RS3 Ceramic Brake performance in the wet & cold

[Mondie]

I am buying a new RS3 later this year to keep for a decade or more, and after reading that a front disc replacement can cost £1800, the front CCB option looks increasingly attractive. Over ten years of ownership, these may need to be replaced 2-3 times, so the CCB option is kind of self-funding.

We have them on our M3, and they are excellent in all weathers - hot/cold/wet/dry. I've read the Audi brakes can be weak or grabby when cold, which is how CCBs were once viewed.

For those that have them, is this still true for the CCBs on the RS3, or are they like modern BMW CCBs?

 

[Daggerit]

I had them on the pre-facelift and honestly wouldn’t go for them again if it was a daily driver.

They were great on a spirited drive in the dry/cold, but I found that in wet or slushy conditions you could press the pedal and you wouldn’t get any real braking at all. I found I had to press the pedal once briefly to almost clear the water off them then the second press would work fine again.

The worst situation I had was when it was a little slushy out and someone pulled out in front of me on the dual carriageway and I had to slam on the brakes. The fronts didn’t do hardly anything but the rear steels worked as normal and caused the back end to start trying to overtake the front at 50-60mph.

They may have changed the compounds or make up since the pre-facelift, but if I was going for another RS3 specifically I would just go with steels so when I pressed the pedal I knew they’d work first time.


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[flybynite]

They may have changed the compounds or make up since the pre-facelift, but if I was going for another RS3 specifically I would just go with steels so when I pressed the pedal I knew they’d work first time.

That is also my experience with carbon discs on two other makes (Porsche/Jaguar) and why I never would have specc'd them on my RS3 had I bought it new or any replacement 8Y had I wanted a change, irrespective of cost or value.

As a daily driver I value cold/wet/first press performance from everything fitted to mine. That goes for tyres and pads as well as discs. Never had an interest in pads that need warming up for road use.

 

[Daggerit]

That is also my experience with carbon discs on two other makes (Porsche/Jaguar) and why I never would have specc'd them on my RS3 had I bought it new or any replacement 8Y had I wanted a change, irrespective of cost or value.

As a daily driver I value cold/wet/first press performance from everything fitted to mine. That goes for tyres and pads as well as discs. Never had an interest in pads that need warming up for road use.

Glad it’s not just me that found them acting that way!


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[Mondie]

Thanks for the replies; you have confirmed what others have said in the past. That's the CCB option scratched off the list.

Cheers

 

[HM3P]

Same here, I'd never have a road car with CCB's useless with no heat in them, but people seem hung up on having them to 'look good' lol

 

[Daggerit]

Same here, I'd never have a road car with CCB's useless with no heat in them, but people seem hung up on having them to 'look good' lol

To be fair, I think they look great and keep your wheels really clean, but the trade off for the wet performance just isn’t worth it for me.

If they were on a weekend fun car or something that I could choose not to take out in the rain it might be different, but not on a daily driver.


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[v.danimal]

Never noticed a problem with mine 4 years in... although i'm reasonably gentle with revs and speed while the engine warms up, this probably helps my brakes remove any moisture they may have on the surface...
Went through a ford once, yeah that was not great, but then anything submerged like that will take a few minutes to dry off the pads...
For me, the lack of replacement costs, worrying about any disc warping, lack of crap and dust they give off, plus the performance you get when you really need them if driving quickly.. been great in my mind...

sorry to contradict and make your decision harder....

 

[Daggerit]

Never noticed a problem with mine 4 years in... although i'm reasonably gentle with revs and speed while the engine warms up, this probably helps my brakes remove any moisture they may have on the surface...
Went through a ford once, yeah that was not great, but then anything submerged like that will take a few minutes to dry off the pads...
For me, the lack of replacement costs, worrying about any disc warping, lack of crap and dust they give off, plus the performance you get when you really need them if driving quickly.. been great in my mind...

sorry to contradict and make your decision harder....

Good to get additional input, I’m very surprised you’ve never experienced similar in the rain though!

Mine were susceptible enough to it that if I washed the car the first braking afterwards would be not great, to the point I tried doing an emergency stop to demonstrate to my neighbour and he laughed at how long it took me to stop at only 20 mph.


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[v.danimal]

Good to get additional input, I’m very surprised you’ve never experienced similar in the rain though!

Mine were susceptible enough to it that if I washed the car the first braking afterwards would be not great, to the point I tried doing an emergency stop to demonstrate to my neighbour and he laughed at how long it took me to stop at only 20 mph.


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From 20 must have been a little scary i agree... not very confidence building..

Maybe i never really noticed it to start, i lowered and spaced it within the first 100 miles, which meant removing some of the mud flaps, perhaps that helps clear rain out of there (and into the car behind). I also have a little downhill coast away from my house, and a speed camera in each direction, again might drive that little bit of heat into them without noticing...
I was certainly weary when i first got the car, but just don't think about it any more...

 

[Terminator x]

I've got them. Absolutely fine, no issues at all.

TX.

 

[Daggerit]

I've got them. Absolutely fine, no issues at all.

TX.

Glad that you and others don’t have issues. I did wonder if it was in my head but the incident in the slush where the fronts didn’t really do anything but the rear steels worked and put me sideways made me realise it wasn’t just in my head. Lol.

Great in dry and or cold conditions for me, and I managed to drive around their quirks once I got used to them, I just don’t think I’d spend the money on them if I was ordering now and would just save the money for a couple steel replacements instead.


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[Terminator x]

I had them on the pre-facelift and honestly wouldn’t go for them again if it was a daily driver.

They were great on a spirited drive in the dry/cold, but I found that in wet or slushy conditions you could press the pedal and you wouldn’t get any real braking at all. I found I had to press the pedal once briefly to almost clear the water off them then the second press would work fine again.

The worst situation I had was when it was a little slushy out and someone pulled out in front of me on the dual carriageway and I had to slam on the brakes. The fronts didn’t do hardly anything but the rear steels worked as normal and caused the back end to start trying to overtake the front at 50-60mph.

They may have changed the compounds or make up since the pre-facelift, but if I was going for another RS3 specifically I would just go with steels so when I pressed the pedal I knew they’d work first time.


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This is the case for any ceramics. If really wet then you need to pump the brakes a bit when you first venture out.

TX.

Edit - re "wet performance" honestly there are no issues. They work great in all conditions. Just remember that the first brake may feel like it's fading, after that just normal.

 

[Daggerit]

This is the case for any ceramics. If really wet then you need to pump the brakes a bit when you first venture out.

TX.

Agreed, my issue was that you then needed to do the same if you were doing 70 mph on a wet dual carriageway. Normally fine, just don’t know how well that would go for an emergency brake. Haha.


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[Terminator x]

It's just to clear water off the disk. For some reason it's only the first time, it never seems to re-appear when out on a wet drive.

TX.

 

[Daggerit]

It's just to clear water off the disk. For some reason it's only the first time, it never seems to re-appear when out on a wet drive.

TX.

Mine did for some reason! I thought they were supposed to dab the brakes to clear them in wet conditions but didn’t seem to do it for me if so. I let my wife drive it in the rain because she didn’t believe me and she quickly changed her mind. Lol.


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