[Yankees 2010]

I was thinking about buying racing pads and I wasn’t sure if I was supposed to buy Front and Rear pads or just front pads. I also was planning on buying the Hawk HP Plus Street\Track pads. Let me know what you track guys think

[marcel b]

buy front and back. The back pads are suffering a lot as well, especially if you keep DSC / DCT on. In addition having track pads front and back ensure a proper brake balance.

Check the track section, I have posted a pad review there. (Endless, Pagid RS29)

[zsapphire7]

Originally Posted by marcel b

buy front and back. The back pads are suffering a lot as well, especially if you keep DSC / DCT on. In addition having track pads front and back ensure a proper brake balance.

Check the track section, I have posted a pad review there. (Endless, Pagid RS29)

+1, mostly for brake bias balance

[Yankees 2010]

Originally Posted by marcel b

buy front and back. The back pads are suffering a lot as well, especially if you keep DSC / DCT on. In addition having track pads front and back ensure a proper brake balance.

Check the track section, I have posted a pad review there. (Endless, Pagid RS29)

I read your review and the Endless pads aren't cheap since I need front an rear (900+), thats why I was going for the Hawk pads. Currently my front pads have 20k on them and the rears have 3k left according to iDrive. What is brake balance? I thought i could just install them, bed them and drive. I kept DTC on and that why I think my stock rear pads are suffering.

[marcel b]

Originally Posted by Yankees 2010

I read your review and the Endless pads aren't cheap since I need front an rear (900+), thats why I was going for the Hawk pads. Currently my front pads have 20k on them and the rears have 3k left according to iDrive. What is brake balance? I thought i could just install them, bed them and drive. I kept DTC on and that why I think my stock rear pads are suffering.

DTC causes indeed additional wear on the pads, especially in the rear. (preventing your wheels from spinning)

With brake balance I mean the balance (or bias) between front and back brakes. When increasing brake performance in the front you move the brake bias to the front. Installing them is no issue. Put them on, brake them in and you are ready to go.

The Endless indeed are not cheap. However I found out in that in the end they are cheaper then eg the Pagid RS29 as the wear much slower and in addition have a far better performance. Hawks I never tried. Please write a review when you have tested them!

[The HACK]

In a bind, you can run an aggressive track pad up front and a milder pad in the rear. You should never run the more aggressive pad in the rear, of course.

But the problem with running a more aggressive track pad up front is that you end up shifting all the "work" done by the brake up front. The result is the front TIRES are doing more work under braking, and therefore heating up more resulting in uneven balance and quicker on-set of tire failure or heat overcoming the already skinnier tires. I used to run Cobalt XR-3 front and Cool Carbon R/T rear only because the XR-3 rear fitment didn't fit right. The result was my front tire pressure would almost always be 3-4 PSI higher than the rear. Last two events at Auto Club Speedway and Buttonwillow I used Hawk DTC-60s all around, no other change, and the result was even tire pressure.

Hawk HP Plus isn't a track pad, by the way. You will need HT-10 or better. Trust me on this.

[Yankees 2010]

Originally Posted by The HACK

In a bind, you can run an aggressive track pad up front and a milder pad in the rear. You should never run the more aggressive pad in the rear, of course.

But the problem with running a more aggressive track pad up front is that you end up shifting all the "work" done by the brake up front. The result is the front TIRES are doing more work under braking, and therefore heating up more resulting in uneven balance and quicker on-set of tire failure or heat overcoming the already skinnier tires. I used to run Cobalt XR-3 front and Cool Carbon R/T rear only because the XR-3 rear fitment didn't fit right. The result was my front tire pressure would almost always be 3-4 PSI higher than the rear. Last two events at Auto Club Speedway and Buttonwillow I used Hawk DTC-60s all around, no other change, and the result was even tire pressure.

Hawk HP Plus isn't a track pad, by the way. You will need HT-10 or better. Trust me on this.

Interesting... I read your other post about threshold braking as well. Is there that much of a difference between the HP Plus pads and the HT-10 pads? There is quite a difference in price but I don't want to pay extra if it isn't going to give me a big advantage.

[The HACK]

Originally Posted by Yankees 2010

Interesting... I read your other post about threshold braking as well. Is there that much of a difference between the HP Plus pads and the HT-10 pads? There is quite a difference in price but I don't want to pay extra if it isn't going to give me a big advantage.

You should get whatever pads you're comfortable with, but one level HIGHER in heat capacity. The last set of pads I wasn't able to "fade" at local tracks was HT-10s. I went and got DTC-60s/Cobalt XR-3s instead.

The idea here is, BRAKES are a safety margin. The better the brake the faster you can go, because you'll be more comfortable slowing down. Don't leave it to chance.

I don't recall making a post about threshold braking?

[Yankees 2010]

Originally Posted by The HACK

You should get whatever pads you're comfortable with, but one level HIGHER in heat capacity. The last set of pads I wasn't able to "fade" at local tracks was HT-10s. I went and got DTC-60s/Cobalt XR-3s instead.

The idea here is, BRAKES are a safety margin. The better the brake the faster you can go, because you'll be more comfortable slowing down. Don't leave it to chance.

I don't recall making a post about threshold braking?

I'm in a bit of a dilemma because if I switch pads (track and oem) back and forth I heard I will lose the smooth pedal feel when braking. The guy at Hawk said the pads will leave residue on the rotors and will cause some kind of issue when braking.

So the Hawk HT-10's are a good track pad in your opinion?

I'll find the post to refresh your memory.

[The HACK]

Originally Posted by Yankees 2010

[/B]

I'm in a bit of a dilemma because if I switch pads (track and oem) back and forth I heard I will lose the smooth pedal feel when braking. The guy at Hawk said the pads will leave residue on the rotors and will cause some kind of issue when braking.

So the Hawk HT-10's are a good track pad in your opinion?

I'll find the post to refresh your memory.

I found it. It's funny to read what I write sometimes. I must have been in a bad mood that day, it was a pretty scathing post.

Hawk DTC-60s are a good track pad in my opinion. HT-10s are one generation old and are not as torquey as the DTC-60s, not as consistent in feel, and a lot harsher on the rotors.

At the events that I work with, we always get one orientation sessions before any student goes out for their run groups, so I usually use that to re-bed in the pad after I've had a couple of laps to re-orient myself with the track and get comfortable, so pad deposit on same rotor for track and street has never been an issue. If you don't have orientation sessions and laps to work with, I don't know what you'd do for the pad transfer between street and track pads...I've seen people do pads and rotor swap before events so maybe that's an option.

[MKE_M3]

I just did a track day at road america (one of the fastest tracks in the US, hitting 130-145 mph on three differant straights!!) and used HP Plus pads. I put them on a couple days before the event, followed the brake in period, and had no problems at the track. I also put in fresh ATE Blue. (make sure you have fresh high temp brake fluid!!) I experienced no brake fade during my four 25 minute sessions. If you will have longer sessions, then I don't know, but I had no problem. HP Plus are track pads, they are just conservative. You would not want to drive them on the street as they squeal like crazy and don't work as well until they warm up. Because they are conservative track pads, I was able to safely drive them on the street, but I wouldn't want to live with them.

[MKE_M3]

and oh yeah... Definately get front and rear for the reasons stated by the other commenters. It really doesn't cost more money because you are saving your stock pads.

[subieworx]

I also just used hp+ lately apnd liked them. They didn't fade and had good pedal feel. Having large rotors front and rear really helps.

[MKE_M3]

The stock rotors are pretty huge on this car, so with track pads, I'm not sure if a BBK is necessary for all but the most hard core track duty. I was supprised to see that the front calapers on the 335i are aluminium.