I asked this question on another thread but the pads that I decided on (N-Tech Lapping Day Pads) may not be available by my track day. So is there any alternative that would be a good choice? This will be my first track day.

Thanks

 

I haven't tried the N-Tech but have had great results with the Porterfield R4 (the "race" pad). I've tried their high performance street pad, the R4S's on the track but there is a night and day difference between the two at the track.

Oh, for your first track day, it's probably a good idea to flush your brake lines since there's no telling how old that stuff. My preference is Motul but I'm sure others will chime in.

 

Thanks, I'm planning on flushing the system next week. I think I have some Ford Performance fluid that has a 550F dry boiling point that I bought awhile back that I may use for now. Or should I go with some other fluid? I'll look into the Porterfield R4 pads thanks.

 

What pads do you have?? If it is your first day Hawk HP+ or a similar pad will probably be fine as you won't be pushing it 100%. True race pads need heat to work so if you get some and drive to the track be careful.

As for Fluid I like ATE, it's cheap and I've never boiled the fluid on track even after wearing the pads down to the bare metal. But I've heard good things about the Motul also. I've also used Castrol LMA before and didn't have any problems.

 

Lapping days would be ideal.... you're in New York, is your day at WGI?

I wouldn't hit that track with a street pad. Try the Porterfield R4's or R4E's... they're cheap and readily available from Porterfield directly.

 

After looking into the choices I think I'm going to go with the Porterfield R4's.

ptrhahn, my track day is at Lime Rock in 2 weeks. Watkins Glen is a far drive but I hope to get up there in the spring.

 

I use Porterfield R4 pads and I like them. I've used them on the street to and from the track and they worked just fine for that too, a little noisy and dusty, but they stopped the car just fine when cold and didn't seem to damage the rotors at all. I also use the Ford fluid and it's just fine for track days or racing (the GT3 car that I crew for uses it exclusively). No point in buying stuff that's 3x (or more) as expensive when you can get this stuff if it works for you. The other racing fluids will only get you a few more degrees, the highest is about 600 degrees and I think some are actually less. It does like moisture though, so you should always bleed it before a track day.

 

I ordered the R4's and will flush the system with the Ford fluid I have.

Thanks for the help guys.

 

The Ford fluid is good, but its properties die with age - if that bottle was previously opened, I would advise buying a fresh one. This premise actually goes with all brake fluid.

 

I have three opened bottles so this stuff should be fine. Thanks for the info, I'll keep it in mind in the future.

 

FWIW, I second the HP+ post. Hawks (at least used to be) the most commonly suggested pad. I actually used the Hawk HPS's for my first track event. Call me lazy but I didn't feel the need to go changing pads just for the event until my skill level was a lot higher. Didn't really want to push my luck with a lot of late braking right off the bat...

You can definitely overheat the HPS's pretty easily, but they're nice since you can leave them on the car for daily duty and they don't dust too bad. The HP+ buys you some more braking power at the track. The initial bite is a LOT higher than the HPS's, but that's actually a little annoying on the street and they dust significantly more. Plus I think their dust is a little harder on your wheels if you're not good about keeping them clean. You can still overheat the HP+'s fairly easily if you're doing many 140-60mph stops in a row. But I think if you're to the point of pushing HP+'s that hard, it's probably time to be moving up to a true race pad anyway.

Haven't tried any of the other brands. If you end up going with some others, let us know how you like them!

 

FWIW this summer at a driving school at a track that's fairly easy on brakes there was a guy there in the novice group in a 350Z and he burned through a set of stock pads in a session or two. I think he ended up missing at least one when going around to various parts stores and the dealer looking for more pads. Went through several sets over the weekend. Makes the expense of real track pads worth it when you compare it to what could happen.

 

I used to use the R4 pads for track event I would drive to. They're pretty good.

I now use the Raybestos racing pads on all my cars at the track with great results. Better performance and they last a lot longer than the R4 pads. A little harder on the rotors cold so don't use them on the street any more than you have to.

 

350z's are horrible with brakes. Even with proper track pads they are horrible. I had a friend run one for a little over a year before getting rid of it and going back to a RX8. Not really a good comparison IMO.

 

Yeah, I had started to say that I've always heard good things about the stock RX-7 pads up until the point when you really start pushing it. But I personally really wouldn't recommend that for a first event or two anyway. To each their own, but to me that first time out there should be spent learning the nuances of the track and learning to stay on the line. The hard braking can wait. Depends on the track though I guess.