After searching and reading through a couple hundred posts on the subject of brake pads, all I can conclude is that there are two groups of them: street (Hawk HPS, Project Mu, Endless Nuova, etc) and track (Carbotech, Porterfield, etc.) None of which answers the question of what kind of brakes pads should I get?

I AutoX regularly so I want something with a good initial bite and stopping power when "cold". Naturally I want something that doesn't put off much dust or squeel bad. From what I've read, the Project Mu or Endless would be ideal for AutoX and street.

This year, I hope to get in a couple of HPDEs or track days. I won't be doing full track racing, expecially since I have stock brakes. I'm wondering if my streetable pads are going to be okay for the limited track events or should I lean toward pads that are a little more agressive?

I also noticed that the Nismo pads are advertised with a warning that they are not recommended for use with stock rotors. Does anybody have any experience or background info on why this is the case? Does it eat them up too quickly?

I need to act quickly because the first track events occur at the end of the month at the ZCCA Convention. That gives me some time to order them, get them on and bedded properly then break them in a little. Also need to change brake fluid too!

 

Not the answer you are seeking but..
You need multiple sets of pads. One for street/autox and one for HPDE.

 

Thanks dave, I should have mentioned that was something I was hoping to avoid.

 

I would agree with Daveh - two sets are better.

You neglect to say what tracks you will be running on - that will tell me how hard the brakes might be worked.

But if I had to pick one set, it would be Hawk HPS. Just MHO... Of course, others will disagree with me, but if your track time is limited, I think these are a good choice. They last better than many, yet are well priced (cheaper than Project Mu and others).

 

GO NISMO

I too autocross and do track days and have been searching for that perfect dual purpouse pad. I tried Hawk HPS last year and cooked them at the track, DO NOT track the HPS. After I went off track and glazed them I called the hawk Tech line and they told me they are not intended for this use. Granted I was ridding them and not braking correctly. This year I changed to NISMO front and rear and just returned from MId-Ohio were they performed flawlessly(and I improved my braking technique). Two days later I autocrossed on them and had plenty of cold bite. So far wear has been good, more dust than HPS but much less than OEM, and no squealing. As far as not being approved for factory rotors, I believe that is because they are more aggresive. My set up is Stoptech slotted non-brembo rotors, Stoptech lines, ATE super blue fluid and I have removed all the factory dust shields to aide in cooling. So far I am happy, but there is a strong argument for dedicated track pads/rotors.

 

You say you want to do a"couple of HPDE events". Street pads won't last very long during full track events. You will have to change pads quickly.

Plus, it is never a good idea to go to a track with less than 50% of pad material left of the pads. Street pads will wear quickly to below 50%

If you had said you'd go to one event, than I would have recomanded to keep the pads you have now. If it's more than that, get a dedicated set of pads.

Race pads don't have much more bite. Their main characteristic is endurance to high temperature. Where a street pad will overheat and glaze, the race pads will barely be in it's temperature range...

 

To piggyback onto this question, I am doing an open track event at a small, relatively low speed course (less than 100mph) will my stock pads be ok if this is the only event I plan to run in the near future? My car only has 8k miles on the clock and I have tons of brake material left. Thanks

 

What trim do you have ? Brembo or regular ? The non brembo brake pads are unexpensive. You should bring at least a set of rear with you, just in case (rear seem to wear faster on these).

 

I have a base (non-brembo). What about ebc red stuff pads? I found a new set for pretty cheap $55f/$62r, should I just get these put on before the event and not worry about it? Also, how much brake fluid will I need to flush the system? (using ATE super blue)

 

I tried EBC Redstuff as rears one time. They lasted about 3 sessions on the track. Perhaps the worst pad that I have tried for the track next to the stock pads. I wouldn't recommend these pads to anyone.

Also, my first track event in my Z was at Firebird Raceway's West track. Relatively low speed (maybe 90mph at the end of the front straight). I had plenty of pad left when I started. By my 4th session, the rears were GONE. I have never seen a car that can burn through rear brake pads as fast as this one.

(I also agree with everything that Kolia said...)

