Question for the HPDE crowd

[CroneOne]

Hi All

I'm coming up on my first track day and finding it difficult to get a positive overwhelming
agreement on good aftermarket track pads. It's either "these pads chewed up my rotors", "these pads
aren't as good as OEM" etc etc.

Just wondering who has had some good track success with X pads. I'm surprised there
aren't any brake upgrade kits out there (lines/fluid/pads) unless I'm Google failing.

Hawk HP+, EBC Yellow, Mintex, Carbotech ? KNS brakes has a nice selection http://knsbrakes.com/c/car-items/2041_2014+Ford+Fiesta+ST
Just thought I'd get some feedback before buying. I'm leaning towards Carbotech XP8
but if I can buy less expensive ones that perform well then I will.

HPDE every few months or so.

 

[BRGT350]

I ran two track sessions using the stock pads and found them to work just fine. I am not at the level of skill in which I am going to wait to the last possible second to apply the brakes, nor do I want to risk myself or the car at the limit. For those reasons, the OEM pads do a great job. Also, if this is your first track event, the best thing to do is keep the car stock. Focus on learning the proper line, when to brake, when to apex, when to accelerate, and car control. Lap times are the last thing you should be thinking about.

In respect to the Hawk HP+ pads, I use them on my Mustang. They make all sorts of noise, dust worse than the OEM pad, but when hot they really work! I tried multiple sets of EBC pads on my MkI Focus and the pad always came off from the backing plates at the track. I wouldn't buy those pads ever again. Way too many problems with them. I have always heard good things about the Carbotech pads, but never tried them.

 

[CroneOne]

That's interesting. I have also heard good things about the OEM pads on other forums. My last car was a 350z and the OEM pads
were no good on track - obviously because the Z is a heavy beast. I switched over to Carbotech which held up quite nicely. Then I moved
on to a Stoptech BBK which was the ultimate. I can't see a BBK needed on an ST though.
I heard that bad stuff about the EBC stuff.

How about your brake lines? Have you upgraded them?

Another informative post about the OEMs

http://www.fiestast.org/forum/fiest...ed-my-brakes-after-2-track-days-did-them.html

 

[BeansNCornbread]

I've had pretty good luck with EBC Yellow Stuff and Ultimax on prior cars. Never witnessed the separation issues you speak of. They did dust quite a bit though, but that wasn't a concern for me.

 

[meFiSTo]

Whether or not you need a BBK or super stout ceramic pads on your stock brakes all depends on your driving style.

Talk to Rick (@RAAMaudio), and he might suggest Carbotech XP10s or maybe XP12s up front. But his car is built to exceed the typical FiST performance parameters (top speed, acceleration, braking, cornering, you name it). Those are some gnarly race pads. Carbotech pads are consistent, progressive pads.

They're perfect for me. I'm an experienced, "average" lapper (generally do not late brake, unless there is a specific reason, like getting set to pass a slower driver and making an impression). XP8s front and back on stock calipers worked great for me on my first track day with this car in March. That's what I settled on for a very similarly set up previous FWD track car. I started with XP10s, then dropped to XP8s, with little noticeable difference for my use. My XP8s on this car still have a ton of pad left, although the trailing edge is a little bit more worn than the leading edge of the pad. I will have to keep an eye on that.

Of equal importance is your fluid and brake lines, right? The brakes do get hot. I recommend switching to a quality fluid and swapping in teflon lines (I've got StopTech lines, but apparently Goodridge also has lines that fit this car) -- in addition to ceramic high-performance pads. As for fluid, I'm using Torque RT700. It held up very well to a long day of lapping. Zero fade. Should last at least 4 events (might need to be bled sometime in there, TBD). I've previously used Castrol SRF and Motul RBF600. The Torque stuff, for my use, was pretty comparable to the Castrol brake fluid gold at half the price. Held up better than Motul. Key is the wet temperature spec since these fluids all absorb water pretty quick once out of the bottle.

 

[CroneOne]

This is great 1st hand information. Thanks for that.
I've ordered a set of OEM off Rockauto and will see how they fair. Also picked up some Stoptech lines from 2Jracing.
I agree with you on the Carbotech - they are well worth the price. I also read on another forum that XP10s are a bit
overkill for a small car like the FisT and that XP8s are the right choice.
Interesting. Motul RBF600 is my go to stuff however I will look into the Torque fluid.

 

[haste]

Used Torque Rt700 and hawk dtc-60 pads at last weekend at VIR for an HPDE event and everything went without a hitch. I did have two of the pads machine because hawk only produced outer pads on their first production run for the FiST. Other than that they worked great. My rotors held up and now have the OEM pads back on.

 

[Chuckable]

Watching this thread for the great info! Thanks to all who participated.

I'll add that I did an HPDE with the stock pads and fluid, including 4 or 5 25-minute sessions in about 80F weather and the totally stock brakes held up just fine. I did wear them down about 2/3 of the way, though, and my brake pedal got soft toward the end. I also now have a slight speed steering wheel shake when braking at highway speeds. From what I'v read it's not warped rotors but probably that I overheated the OEM pads and some of the material transferred to the rotors?

I've since bled the brakes and switched to Motul fluid. Wilwood brake kit is on order. For the cost of upgraded OEM pads and rotors and SS lines, the Wilwood kit isn't all that much more expensive, and aftermarket pads are actually often cheaper than OEM.

 

[Chuckable]

Hi All

I'm coming up on my first track day and finding it difficult to get a positive overwhelming
agreement on good aftermarket track pads. It's either "these pads chewed up my rotors", "these pads
aren't as good as OEM" etc etc.

Just wondering who has had some good track success with X pads. I'm surprised there
aren't any brake upgrade kits out there (lines/fluid/pads) unless I'm Google failing.

Hawk HP+, EBC Yellow, Mintex, Carbotech ? KNS brakes has a nice selection http://knsbrakes.com/c/car-items/2041_2014+Ford+Fiesta+ST
Just thought I'd get some feedback before buying. I'm leaning towards Carbotech XP8
but if I can buy less expensive ones that perform well then I will.

HPDE every few months or so.

On a side note, you may also want to think about removing your wheel center caps if you have the OEM wheels. Heavy braking and high heat will make them loose over time, and then eventually possibly fall out.

 

[meFiSTo]

On a side note, you may also want to think about removing your wheel center caps if you have the OEM wheels. Heavy braking and high heat will make them loose over time, and then eventually possibly fall out.

If the Wilwoods hardware would fit under a 15x7 TD PR 1.2, I'd consider them. Unfortunately, no luck. The Carbotech pads are $$$$ for sure, but it's kind of the entry fee I pay to have confidence about my brakes. I did add some cooling deflectors though too. Hopefully they'll help a little. They have in the past.

 

[CroneOne]

I know what you mean. Previously, I had a few Rota caps pop off on the track. Thankfully, my Motegi mr125 caps are bolted on with alan key bolts.

 

[Chuckable]

If the Wilwoods hardware would fit under a 15x7 TD PR 1.2, I'd consider them. Unfortunately, no luck. The Carbotech pads are $$$$ for sure, but it's kind of the entry fee I pay to have confidence about my brakes. I did add some cooling deflectors though too. Hopefully they'll help a little. They have in the past.

Sounds like you know what you're doing. Keep us posted!

 

[meFiSTo]

Sounds like you know what you're doing. Keep us posted!

Not really, but I've had the benefit of bouncing ideas off other folks on this forum, recollections of past FWD forum interactions, a little prior experience with my old car, and then some access to more mechanical folks near where I live.