E39 Brake pads for trackday
Discussion
I am about to do my 2nd track day in my E39 528i.
Whilst it was surprisingly capable at Donnington Park, I did have issues with the brakes as one quick lap would be enough to fade them almost to nothing...
I am going to change to DOT5 brake fluid but have been looking at brake pads also. The obvious choice is EBC Yellowstuff. But these are over £100 for a set of fronts.
Can anyone recommend any other set ups?
Thanks
Whilst it was surprisingly capable at Donnington Park, I did have issues with the brakes as one quick lap would be enough to fade them almost to nothing...
I am going to change to DOT5 brake fluid but have been looking at brake pads also. The obvious choice is EBC Yellowstuff. But these are over £100 for a set of fronts.
Can anyone recommend any other set ups?
Thanks
jimbobsimmonds said:
Have heard not so favourable things about all the purple/pink/brownstuff pads especially on the heavier cars. Have Carbotech XP8s on my S60. Your car is a bit heavier but mine is far more powerful and the brakes hold up fine on track...
Worth every penny!
Totally agree on Carbotech, on a heavier car I preferred XP10's to the XP8's but it personal choice.Worth every penny!
The biggest issue is likely to be your brake fluid but *do not* use DOT5 unless that is exactly what your car is supposed to use. Most race fluid is DOT4. I have ATF Racing Blue in my 986 at the moment and it excellent - significantly cheaper than Castrol SRF. The Performance Friction fluid is also good I understand.
Stoptech, hawk and some pagids get rave reviews. But... some of these pads are awesome on track and a bit crap on the road as theyve little/less cold bite.
I've Hawk HPS on my S4 and they cope just fine, and the S4 is a lardy thing. I like the HPS compound for a daily drive and track. I've only done short sessions on them so I cant comment on how they would be on longer runs of +30 minutes. Others rave about carbotech- they feel more proven (at least in the UK) over the hawks.
In my search for pads I found that the feasible options vary massively from car to car as you can't get all pads for all cars, so it's worth creating a list of available pads within the budget you like and then refining from there. The experiences seems to vary a lot too!!
Sorry, not been a massive help, other than to say do lots and lots of research, and find someone with exactly your setup.
I've Hawk HPS on my S4 and they cope just fine, and the S4 is a lardy thing. I like the HPS compound for a daily drive and track. I've only done short sessions on them so I cant comment on how they would be on longer runs of +30 minutes. Others rave about carbotech- they feel more proven (at least in the UK) over the hawks.
In my search for pads I found that the feasible options vary massively from car to car as you can't get all pads for all cars, so it's worth creating a list of available pads within the budget you like and then refining from there. The experiences seems to vary a lot too!!
Sorry, not been a massive help, other than to say do lots and lots of research, and find someone with exactly your setup.
Edited by nixon1 on Thursday 6th June 00:19
spyderman8 said:
The biggest issue is likely to be your brake fluid but *do not* use DOT5 unless that is exactly what your car is supposed to use. Most race fluid is DOT4.
Agree! Regarding pads, Mintex 1144 is my trusted compound for fast road/trackday use because in my opinion it is about the best performance pad you can get without compromising cold stopping power and feel on the road. They make quite a bit of dust though.nixon1 said:
Stoptech, hawk and some pagids get rave reviews. But... some of these pads are awesome on track and a bit crap on the road as theyve little/less cold bite.
Let me first say I have not tried many of the pads on the market, but know people who have. I don't get where this "bad from cold" thing comes from. I have had (granted Volvo but nethertheless) OEM pads which were decent on the road, police spec OEM pads which were very good on the road and Carbotechs which even from cold will stop better than both of the above from cold, it's just when they get warm they get even better!Edited by nixon1 on Thursday 6th June 00:19
I think it's people forgetting what standard pads are like and comparing warm track pads to cold track pads...
I think upgrading the pads and fluid on such a heavy car is only going to improve the fade problem slightly. Adding brake cooling would have more of an effect as would losing weight from the car. I think I'm right in saying that even track focused BMWs like the E36 CSL can suffer fade on standard brakes, so those owners who track their cars a lot go for an AP brake upgrade.
spyderman8 said:
What is the Mintex 1144 like for squeal?
Never heard a peep out of 'em and I've used a good few sets.They've got quite a high organic compound content so they're quiet and they've got good feel and cold bite, but this comes at the expense of durability and dust quantity! At their price point though I find them impressive.
1144 IMHO no good for that car, 1155 would be marginal, I ran 1166 on similar weight & were ok, I thought 44s were crap even on my 515kg caterham.