I still say Hawk HP+ front, HPS rear, is a decent double-duty combo. (I will duck and cover from the flames now)...

 

I am happy as hell with my Satisfied Pro Ceramic Pads.

 

The two events I have coming up this month are associated with the ZCCA convention in Dallas. Road course at Motorsport Ranch and oval at Texas Motor Speedway.

I was hoping to put a new set of street pads on in the next week or two and use them at those two events. I'm not really going to be able to change pads in Dallas so I'd prefer to have them on when I leave to head over there.

 

I've been using Cobalt Friction's GT-Sport compound over the past four years on my track model. While not a full-on race pad, the material is the perfect street/track pad IMHO.

 

Endless pads are by no means "mainly for street." We have many compounds that are well suited for the street, but we have many that are street/track and of course compounds that are for circuit only. Our history is rooted in producing brake pad compounds for professional racing series such as Super GT and Super Taikyu N1 Endurance (to name a couple).

In response to what you listed as your desired characteristics, we would recommend the SS-Y compound as it has a strong initial bite and is great for street use. If you wanted something that is good for street but can also serve a dual purpose of being a light track pad, a good compound to try is our CC-A compound.

Hope this helps.

 

My and my personal experience.

Go with Nismo pads from Performance Nissan. I put them on my car about 1500 miles ago. I have autocrossed once since then. The initial bite is AWESOME on these pads. I have absolutely no complaints. The brake fade is minimal compared to stock. Now, take my opinion with a grain of salt as I have never had experience with racing pads. I have driven the car pretty hard to test the brake fade, and even after many concurrent high speed stops, the brakes still bite hard. I would recommend these pads to anyone, and will probably buy them again if I don't buy different calipers/rotors.

-Acree

 

I used Hawk HPS on a ONE day track event with good results and leave them on for the street. They are reasonable cost and low dust. For extended day track events 2-3 day. I have moved to Hawk HP+, now these have awesome bite and temperature resistance. The do dust quite a bit, but I am much more concerned at stopping, than dust at the track. The stock (non-Brembo) brakes gave predictable fade-proof stops after the 20min. session with only an upgrade to higher temp fluid and the HP+. The OEM tires will be the limiting factor on shorter stops.

 

Last year I went throught the same thing Solo2 & Solo1 (time attack). I'm a run-what-you-brung kind of guy and the thought of swapping track-only pads didn't appeal to me. They cost a fair bit as well.

Brake upgrades (non Brembo) consist of front 332mm 2-piece rotor and OEM caliper bracket extender, ATE Super blue brake fluid, OEM dust shields cut off, and Russell stainless brake lines.

Here's my analysis of the pads I've tried in Solo2/Solo1.

Hawk HP+: Probably the best Solo2 pad I've tried. Great initial bite but it can get pretty noisy for the street. Front-only pads. Quite dusty.
Hawk HPS: Brutal when cold or wet even just on the street. Lousy for Solo2. Quiet and relatively dust-free.
Ferodo DS2500: Best high-heat street/track pad I've tried yet. Better heat handling and consistency than HP+ but not as much bite.
Axxis Ultimates: Decent Solo2 pad. After the HP+, it has the next best initial bite. VERY dusty but so far no noise. Can get the pads for the front and back. No interest in trying them on the track.

The Ferodos were definitely the best dual-purpose pads I've tried yet but I still found their limits when I pushed. I definitely wouldn't try them on OEM rotors or with R compounds.

 

I echo pretty much what everyone else is saying. You should use the right pads for the particular events.
Better to be safe than sorry.

 

I've had good results with the HP Plus pads on my Track model with stock Brembo's. I'll probably try the Ferodo 2500's next if the HP plus' start fading at the track, but they've been solid so far during 6 "SoCal winter" HPDE's

 

Hey Jeff, haven't seen you in awhile, what's going on?

I've got the Ferodo 2500 on the AP's and they are doing their job. Fade isn't too much of an issue with these even after 3 sessions. The only down side is that they take way too long to warm up and get good bite but when they do, they get grabby.

I'll probably keep 2500 for daily and 3000 for track.