As I'm seeking new pads for my 04 STi I thought I would post this reply from a guy that I contacted from the site. He seems knowledgeable.
See below.
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Heya..ok..pretty much Stoptech has a pretty wide line of option, but they
have a few things that just are not considered to be good pads anymore
(Axxis and Ferrodo)..and they have most of the world of good race pads
(PFC and Hawk), but are missing some new stuff on the retail market thats
been private labeled to NASCAR Busch and Nextel series for a # of
years...Raybestos.
Here is a list of relative strengths and weaknesses that I can answer to,
directly.
Hawk:
HPS, not as good as your stock pad for track use...but better than MOST
over the counter no-brand pads, and better than most non performance
minded OEM pads.
HP+, better than most any stock pad, but VERY dusty, and very agressive
HP+on
rotors. And for $350ish for a pair of front rotors for an STi, its a
terrible choice..and still not a good pure race pad, and its an iffy
street pad just because its so horrible on rotors.
HT10, a pretty darn good race only pad..no street use. Dusts enough to
want to clean it often, but -never ever- get it wet..clean it. HT10 dust
will damage your wheels, it'll stick to it and corrode to em. These will
cost a set of rotors per set of pads.
HT14, a more aggressive pad than the HT10, but too grabby most people
find...and worse on dust and rotor wear. But you shouldnt judge dust
levels on race pads, its what they all do when used hard.
PFC:
PFC01 is a better pad than HT10 by this much: <--> (two fingers close
together) in my personal expereience. Same rotor wear, and dust
characteristics as the HT10..dont let it stay long or get wet. Still eats
rotors.
Ferrodo:
I stopped selling all Ferrodo products about 2yrs ago, they changed
something in their pads..not sure what, but theyre not the old Ferrodo
that used to have a stellar name.
Pagid:
Pagid has some OK stuff in the full race Black, Yellow, and Grey pads, but
for the cost you can do better. Other than some stalwart old school
Porsche racers, I get no requests for this more than once or twice a year.
There is simply better to be had.
Axxis:
Friends dont let friends use Axxis. Are you my friend?
Seriously, they
make a pad that feels nice and grippy at street temps, but they cannot
carry into track temps and retain good friction.
I dont trust any brake
manufacturer that gets defensive on the phone when you ask for
friction:temperaure charts. Axxis, EBC, and Carbotech are some of those
manufacturers. I try hard to be objective, but I take my cues by what I
see my customers, class members, and _competitors_ use on the racetracks.
Those are not seen there.
Here are two manufacturers not listed by Stoptech.
Porterfield:
PF has a few options for you, both for street+track use, or track use
only.
R-4S: This is their street pad that is capable of limited track use. In
an STi you have to give up some speed and agression to use this pad..its a
"hack" to put it best. You want a GOOD street pad that can take track
temps..the problem is the street manners of the pad means that the pad
shouldnt be hard on rotors. The R-4S compound is not. You MAY see up to
3 sets of pads on your car before you need to replace the rotors, and
generally you dont need to resurface between pads, the R4S pads dont
groove heavilly, you can add new pads and they'll bed in perfectly. Your
22k mile old stock pads probly have a good ridge of wear at the edge of
the rotors already. Once you turn those, you wont have much rotor left
before having to throw them away. So back on topic..to retain the
characteristics of a savvy street pad, the friction levels at high
temperatures just are not there. This compound is good to about 900d.
Thats some aggressive driving for sure, but not balls-out either.
And..the harder you are on them, the more they will dust, and the faster
they will consume themselves either. Its the nature of any performance
pads to wear faster as youdrive them closer to the edge of their
limitations. These are great front and rear...dont just do fronts, you'll
overwork them. You have to bring up the rear friction levels to match.
R-41: This is a cool new compound. It offers race frictions at street
temps. The chart in the aforementioned datasheets shows a wide temp
range, but the pad material starts to feel soft over about 600d, so its an
_ideal_ rear brake pad when you need more work out of the rears. If you
wanted a sweeet street only setup, Id go R-4S up front, and R-41 in the
rear. This should work OK on the track as well, Id like some feedback on
it if you do. Rally racers tend to like it because they can fine tune
their rear brake bias easier on it.
Race only options..
R-4: The original Porterfield race only pad. Pretty darn good, long
life, dust isnt severe, and rotor wear is still VERY friendly.
R-11: This is the new stuff this year. It has a killer friction and
temperature range, dusting isnt horrible, and the rotor wear is no worse
than the R-4. If you get into bombing speeds, I would also use this in
the rear. I would put these up against the HT10, and PFC01 race only pads
in a heartbeat, and I think this one's better.
Raybestos:
Raybestos has three options that are new to the public market. ST41,
ST42, and ST43. The only two that matter are ST41 and ST43 really. ST42
is good for low temp race use, and there are better options..but back to
the gooood stuff.
ST-41: You will not find a higher friction, higher energy, rotor FRIENDLY
pad to compare to this. These things are just..brutally efficient at
braking on the track. Dust is somewhat _low_, rotor wear is unusually
_low_, and they can take so much heat..that I am selling these in
situations where racers are bending the backing plates of other pads.
However, its only suggested to use these on the fronts of cars that have
either ABS, or very large race rubber with some downforce. Theyre wildly
awesome pads.
ST-43: If you dont have ABS, or need killer rear pads, these are the
perfect match to ST-41's in the front. They operate a tad colder for the
rear, and match the ST41 friction levels, they just do it more calmly and
slowly.
So..if you wanted a pad purchase that you can street & track knowing that
track use is going to compromise your top speeds (you'll have to drive
DOWN to meet the pad to keep it from wearing out too fast..in other words,
work on technique), I would use Porterfield R-4S in front and R-11 in the
rear. You could save a few bucks and use R-4S in the rear as well and
give up a tad more braking power.
If you wanted to swap street pads for brake pads..and I think that if you
try a hybrid street & track pad just once, you'll find it cheaper to swap,
I would use R-4S and R-11 for the street, and Raybestos ST41 and ST43 for
the track. If you swap tires, swappin pads only takes a few minutes to do
these as well once you have done it once.
I need to confirm the price of the Raybestos pads for the store, I had a
killer sale price at the Rim Of The World pro rally last weekend, so what
you see online SHOULD be correct, but if you can afford me the luxury to
double check, I would appreciate it.
http://www.speedtoys.com
I also have the Motul RBF600 fluid, and the Motul 5.1...the differences..
RBF: For severe use, can take very high temps. However, it -needs- to
move thru your system steadily. After every track weekend, flush out a
few ounces of fluid, about two dixie cups per corner..period. Its very
hygroscopic, and the heat abused fluid will float UP the system to the
master cylinder.
5.1: For long term street use. You dont need to flush like the RBF
requires you too. But cant take severe temps..also much cheaper.
And..FWIW, I could make SS lines for your car cheaper than the $165ish
that Stoptech wants, I just need to know length, and the fitting sizes,
should be exactly..or about..10x1mm threads on one or each end, and
possibly a banjo fitting on the other.
You race it..we brake it..