Pad choice

[WutApex]

Just a quick question on whether it's okay to mix & match pad brands (front-to-rear).

I've got new Hawk HP+ in the rear so i don't need/want to change them out. Should I stick with Hawks up front or is it okay to try a different brand?

If it's fine, what would be a good choice for replacing the fronts with a slightly upgraded pad from the HP+?

 

[brkntrxn]

Yes, it is ok to mix and match as long as you are aware that they may have different "bite" tendencies. If you switch brands, you will need to re-bed them in order to get a good transfer of the new pad material in/on the rotor.

 

[edz]

Ran HP+ on the rear and Blues on the front for years.

 

[David Hester]

^That works. I was at VIR years ago and REALLY didn't like my hawk Blacks. (don't bother with Blacks. Not much better than HP+ and nowhere near as good as Blues). Vendor had a set of Blues, so I swapped them. Only HEAVY braking was into turn 1 (157mph at 7000 RPM) Worked fine. 3200 lb car. Latter went to HT-14, but I don't think they make them anymore. DTC-70's never really got hot enough to make me happy. You won't like Blues on the street, though. Pulling out the paddock 1st thing in the AM (cold) was always interesting...coast coast coast stop. Do not pull up on the bumper in front of you too fast when cold.

Hawk Performance: Brake Pad Compounds for Motorsports

 

[WutApex]

so sticking with Hawks up front is ideal?

I was thinking of going to Porterfields or Carbotechs but if the cheaper Blues will work...

Also, is it normal to use up a set of HP+ in 3 weekends? I'm guessing it is.


......this is really pushing me toward a track-prepped Miata

 

[MFE]

so sticking with Hawks up front is ideal?

Nobody said that.

I was thinking of going to Porterfields or Carbotechs but if the cheaper Blues will work...

They'll "work", but comparable Porterfields and Carbotechs will work better, while not turning your rotors to expensive dust so fast when they're cold.

Also, is it normal to use up a set of HP+ in 3 weekends? I'm guessing it is.

Not suprising, because HP+ are at the bottom end of acceptability for hard track use.

......this is really pushing me toward a track-prepped Miata

On a Miata, everything is smaller, so it costs less, and the car weighs a lot less, so you use consumables at a far more affordable rate.

 

[David Hester]

What he said. ^
Race pads that don't get up to heat, will chew up rotors. You don't want to use them on the street. Ain't none of this stuff cheap. ;-)

 

[wheelhopper]

I used a set of EBC Blues on the rear for a while, I got them for free, and a set of Hawk DTC 60s on the front. I had to adjust the rear bias to full open. I am currently running Hawk Blues on the rear, got them super cheap, with full rear bias. They work better than the EBC Blues. The key to longevity is the weight of your car. I can run my rear pads the entire year. My front pads can go for 7-8 track days. This is on a 3100lb car that is well balanced. On my Terminator I could only get about 3-4 track days before I needed a new set, and cracked a rotor.

 

[David Hester]

Getting back to original question. If you are wearing down the HP+'s on the front, an upgrade would be fine and a good idea. If not boiling fluid or getting a soft pedal, you have all you need. Fade happens when things get too hot. That is when to upgrade. If you aren't having a problem, it would not make sense to upgrade to a DTC or HT-14. You will lose your cold pad braking, you may never get them hot enough to really work, and that wears rotors the quickest.
Less brake, more wear. Not good.
If you have had fade or are replacing every couple of events, You might even like the blacks (still relatively inexpensive). Even with HP+ pads I had squeal when cold. Blacks on up will squeal even more on the street.

 

[WutApex]

No fade since adding ducts and no soft pedal since swapping to Motul. Just using them up a bit faster than anticipated. So maybe one step up from hp+s.

I think I'll pull them tomorrow to see what they look like. I suspect the inner pad will have much more material than the outers (happened before). If so, is this normal with the 2 piston calipers. Would a better caliper reduce this, thus extending pad life as its using both pads more effectively?

Anyone fans of raybestos st41? Too much pad?

 

[wheelhopper]

I still use factory PBR 2 piston calipers, and am happy with them. They do tend to wear the pads unevenly. Mine don't necessarily remove more material from the inner than the outer, mine tend to wear unevenly like the caliper is cocked.

Don't know anything about Raybestos pads. I tend to make my decision based on what works and costs me the least amount of $. So far that is Hawk. The EBC Blue pads were a good deal cheaper, but I had to significantly add distance to make brake zones.

 

[David Hester]

Yep. we used PBR calipers in A/Sedan. The pads would bevel from front to back. We had more wear on outer than inner pad, too.
Sounds like you are the right track......I slay myself sometimes. ;-)
Have fun! :banana:

 

[Sniperdog]

I have carbotech pads front and rear for the track
10 for the front 6 for the rear, from a recommendation of a friend who races vipers

 

[TroyV]

The only pads I really came to trust on my Cobra were the Carbotech XP12, and the Cobalt XR2. They lasted more than a few weekends of use, with the Cobalt lasting just a little longer. Both were like throwing a boat anchor out of the trunk.

These days, I run Carbotech XP10's front and XP8's rear on my IT/ST prepped Miata. I can get most of a season on one set of front pads, and the rears I put in once year just for comfort, though they still have meat left. I have close to 30k track miles in the last 3.5 seasons. I can get two seasons out of rotors.

I haven't looked back. There is a certain desperation that comes with driving a slow car fast that I wish I could describe to those of you that haven't tried it....and it is downright hilarious when you show up to a HPDE and roll up on far more expensive and powerful hardware driven by folks with questionable skill.

 

[wheelhopper]

^Yeah, but a lot of them still want to drag race you down the straight and don't give you a point after you have been riding their ass through several sets of turns.

Troy, I enjoy the extended pad and rotor life after switching from my Terminator to my fox body. It is amazing the difference a 500lb lighter car makes.

I also used Performance Friction at one point, and was very happy with it, but the extra price was not worth it to me.

 

[WutApex]

So I'm thinking Carbotech XP10s ($170 at Saferacer)

And for street use, the Bobcats with existing HP+ in the rear until they wear out...."acceptable" combo?

 

[99COBRA2881]

XP10s are a great brake pad. I switched over to them and the car could brake so damn hard even with the PBR calipers. I sometimes think the PBRs could outbrake the Brembos on my race car but then again the race car doesnt nose dive under braking like my 99 cobra does and Im belted into the race car so well that I dont feel like Im coming out of the seat under braking either.

I use RP2 pads on my race car w/ 4" cooling ducts. I think the car still has bobcat rear brake pads.

 

[WutApex]

okay, are these the right pads for the Cobra or GT... I can't tell: Saferacer

 

[wheelhopper]

I can't tell. I would call them to be sure. After looking at the new xp16 compound, I may have to try a set.

 

[djs197mustang]

Very happy with Performance Friction compounds; for a lot of applications they recommend different front and rear compounds; e.g. Australian V8 SuperCars run PFC01 front and PFC97 rear. My MINI Challenge car ran 01/OEM, my Mustang will probably run PFC08 front and PFC06 rear.

You can use pads to adjust the bite and balance between front and rear both on initial application and through the stop. You may find that different brands, or different pads from the same brand work better on different axles.

That being said, if you're going to swap pads, particularly for performance/track applications, it would be HIGHLY recommended to swap rotors as well, or at the very least have the faces machined. This will allow the new pad to apply a transfer layer of material onto the rotor face, and greatly assist with bed-in and performance.