After 14,000 miles the brake pads on my STi4 are in need of replacement. Has anyone tried Mintex or other pads at this size. I am most concerned about day-to-day driving (I will sacrifice track performance so as to miss a kid on the way to work). I don't brake hard (the ABS still hasn't come on after 8 months driving!) and usually find that the tyres overheat before the brakes.

Also my front disks are heat cracked. Has anyone else experienced this?

My service guys reckon that it is not going to cause a safety hazard - any other opinions?