Track Pads

[Ahbefive]

Some track pads (like the DS3000) are known to eat your discs very quickly so be wary.

[NIgt3]

Ahbefive said:

Insightful but obviously incorrect.

Insightful, I also try to be!!!
Incorrect, never!!!!

[Ahbefive]

Wrong again.

[Wh00sher]

NIgt3 said:

Ferodo ds2500 are a completely rubbish pad, anyone I know personally who has used them thinks their 3h1te, padgid rs29’s all the way

DS2500 are what people tend to use the first time someone recommends a `track pad`. If they are the first pad they`ve used compared to a standard road pad they suddenly think they are this amazing pad and recommend them to everyone.

Sadly they are average at best, crumble and leave deposits on the disc causing judder at worst. EBC Yellowstuff are better than the DS2500 imo. I run those on the rear of my track car.


The RS29`s were alright, Carbon Lorraine are excellent but wear fairly quickly in my experience. I ran some Project Mu SAS964 endurance pads which I manged to pick up cheaply. They were incredible but retail price was eye watering.


My favourite is the Performance Friction PF08 which give superb pedal feel and last for ages. Not the cheapest pad I`ve bought but as a £/mile they are easily the best.

[Ahbefive]

Wh00sher said:

NIgt3 said:

Ferodo ds2500 are a completely rubbish pad,


Sadly they are average at best, crumble and leave deposits on the disc causing judder at worst. EBC Yellowstuff are better than the DS2500 imo. I run those on the rear of my track car.

.

They are well known to be a very good road pad and decent on track, many forums will tell you that as they have been used by thousands of people and are highly rated

Having run EBC yellow stuff and red stuff which do crumble whe used on track you have got it very wrong. The Ferrodo is much, much better and far more durable, the EBCs were literally falling apart after one track day and my Ferrodos have done several track days and still had loads of life left when I replaced them.

Will be at Combe on 30th June if anyone local wants to see how they coped with the day. I've never had any fade or endurance issues with them..

[Wh00sher]

Ahbefive said:

They are well known to be a very good road pad and decent on track, many forums will tell you that as they have been used by thousands of people and are highly rated

Having run EBC yellow stuff and red stuff which do crumble whe used on track you have got it very wrong. The Ferrodo is much, much better and far more durable, the EBCs were literally falling apart after one track day and my Ferrodos have done several track days and still had loads of life left when I replaced them.

Will be at Combe on 30th June if anyone local wants to see how they coped with the day. I've never had any fade or endurance issues with them..

Guess we`ll agree to disagree then.

I wouldn`t fit DS2500`s to my car if you gave them to me.

[TTR46]

Wh00sher said:

I wouldn`t fit DS2500`s to my car if you gave them to me.

Agreed, pretty much the worst aftermarket brake pad I've ever used.

[davebem]

I havnt done a track day with ds2500s but fitted them to a Clio172 i used to have and they were an improvement on the mintex pads that came off it. I have fitted these little known PFC pads to a track alfa156 and they were amazing.

[Ahbefive]

TTR46 said:

Wh00sher said:

I wouldn`t fit DS2500`s to my car if you gave them to me.

Agreed, pretty much the worst aftermarket brake pad I've ever used.

Well you guys are in the huge minority but each to their own.

A quick google and a browse of various marques owners clubs gets tjen overwhelmingly good reviews.

[Wh00sher]

Ahbefive said:

Well you guys are in the huge minority but each to their own.

A quick google and a browse of various marques owners clubs gets tjen overwhelmingly good reviews.

As I said, usually by people who don`t know any better and have never tried anything else the next level up.

If you`ve only ever run stock pads then yes they are better.


If you have tried RS29`s or PF08`s there is no way you`d suggest DS2500`s are in the same league.

[Ahbefive]

Wh00sher said:

1:As I said, usually by people who don`t know any better and have never tried anything else the next level up.

2: If you`ve only ever run stock pads then yes they are better.


