DaEvoPusha

I replaced the front brake pads with OEM Brembo about a year ago. I'm seeing now, with only about 12k miles on them, that they're already close to scraping the wear indicators!
I'm doing track events considerably more this year than I ever have before. I think I have about 6 on these front pads. I realize most people say not to buy the OEM Brembo after the factory pads that came with the car wear out. I also realize that I'm going to enough road courses for HPDE and track days that I should be running track pads for those events. I'm also going to start trying autocross, which is what leads me to questions.
I have OEM MR 2 piece rotors on front, resurfaced with the new pads a year ago. I have Centric rear rotors, also with new OEM rear pads about 7 months ago.

Do you swap the brake pads at all 4 wheels every time you go to the track? I've heard some people only put track pads on the front, I suppose for time savings of changing so many pads back and forth each time.
When I (inevitably) autocross, should I be swapping on the track pads? Or, should I get a sort of "hybrid" pad and use that for both street daily driving and autocross? Then, the track pads would only be used on road courses.
My OEM front 2 piece rotors look to have another 20k miles or so on them, then I'll have to replace them. Is a 2 piece rotor replacement really worthwhile for tracking, or is 1 piece just fine? I see mixed feelings when I do an internet search and read various EVO forums. The cost of 1 piece Centric rotors is substantially less than the 2 piece Girodisc.

rkevo

I recommend putting on Ferodo DS2500's, they lasted longer than my stock pads, by a lot, and I don't change them for the track. I think my rotors are wearing out faster than the pads!

DaEvoPusha

I read mixed opinions on the Ferodo DS2500's when I did the last front brake pads change a year ago. Some people were saying they dont perform quite as well as the OEM Brembo (which are actually a Ferodo pad). It's good to hear they last longer, though.

DaEvoPusha

rkevo, when I track my front pads often get some material from the pad on the rotor. I think it's from the heat generated on a track day. I then get some vibration in my brake pedal because the rotor's surface isnt perfectly smooth. After the track day is over, it works itself off after a couple weeks or so. Do you get this with Ferodo DS2500's? Do you get any brake fade on track days from the Ferodo DS2500's? I'm leaning towards transitioning to those as my current OEM pads wear out.

Also, I'd be curious if anyone else has any opinions on my initial questions.

rkevo

Apologies for sounding like the Ferodo salesman, but I haven't had a vibration nor a fade issue. I may not have gotten the rotors as hot as you did. I was looking around some other forums and not everyone is happy with DS2500's, but they are perfect for my light track use and daily driving.

Sawdust

After my OEM pads wore out, I went to the DS2500s and was very happy with them on the street. Note that I used them only on the street because I swapped them out (front and back) before/after every track event with Carbotech XP8s or XP10s as I advanced through the NASA HPDE levels and tried different tires. They are fine for DE 1, maybe DE 2, but as you start getting faster or pushing the car longer, you're going to want a more aggressive track-only pad. I can't speak to autocross since I only did road courses, but the DS2500s and Carbotech pads were very easy on the rotors. Also, what tires are you on? What brake fluid do you use? Are you using SS brake lines?

RazorLab

iTrader: (8)

Time for track pads. I think I would probably go through a set of OEM pads in one track day, lol.

ST43 are a good choice.

DaEvoPusha

The OEM pads actually perform pretty well for me, aside from one issue I mentioned. I'll get at least one significant pad deposit, always on one of the front rotors, at some point in the afternoon of a track day. This leads to my brake pedal, and some times to some degree my steering wheel, vibrating when I brake. The pad deposit seems to wear itself off after 2-3 weeks of street driving after the event. The overall performance is fine, but obviously this issue gets very annoying.

I'm on Dunlop Direzza ZII star specs that are near the end of their life. I'm going to use them through the end of the season until I ultimately swap my winter tires on, then dispose of them. I'll probably get a new set of the same tires again next spring. I use ATE DOT4 fluid and the stock brake lines. I've read switching to SS lines isnt really necessary at my 'intermediate' skill level. I'm not competing, just having fun and learning the proper technique right now. I've autocrossed a couple of times.

DaEvoPusha

Yeah I've basically gone through a set in one season. I've heard good things about Raybestos ST43. Do you swap both front and back, or just the front pads for track days? Do you guys go through a bed-in process every time you put the track pads on? Are you comfortable with street driving with your track pads on to and from the track? I'm in the Minneapolis area, so when I've gone to Road America, it's a 5 hour drive. I'd appreciate some more guidance on the whole concept of having 2 sets of pads.

Right now, I only have ramps for fluid changes. I dont yet have a jack and jack stands, so I guess I need to invest in that as well.