I haven't seen brake pads up here recently, so here goes:

On my BMWs, using the OEM brake pads, they shed hot brake pad particles all over the wheels, especially the fronts. Over the course of a few years, this hot dust burned large black areas into the corners and crevices of my OEM BMW wheels. I believe that some BMW people get the pads changed out at the time of purchase for low-dust pads for this reason. I had the wheels refinished, and with the OEM pads, the softer refinishing clearcoat didn't last long.

What's the deal with the OEM brakes on the 997? Are people worried about this?

 

It bothers me. I put Hawk HPS pads on my Boxster. They were much lower dusting but didn't seem to stop as well as OEM. Harder pressure on the brake peddle was also required.

I need to find out who manufactures the pads for my 2007 GTI. They barely dust at all, stop well, and are very quiet. They seem to be the perfect pad!

 

I had Porterfields on my E46 M3. They were virtually dustless and had great cold bite as well as improved stopping power when warm. Not sure about fitment for the 997.

 

I wax my wheels twice a year. Currently using Klasse (has to be a polymer as the true waxes don't stand up well to the heat of the wheels), others like RejeX, Zaino and all the others. Klasse is easy and that's what I like with wheels. Then they wash off pretty easily, or if really dirty I use an old cotton washcloth with the regular car wash soap (last thing I wash is the wheels). Its easy and works better than any brush etc, doesn't require different pads or other changes. Personally I'd rather have the best pads for stopping and deal with the results.