A8 Front discs unevenly worn
 

Hi

Front discs have grooves and ridges across the whole surface, so need to change discs and pads. I suspect it's causing some, albeit very occasional, ABS slippage on gentle braking.

Anyone know of alternatives to VA-supplied parts, or can recommend other suppliers?

At the moment pads not in stock, so I need to find the best alternative.

Any advice greatly appreciated.

Akebono and Hawk make excellent pads for the A8. Both high performance and low dust.
I'm confused though! A 1998 A8 (non-quattro) lists as a one-piece per side pad that's also compatible with the 100 and A6. I was expecting to find the fancy 4 pad front brakes. Was this a facelift​ change?

Anyway - according to their respective sites:
Akebono: EUR555
Hawk HPS: HB269F.763

These are both one-piece pads (per side) (same as 100 & A6).
Both sites have the four-piece pads available if you punch in a 2001 A8 Quattro.

I found plenty of both pads on eBay.

Many thanks for recommendations, will follow those up this week, as MOT is looming next month.

I used Apec pads, very cheap and better than the ones I had before. I was impressed and bought another 2 sets to keep as spares while they were cheap. I think I bought them for £23.50 delivered, here they are now for £15.50 http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/BRAKE-PADS...obbuo21c5NWw0A

They are officially meant for PF cars with 323mm discs but will fit 314mm brakes as well. But you need to check disc size before buying discs.

For the discs I used Zimmerman Z coat which has durable coating and stay looking fresh for longer than most others.

The ABS 'slippage' is unlikely to anything with Discs/pads, more likely to be dirt on ABS rings or sensors. Or could be poor connection/ broken cable.

ABS sensor replaced
 

Just a quick update - many thanks to Dave at DSAutowerks, who diagnosed a faulty ABS sensor. Once replaced, ABS no longer kicked in on gentle braking, but works only when it should.:)