High Performance Brake Pads For
Hydraulic Brake Fleet Applications
Uncompromising Performance, Outstanding Value
Today, many medium-duty truck fleets are exploring new ways
to better manage margins and overall cost without sacrificing
performance and quality. Formula Blue
Spicer Foundation Brake were developed to address this need.
Formula Blue medium-duty pads use only proven friction material
formulations that raise the bar on value and performance.
Available all the key industry-standard Friction Materials
Standards Institute (FMSI) styles, Formula Blue
pads easily meet the needs of medium-duty
vehicles on the road today.
®
disc pads from Bendix
®
Long-Wearing, QuietRunning Durability
Advanced engineering allows Formula Blue
medium-duty disc pads to provide you higher levels of
performance and cost-effectiveness. Two formulations of
friction materials – the 109 and 111 series products – cater to a
wide range of vehicle applications.
The 109 Series (Premium) friction material is recommended for
commercial vehicles where quiet operation is a key requirement. Our
Formula Blue 111 series (Heavy-Duty) friction material is suggested
for vocations where vehicles make repeated or significant sustained
braking applications. Both are proven to perform equal to or better
than competitive-brand Premium and Heavy-Duty pads.
®
Formula Blue® Medium-Duty Pads
Offer a Competitive Price and Top
Quality Performance
FEATURESBENEFITS
Available in all the
key industry-standard
FMSI styles
Broad coverage for commercial
vehicle fleets
Two advanced
formulations of friction
pads
Long-wearing friction
available for both premium
and heavy-duty pads
Superior stopping power
Unique pad-to-plate
mechanical anchoring
design
Kind to rotors
Long-wearing and quiet-running
designs suited for any Fleet’s
performance and value needs
Enables long intervals between
pad changes, thereby lowering
Fleet’s operating costs
Provides solid brake feel,
eliminating the need for excessive
brake pedal force
More robust friction performance
in demanding vocations with less
friction lift-off during the winter
driving season
Saves time and money by
reducing rotor wear
Thoroughly Tested, Proven
Performance
Two formulations of Formula Blue® friction products were compared
against competitive-brand brake pads geared toward the same
respective applications in three testing scenarios. The results confirm that Formula Blue
superior performance versus competitive brands in terms of fade and
recovery, rotor and pad wear, and braking effectiveness.
®
medium-duty disc pads feature equivalent to
The backing teeth “bite” into the
friction material, forming a solid
mechanical adhesion between the
plate and the friction material.
What you don’t see can make all the
difference.
Take a look at this cutaway of a Formula Blue® disc pad and
you’ll see something unique.
The hook shaped teeth, found only on the Formula Blue
duty disc pad design, creates a rock-solid connection between the
friction material and the backing plate. That’s a major difference
between Formula Blue
®
pads and the other materials available in
the market today... one that enhances and extends the durability and
performance life when it’s on your vehicle.
The long-lasting, hard-working construction of a Formula Blue
medium-duty disc pad helps to enhance the pad’s sheer strength and
keeps the friction material stabilized, in place and on the job.
The backing teeth “bite” into the friction material, forming a solid
mechanical adhesion between the plate and the friction material
that can stand up to the most demanding application environments
where bonded only friction fails due to separation.
®
medium-
®
Background of Analysis
The pad comparison and analysis method used, was jointly developed
by Bendix Spicer Foundation Brake LLC and Link Testing Laboratories
Inc. of Detroit.
Friction pad analysis was conducted on a dynamometer at Link
Testing Laboratories between April 2003 and February 2004.
AlliedSignal originally developed the “Hydraulic Pad Test UI-169Modified” in the 1980s. In the charts found on each of the next
few pages, brands “A, B and C” represent premium pad types, and
brands “X, Y and Z” represent heavy-duty pad types.
Only the teeth – found exclusively on Formula Blue
®
medium-duty
disc pads – provide long life integration between the backing plate
and the friction material, binding the friction material to the plate for
the entire useful life of the pad.
Find out more. Talk to your Bendix account manager today.
Rotor and Pad Wear
Braking Effectiveness
The rotor wear and pad loss tests measures the difference in pad/
rotor thickness from the beginning to the end of the dynamometer
evaluation. Rotor thickness and pad loss were measured in inches,
and the best performers had the lower measurements in each test.
The Formula Blue
®
Medium-Duty 109 series premium pad proved
to be kind to rotors, producing rotor wear equal to or less than other
premium brands. The 111 series heavy-duty pad also performed
better than, or equal to, the other heavy-duty offerings tested.
And similar results were found in the pad loss test. The 109 series
pad performed extremely well in comparison to the premium
competitors tested, as did the 111 series compared to other heavyduty brands.
By optimizing pad and rotor wear, Formula Blue pads are able to
deliver the delicate balance of stopping performance and brake life
to lower the operating cost in the widest variety of hydraulic brake
applications.
Rotor Wear Comparisons: Premium and Heavy-Duty
Brands
Formula Blue
111Series
Brand Z
Brand Y
Brand X
Brand C2*
Brand C1
Brand B
Brand A
Formula Blue
109 Series*
Less is Better
SOURCE: Link Engineering; Test method #: UI-169 “Modified” (except where noted*; UI-169-”Full”)
0.0010.0020.0000.0030.0040.0050.0060.007
Rotor Wear (in.)
Formula Blue® 111 Series Pads
Display Equivalent-to-Superior Rotor Wear
Pad Loss Comparisons: Premium and Heavy-Duty
Brake pad effectiveness was determined by measuring the ratio
between the pad-to-rotor output torque and the pressure applied
to the brake pedal. Traditionally, this is called the “coefficient of
friction.” The brake effectiveness ratio is summarized as an average
and a standard deviation of the three dynamometer effectiveness
test segments.
