Bought some Adaptive One brake pads for the rear of my 2001 Monte Carlo. Found out too late that they were made in China.
Each pad is plainly stamped "inner" or "outer" and also has a blue or red paint dot to also indicate inner or outer. The illustration in the package clearly showed the outer pad having the wear indicator affixed to it, and the original pads had the wear indicator mounted on the outer pad.
However, the replacement pad marked and color coded "inner" was the one with the wear indicator.
Mr. NAPA checked a set of Adaptive One pads he had on the shelf for another application and noted that the wear indicator was on the outer pad. He then ordered in another set of the pads I had bought. Lo and behold they were exactly the same as the first set.
Called up NAPA's Adaptive One hot line. The gentlemen assured me that all was well, and the wear indicator should be mounted on the inner pad because it wears faster. He said that the only reason for not putting it on the inner pad would be some kind of mechanical interference presented by the car maker's design. However, he did agree that the illustration in the package was misleading and promised to bring it to the manufacturer's attention.
This experience leaves me with an uneasy feeling. I still wonder if our Chinese friends mislabeled these pads. If GM put the wear indicator on the outer pads why wouldn't an aftermarket supplier follow suit?