3: If you have tried RS29`s or PF08`s there is no way you`d suggest DS2500`s are in the same league.

1:Incorrect. Lota of people have use proper track pads and atill revwet back to the DS2500, for several reasons. They don't squeal, are type approved for road use, they don't eat discs, they son't cost £400 for a set, they work from cold, they are good for general road use and track use.

2: Obviously but as above they do also have redeeming features for road use over a track pad.

3: I never said they were. They are a good road pad and I (and thousands of others) have had no issues with hard track use either. Of course a set of noisy, disc eating £400 pads are likely to be better for pure track and race use.

[E-bmw]

Ahbefive said:

disc eating £400 pads are likely to be better for pure track and race use.

You keep saying this, and it just is not true of a well designed set of good pads.

£230 for front RS29 for my set (ex) set up which lasted a year with 1 set of discs, all of which were just changed because they had been on a year but barely half worn.

£120 for Ds25s, and if I had used them for a full year I would have used 12 sets of pads & 5/6 (estimated, obviously, as I am not that stupid) sets of front discs.

And, to boot massively better braking performance.

[Ahbefive]

I do keep saying it as it's what some pads for my car cost ( https://www.kamracing.co.uk/car-tuning/renault/ren... ) and having read reviews whilst doing research is what most users said.

Unlike you my DS2500s have lasted several track days all over the UK, a couple of thousand road miles and a Nurburgring trip.

We obviously have very different experiences of them as so far I have had absolutely no issue with their longevity or on-track or road performance, no falling apart, no fading, no pad deposits and they stop the car as quickly as the michelin cup2 tyres allow.

I'm sure a full on track pad will exceed the braking ability (as they are designed to do) but having done research I decided against anything with a reputation for squealing, eating discs and costing 2-3 times as much and am so far glad I did. My car is not a stripped out race car.

It obviously depends on the car, setup, driver, conditions etc etc.

We will have to agree to disagree.

Edited by Ahbefive on Thursday 24th May 09:55

[edh]

Wh00sher said:

Ahbefive said:

Well you guys are in the huge minority but each to their own.

A quick google and a browse of various marques owners clubs gets tjen overwhelmingly good reviews.

As I said, usually by people who don`t know any better and have never tried anything else the next level up.

If you`ve only ever run stock pads then yes they are better.


If you have tried RS29`s or PF08`s there is no way you`d suggest DS2500`s are in the same league.

What does Nige know after all - he only runs a Mk2 Golf

PF08's are £100 per axle for my car (944S2), quiet, not hugely dusty and have a low wear rate. (Discs are consumables as well FWIW.)

Pedal feel is often overlooked, but that's an important factor for me.

[Ahbefive]

Ah, this was the same mk2 Golf that I saw at the Nurburgring last year in July. I believe it was the weekend of the 15th when the WEC cars were racing.

If you are there the same time this year as I am then I'd love to show you how my lowly DS2500s last lap after lap on track with no issues.

[SaggyOstrich]

I have an Impreza and am running around 280bhp too...I've got EBC Bluestuff on mine, really good stopping power.

[edh]

Maybe the OP would like to ask which engine oil to use as well?...

[nickfrog]

Ahbefive said:

Ah, this was the same mk2 Golf that I saw at the Nurburgring last year in July. I believe it was the weekend of the 15th when the WEC cars were racing.

If you are there the same time this year as I am then I'd love to show you how my lowly DS2500s last lap after lap on track with no issues.

Probably not very meaningful as the Ring is very easy on brake temp courtesy of the long bits without big stops.

[Ahbefive]

nickfrog said:

Probably not very meaningful as the Ring is very easy on brake temp courtesy of the long bits without big stops.

Certainly true but like I said, the previous set lasted full days at Bedford & Donington which are hard tracks on cars as well as Silverstone and several 30min sessions on various tracks. Will see how they fare at RSOC day at Castle Combe in June.

[E-bmw]

It was specifically the disc eating part that I was referring to, not the cost.