For hydraulic disc brakes, brake effectiveness should be a value
between 0 and 1 (the higher the better), with the typical range being
between 0.25 and 0.35. The ideal standard deviation score is zero.
The 109 series pad scored the highest in brake effectiveness
among the four competitors tested and the second-best in standard
deviation. Results for the 111 series were even more impressive.
The 111 series pad scored best in both brake effectiveness and
had the lowest deviation as compared to other brand-name heavyduty pads tested.
Talk to your Account Manager for additional details or answers
to any questions you may have about the comprehensive
testing program.
Rotor Wear Comparisons: Premium and Heavy-Duty
Brake Effectiveness ratio between pad-to-rotor output and the pressure applied to the brake pedal
0 35
0.29
0 30
0 25
0 20
0 15
0 10
Average Brake Effectiveness
0.06
0 05
0 00
Formula Blue
109 Series*
Averages based on summarized pre and post burninsh and post fade test segment values; St Dev: Based on variation between test segments
SOURCE: Link Engineering; Test method(s) #: UI-169 “Modified” (except where noted*; UI-169-”Full”)
Average Effectiveness (Higher is Better)
Std Dev (Lower is Better)
0.27
0.26
0.25
0.10
0.09
0.03
Brand ABrand BBrand C1Brand C2* Formula Blue
0.32
0.27
0.07
0.27
0.02
111Series
0.10
Brand XBrand YBrand Z
0.31
0.30
0.09
0.04
Brands
Formula Blue
111Series
Brand Z
Brand Y
Brand X
Brand C2*
Brand C1
Brand B
Brand A
Formula Blue
109 Series*
Less is Better
SOURCE: Link Engineering; Test method #: UI-169 “Modified” (except where noted*; UI-169-”Full”)
0.050.150.250.35
HD-Inner Pad Loss (in.)
Formula Blue® 109 and 111 Series
Display Equivalent Pad Loss
Medium-Duty Formula Blue® 111 and 109 Series Disc Pads
During brake fade analysis, we tested to quantify the amount of
decrease in a lining’s braking torque as a function of temperature
and/or speed at a constant application force. The recovery test
assesses the ability of a brake lining to recover braking torque as
compared to the torque registered before the fade test.
In this analysis, the best performers have the least amount of fade
and achieve the torque values closest to 100 percent of the pre-test
values. Comparing the 109 series Formula Blue
®
pads against four
other premium-brand medium-duty pads, the results clearly favor
disc pad. The 109 series registered the lowest
fade number (43 percent) and the second-best recovery figure
(103 percent) among the pads tested.
The same analysis was performed with the heavy-duty 111 series
Formula Blue
®
pads and resulted in similar conclusions. The 111
series pad scored best in recovery (96 percent) and second best in
fade (23 percent) compared to three major brand competitors.
Fleets need brake pads that they can count on stop after stop;
Formula Blue delivers this peace of mind.
Fade and Recovery Comparisons: Heavy-Duty Pads
70%
60%
50%
40%
Percent Fade: Lower is Better
30%
20%
10%
0%
Competitive Analysis - HD Pads: Brake Fade Comparisons
Competitive Analysis - HD Pads: Brake Recovery Comparisons
108%
Brand XBrand YBrand Z
Formula Blue
114%
®
111 Series
95%
Limited Warranty
Formula Blue® medium-duty disc pads are covered under the
standard Bendix Spicer Foundation Brake limited warranty for a
period of 12 months, 12,000 miles or 1,000 operational hours,
whichever occurs first.
ISO TS16949 Certified Process
Formula Blue® medium-duty disc pads are quality made and built
using ISO TS16949 certified processes. They feature a unique padto-plate mechanical anchoring design and are field-proven through
millions of miles of on-the-road experience in a variety of vocations
and environments.
Applications
The “111” (Heavy-Duty) friction material for heavy-duty applications
is ideal for municipal service vehicles, in-town delivery trucks, bus
applications or where steep grades are regularly experienced. The
“109” (Premium) friction material is recommended for straight
trucks used in over-the-road applications, service vehicles or other
vehicles where quiet operation is a prime concern.
Check for the Formula Blue® name
on the label to ensure you‘re getting the
pads with long-wearing durability and field
proven performance.
These popular part numbers are just part of our broad line of
medium-duty pads. Refer to them when placing your next order.
Medium-Duty Formula Blue
Series 111 Series 109
(Heavy-Duty) (Premium) Application
Quality, Value, and Outstanding Performance Are Just Part of the
Formula Blue
Superior stopping power, advanced engineering and proven performance. Discover how Formula Blue disc pads
can save you time and money without sacrificing quality. Talk to your Account Manager, call 1-866-610-9709 and follow the
prompts (2-3-1) for the Formula Blue Tech Line, or visit www.foundationbrakes.com today.
®
Disc Pad Promise.
TO LEARN MORE ABOUT FORMULA BLUE® DISC PADS,
ALONG WITH OUR FULL LINE OF LIGHT- AND MEDIUM-DUTY HYDRAULIC
BRAKE PARTS, TALK TO YOUR BENDIX ACCOUNT MANAGER, CALL US
AT 1-866-610-9709 AND FOLLOW THE PROMPTS (2-3-1) FOR THE
FORMULA BLUE TECH LINE, OR VISIT WWW.FOUNDATIONBRAKES.COM.