Rs29 great if you have the budget, rc6 well rated for half the dosh. Sort the cooling out, fogs out bent back the backing plates etc. Ate blue good fluid for cheap, as is halfords racing stuff. Castrol srf is the daddy but not cheap.
Either way bleed calipers after a trackday & change yearly.
Rs29 great if you have the budget, rc6 well rated for half the dosh. Sort the cooling out, fogs out bent back the backing plates etc. Ate blue good fluid for cheap, as is halfords racing stuff. Castrol srf is the daddy but not cheap.
Either way bleed calipers after a trackday & change yearly.
Edited by iguana on Thursday 6th June 21:40
iguana said:
1144 IMHO no good for that car, 1155 would be marginal, I ran 1166 on similar weight & were ok, I thought 44s were crap even on my 515kg caterham.
Rs29 great if you have the budget, rc6 well rated for half the dosh. Sort the cooling out, fogs out bent back the backing plates etc. Ate blue good fluid for cheap, as is halfords racing stuff. Castrol srf is the daddy but not cheap.
Either way bleed calipers after a trackday & change yearly.
I have to say I've never used them on anything as heavy as an E39, but I wouldn't say they're crap on a Caterham, they're pretty much the pad of choice in our Caterham racing championship and many races have been won with 'em (most races for the last two seasons and one by me in April!)Rs29 great if you have the budget, rc6 well rated for half the dosh. Sort the cooling out, fogs out bent back the backing plates etc. Ate blue good fluid for cheap, as is halfords racing stuff. Castrol srf is the daddy but not cheap.
Either way bleed calipers after a trackday & change yearly.
They are very sensitive to how you break them in, I killed a set by not breaking them in properly.
wellground said:
Yellowstuff, not for me. I would be using Pagid RS29's but they will be dearer than that. Proper track pads. It would be worth it.
100% agree, I run an e36 328 & even that wipes out yellowstuff at the rate of a full set of ANY EBC pads in one track day.Pagid RS29s lasted me all last year on one set & cost twice the price..... No brainer.
Also spyderman8 said about ATF Racing blue fluid.... (don't know how to quote 2 postings)
I think he meant ATE racing blue fluid.
He is right about what he says about boiling point & DOT rating, stick with racing fluid DOT 4.
I regularly manage 20+ laps on the above set-up with no fade at all.
I use Yellowstuff on my E36 M3 and done about 5 days at Brands on them, still loads of life left - 56 sec laps too so not hanging about!
Cars caged and stripped etc but even so, I don't know how people do a set a day! In a day I do around 120miles/laps - I've never had them fade, always plenty of bite but Im using E46 M3 discs and 850 4 pot Brembo's.
Cars caged and stripped etc but even so, I don't know how people do a set a day! In a day I do around 120miles/laps - I've never had them fade, always plenty of bite but Im using E46 M3 discs and 850 4 pot Brembo's.
Sea Demon said:
I use Yellowstuff on my E36 M3 and done about 5 days at Brands on them, still loads of life left - 56 sec laps too so not hanging about!
Cars caged and stripped etc but even so, I don't know how people do a set a day! In a day I do around 120miles/laps - I've never had them fade, always plenty of bite but Im using E46 M3 discs and 850 4 pot Brembo's.
Just for the record, stripped out e36 328, suspension & brake upgrades, cage, etc.Cars caged and stripped etc but even so, I don't know how people do a set a day! In a day I do around 120miles/laps - I've never had them fade, always plenty of bite but Im using E46 M3 discs and 850 4 pot Brembo's.
Lap time for comparison Cadwell 1:46 solo, 1:48/50 2 up. Generally doing 30/40 minute on track & 20 minutes off, to a total of around 170 miles/day.
Mintex 1144 - one set on the front with not enough pad left for another OPL day.
Ferodo DS2500 - one set on the front with not enough pad left for another OPL day.
Yellowstuff - one set on the front and had to change them in order to get home!
Mintex Extreme (when I could get them) - lasted 3 track days.
Pagid RS29 - Lasted all last year which is 8 track days & a 3 day Ring visit.
Ferodo DS UNO - currently on the car & lasting well but not as well as the Pagid RS29 & will go back to them when these wear out.
In my experience the Pagid felt good even when cold on the road with good stopping power. Yes, as someone else said, they do get even better when warm, and also as someone else said, they do need to be run in correctly.
No brainer for me, the Pagid were the best for me.
The Pagid & DS Uno both meant around 6 hours less under the car over the course of the year, and even at £230 for the Pagid or £180 for the DS UNO (on 6600 AP 4-pot calipers) this also meant a money saving over the year.
They are also both MUCH kinder on discs.... Better still.
Edited by andyiley on Friday 14th June 15:26
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