BMW specifically, but I believe a replacement rotor would cost at least $2,000.

If none of the above are concerns for you, then CCBs are all upside as there is less dust, better and fade-free braking, and significantly reduced rotating and unsprung weight.

[BrntRubber]

Originally Posted by DrivenAgain

2018 with CCBs. Ill never own steel brakes again.

Same here and I just got these which would be nightmare with steels. Gold bolts to match the gold CCBs. She is going to look aggressive and clean.

[ChalkyM5]

I have a 19 M5C with CCBs and other than the brake noise, they have been great. Virtually no brake dust, crazy stopping power, but the noise is tough. Sometimes even embarrassingly loud.

[AHall]

Originally Posted by ChalkyM5

I have a 19 M5C with CCBs and other than the brake noise, they have been great. Virtually no brake dust, crazy stopping power, but the noise is tough. Sometimes even embarrassingly loud.

This is what made me decide to not go with the CCBs. I am suspicious BMW made a change to resolve the brake noise in LCI cars.

[TrevorM3]

Originally Posted by AHall

This is what made me decide to not go with the CCBs. I am suspicious BMW made a change to resolve the brake noise in LCI cars.

they didn't. Same CCB, it's hit or miss. If Carbons ever end up making noise, a quick sprint to 100 and slamming on them will usually get them quiet again. Sometimes they like a beating.

[ChalkyM5]

Originally Posted by TrevorM3

they didn't. Same CCB, it's hit or miss. If Carbons ever end up making noise, a quick sprint to 100 and slamming on them will usually get them quiet again. Sometimes they like a beating.

Will try this tonight and report back haha.

[TrevorM3]

Originally Posted by ChalkyM5

Will try this tonight and report back haha.

lol. Had them on my z06, and a few times they acted up, and short run and nailing the brakes a few times worked well and noise went away.

My 600LT never made a sound. My fathers f90, never an issue with 10k miles either.

[will0621]

Originally Posted by irablumberg

The downside to CCBs all relate to cost to replace rotors and circumstances that may require replacement.

As noted, CCBs can be damaged by worn pads. They can also be damaged by road debris if you get unlucky.

For me, the biggest concern is that I intend to swap out my summer tires and wheels for winter tires and wheels and vice versa and I will do this in my own garage. I have read that it is all too easy to slip while changing out a wheel and ding the brake rotor. In fact I am sure over the years in previous cars I have done this. Of course with a steel rotor, no harm, no foul. But with CCBs, a slip like that can mean a destroyed rotor.

I have not checked BMW specifically, but I believe a replacement rotor would cost at least $2,000.

If none of the above are concerns for you, then CCBs are all upside as there is less dust, better and fade-free braking, and significantly reduced rotating and unsprung weight.

Yeah, the Ccbs are easily chipped like that. The one on my M3cs was chipped at a shop when they were taking off the wheels and had to be replaced.

[AngryInch]

Replacement value is $$$. I was quoted $6000 for ONE front rotor.. CDN funds. However, I think they last a lot longer than steel, has anyone had to replace them? How long do they last?

Additionally, they're 50lbs lighter than steel, that is a lot of rotational mass and make a noticeable difference in the performance of the car.

[vanos84]

The only car I ever drove that had CCBs was an M4CS that I test drove and at the time I did not even realize that they had CCBs but I just knew that it would stop on a dime. Never noticed any loud noises. Once I got out of the car I realized that they were CCB due to the appearance of the rotors with the strange spiderweb look of the rotor surface. What causes that anyway?

[Demon Barber]

Originally Posted by irablumberg

The downside to CCBs all relate to cost to replace rotors and circumstances that may require replacement.

As noted, CCBs can be damaged by worn pads. They can also be damaged by road debris if you get unlucky.

For me, the biggest concern is that I intend to swap out my summer tires and wheels for winter tires and wheels and vice versa and I will do this in my own garage. I have read that it is all too easy to slip while changing out a wheel and ding the brake rotor. In fact I am sure over the years in previous cars I have done this. Of course with a steel rotor, no harm, no foul. But with CCBs, a slip like that can mean a destroyed rotor.

I have not checked BMW specifically, but I believe a replacement rotor would cost at least $2,000.

If none of the above are concerns for you, then CCBs are all upside as there is less dust, better and fade-free braking, and significantly reduced rotating and unsprung weight.

Just get a set of 2 lug bolt wheel hangers. Makes it essentially impossible to damage the CCBs when changing wheels.

[TrevorM3]

Originally Posted by vanos84

The only car I ever drove that had CCBs was an M4CS that I test drove and at the time I did not even realize that they had CCBs but I just knew that it would stop on a dime. Never noticed any loud noises. Once I got out of the car I realized that they were CCB due to the appearance of the rotors with the strange spiderweb look of the rotor surface. What causes that anyway?

it's the fibers that make up the rotor. The disc was like that prior to your test drive, you just didn't notice. Some Ceramics are darker than others. i'll see if i can pull soe pics.

[TrevorM3]

here are some pics to illustrate some different rotors. First is my dads old m5, you can see how shiny these are. Second are from my old z06, notice how dark they are. Last is my buddies turbo S, those look like the BMW. And my Mclaren looked almost exactly like the Z06.