Finally a workable solution - read on.

When I examined the brakes on my ‘17 Macan S the fronts look massive and the rears are small but used on other performance cars without issue.

So I was frankly surprised about the quality of Macan S braking (pedal feel & bite) and was on the verge of selling the car after less than 5k miles. My concern was far too much pedal travel before any braking (unless the pedal was pumped) and after braking initiated it was mushy without any “bite”. Two visits to the dealer, at 400 and 4K miles, resulted in confirmation that the performance was typical, albeit unsatisfactory for me.

Next step was consulting a trusted local shop - given the apparent capabilities of the stock brakes, what’s possible to improve performance without going crazy? They approached this little science project on the same two fronts: pedal travel and bite.

The first steps were were to sort out pedal travel:

1) Full brake system clean out and fluid replacement, including pulsing the ABS system to clear all possible air or manufacturing debris that might be in the system. Result = no noticeable pedal feel or travel difference. Check.

2) Adjust brake pedal “threaded rod”. This rod controls the amount of travel for the brake pedal and has a switch connected that turns on the brake lights. WARNING: This is not an adjustment for the faint of heart. The shop team were extremely careful, making adjustments in very small increments followed by a test drive each time. If you go too far the switch could be broken or disabled. Be careful. Also, every vehicle will be a little different and every driver will have a different feel they prefer so no adjustment spec is provided here. Result = perfect pedal travel ~ 1 inch prior to engagement, no change in brake “bite”.

Once pedal travel was sorted out the next step was improving brake engagement bite, the only option being different brake pads. There are not many high performance pads available for the Macan S - only Hawk and EBC Yellowstuff. Fortunately EBC had front (DP42162R) and rear (42082) Yellowstuff pads available in stock.

1. The front pads only were installed, with new sensors 95B907253, followed by a one week break-in period. Result = very good bite, just a slight bit too much dive/front weight transfer.

2. The rear pads were installed and followed by another one week break-in period. Result - excellent bite, smooth and even braking.

Hopefully this will prove useful to others.

Thanks to the folks who have commented, I really struggled with this issue, and have tried to address the questions below:

1. Macan GTS front rotors are larger diameter (360) and thicker (36) vs. the S (350) diameter and thickness (34), same exact rears (330/22).
2. Macan S front calipers and rotors are large and should be great “out-if-the-box”.
3. I have used braided lines on several race/track cars, mostly for safety from debris @160+ mph. Have not really seen any difference in pedal feel with braided lines vs. new (i.e., not aged out) Porsche OEM brake lines.
4. I picked EBC YELLOWSTUFF pads because I tested those on a couple of track cars, they were ok and didn’t squeal and importantly they were in stock. I didn’t consider more aggressive pads (reds) at this point in my R&D. Frankly would have preferred Pagid Blue that I have used for years on 911TT, BMW 3, 968, (super street performance, no squeal, last forever) but unforunately these are not produced for the Macan (are you listening PAGID? BIG market here).
5. Just changing pads is not a solution - that corrects bite but not pedal travel and feel. Both need to be addressed to correct this oversight by Porsche (actually to be fair, the braking is likely targeted to “normal” SUV buyers vs us).

Lastly, given a few extra bucks to upgrade you don’t have to compromise “or get used to” poor braking performance on your silly expensive vehicle. It has been several weeks now since the install and the Macan S is seriously transformed - it is a real Porsche now.

Have at it!

Great info....I’ve said for three years “these brakes suck”. Only time I didn’t think they sucked was when I briefly tracked the car and was just mashing the brake pedal. Great info and will likely use on our next Macan as we’re just waiting to Uograde when mid-cycle is done.

Hi one question did the adjustment and the pads get rid of that mushy feel unless you pumped the pedal before? Many thanks michael