Product Review: Bluestuff/Yellowstuff Pads and GD Discs Tested on Skoda Octavia vRS

David Shipp owns an impressively modified example of Skoda’s Octavia vRS (TSI 230 manual variant) that allows him to not only enjoy this acclaimed saloon in both everyday and fast road driving conditions, but also on the occasional track day.

When the time came to replace his brake discs and pads recently, David turned to EBC Brakes to help him accommodate this road/track brief, opting for Bluestuff pads and GD discs up front, and Yellowstuff pads with factory vented discs at the rear.

David talks us through his choice and how the brakes have fared so far in his own words below.

“Why EBC? I wanted a pad that would perform well on track but would also work very well for everyday driving.

“How do they perform on the road? The Bluestuff and Yellowstuff pads work very well from cold. They give a good pedal feel and there is very little noise from either set. Once up to a decent temperature, the pads give a reassuring bite without being aggressive. The grooves in the discs help with cooling and the dust is about average.”

“How do they perform on track? Once the initial bedding-in period has been performed, the Bluestuff pads do need to have at least one good heat cycle through them and then allowed to cool down before they reach their optimum performance on track.

“They do not suffer from fading and the pedal remains consistent when hot. Under hard braking there is a bit of noise, probably from the grooves in the disc, but nothing too severe. Pad life is good and the discs wear true and flat.

“If you want a brake setup that works well on the road but can also give excellent performance on track days, these EBC Brakes products will satisfy these criteria.”