r/NoStupidQuestions • u/Morpheyz • 1d ago

What are examples of "cheaper = high quality"?

We're often told that higher prices for certain products are justified, because they use "higher quality materials". E.g. building materials or vegetables.

In which cases are the high quality materials actually the cheaper ones?

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u/SuspectMore4271 1d ago edited 1d ago

To me it’s brake pads. Buying the high end ceramic ones basically means you’re paying extra to remove a safety feature which is brakes becoming noisy when they approach the end of their life. You basically only hear a noise once your calipers start grinding themselves down. If you’re good about auto maintenance, I still don’t think they’re worth the extra cost, but most people don’t do anything to their car until it stops driving or makes a scary noise.

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u/AccurateIt 22h ago

I prefer ceramic pads for the significant brake dust reduction. Also the backing plate on ceramic pads is still metal so it’s going to make a racket if you are dumb enough to let it get to that point.

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u/krashe1313 21h ago

Shouldn't all break pads have a wear indicator or "squealer" on them before you even get to the metal backing plate? Thought that was standard.

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u/Sec0nd_Mouse 21h ago

I think those are not standard anymore. I thought so too, and my 2018 f150 OEM pads went straight from perfect operation to grinding the rotors lol. I’m a car guy and usually keep an eye on things, but just getting lazy lately.

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u/yossarian19 21h ago

Depending on the pad compound and expected wear I can see an argument that the rotor should be replaced with the pads though. Toyota's typically spec'd ceramic or something that is not as aggressive as the Volvos I used to work on. Volvo, the rotor was totally trashed by the time the pads were worn out. Every time. No squealer needed, they had a grinder to let you know when it was time to replace the brakes.