Im getting a kit and just wondering what pads i should get. Opinions welcome too

 

What is more important to you..low dust or high bite and fade resistance? HPS are relatively low bite pads with low dust and Ulitmates are more dusty but offer higher performance.

 

how about a little bit of both? lol. I dont want to buy pads that dirty up everything after a week but i still want decent performance. I know this is a grey area and its hard to find the perfect one but i pretty much want what everyone wants...decent performance...low dust...with no noise.

 

i went from hawk to axxis and have been very happy with the improved feel. i did not like the initial bite of the hawk pads or the overall feel.

if you dont like washing your car/wheels i could see how it would be a problem, but its a tradeoff im more than willing to take.

this is a case where you really have to decide whats more important: good feel or low dust. pick one. neither are horrible at the other, but each is better in different ways.

 

if the axxis are anything like the oem brakes in that they dust your wheel in 3 days then i dont want. I would like at least a week and a half lol

 

I would go with HPS for the street. HP+ for better bite and breaking. No Axxis.

 

ok, i got one guy sayinmg the hawks have no bite, then one guy saying they do. doh!

 

hawk for less dust...i would say hawk unless ur gonna go nuts and need ridiculous breaking ability - not like hawk is bad - just not as good as the other in terms of breaking - much less dust tho

 

I had the Hawks and loved them.

 

I have hawks and dislike they're weaksauce initial bite. However, when they warm up (after just one 90-0 stop) they become much better.

 

We are carrying a new pad manufactured by our parent company called PosiQuiet Semi Metallic that offers improved bite over Hawk HPS with less dust than Axxis Ultimates. Prices are very reasonable and I see us recommending them a lot in the future. They are posted on our website on the ordering section if you guys want to take a look. I ran them on my STi when I was still on the stock calipers and was very happy with them. We dont make them in our ST40 pad shape yet, but as soon as they available, they will be in the calipers right away.

-Erik-

 

what do you think of the drilled rotors that comes with the stoptech kit. I've heard they are prone to cracking

 

^ i've got hawks... they feel awful for street driving, very little initial bite. But once you start pushing it, it warms up to you

ChiShi

 

Any rotor will eventually crack with track use where the rotor is heated above about 1000 degrees F. Any drilled rotor will tend to crack sooner than a slotted or blank rotor at these temperatures since the drill holes increase stress points in the rotor. On a street driven car that doesnt see any track use, our rotors will not have any issues with cracking. I would go so far as to argue that a drilled rotor can be beneficial for something like autocross use where brake temeperatures stay relatively low and the increased bite that the drill holes offer can be advantageous. On a street car with street tires and street pads, the bite advantage offered by drilled rotors may not even be noticeable, so if that is your main use for the car, go with the type of machining you prefer the look of most since that may be the biggest benefit you receive from it.

 

I went with Axxis Ultimates, and have been very happy with both daily driving and frequent AutoX use. They dust ALOT but I've never been worried with that. Haven't tried the Hawk HPS myself, but it seems to be a street pad, and not sufficient for my eventual track needs.

 

How many days after a wash do you notice the brake dust buildup?

I'd like to go at least a week...

 

I just ditched my Stillen rotors (I have Brembo's) with Hawk HPS for Axxis ULT and Stoptech slotted rotors. My car has more than 2X the stock power, and I had NASTY brake fade with the crappy HPS's. Even NA they never stopped as well as stock pads, only upside is they dust less. I absolutely LOVE the Axxis/Stoptech combo, my confidence is back the brakes are sick. Stopping from 140mph is not a worry anymore. They do dust more, but Id rather clean my wheels 2X a week instead of 1X a week and be alive!

 

Absolutely agree ^^^ (but would say HP+ for better bite and braking)

 

My wife has the Hawk HPS on her RX8. They are good pads. Although I can't comment on the Axxis, the Hawk made an already good braking system even better. Less brake dust, zero brake fade and longer lasting.

I don't see how there can be a better pad.

 

Just because something works on one platform doesnt mean it will work on the Z. Your comparing a lighter car to a heavier one with different weight distributions. HAWK HPS pads suck-anybody that likes these obviously doesnt push the limits of their brakes!