Which brake pads for non-ABS?

[Tim the Teacher]

Thanks guys for the interesting discussion. I have decided to track the car with the HP+'s and the rest of the time with OEM's. The HP+'s I have on there now are 3/4's gone (thank goodness as the dust is sorry) and I had to make a decision before the TDR event. I am also planning on Apex, ECR and Hallett as many times as I can work it in this year. Last year we built the house and I had enough to deal with but now it's time to start doing something I enjoy a lot more than picking out tile and paint colors...

I value both of your opinions so thank you

[icepenguin66]

In my experience, I can make a set of dedicated track pads last for 8-10 days at the track. By contrast, I can destroy a set of OEM or “street friendly” pads like Axxis Ultimates or HP+ in a day at a track like TWS or Hallett. For me, it is much, much more cost effective to run dedicated track pads at the track and OEM pads on the street than to try to get by with a “one-size-fits-none” pad for both applications. As an added benefit, I have complete confidence that my brakes will work as expected, whether I’ve been out for five minutes of forty minutes.

I've driven on the track before with OEM pads and street tires and whatnot, and I personally don't find it enjoyable to have to constantly "drive smart" because my brakes are getting hot or my tires are going away. I like to push my car, and these components give me the confidence and repeatability to do so, which in turn allows me to enjoy my track time to the fullest.

That’s my two cents. Take it for what it’s worth.

I'll have to agree with what altiain said. I did just fine on OEM pads the first time I was on the track and the first year I went to Hallett. This last year, I cooked a set of EBC Yellow pads in only 3 laps. A couple years ago after Gary conned me into trying the Hawk HP+ as a dual purpose pad, I cooked them at Hallett. At least I got a full session out of them!

My view is go with OEM or I'm loving the EBC Yellows for street (not for track if you have any experiance despite saying track ready on the box!).

At least go with Hawk Black pads for the track; if you are fairly experianced then go with the Blues or something similar. I've said it before, I left the Hawk Blacks on my daily car a few years ago and even though they are a full race pad, they are more than acceptable for street if you can live with the dust. They did not squeal like the terrible pos HP+ pads and do not need warm up like more aggressive race pads.

[bmcreider]

Well,

I got the pads from Gary today - Hawk HPS fronts, Hawk HP+ rear...

Too much rear bias.

Rear end locks up every time the brakes are stomped hard.

I've emailed Gary to see what kinda deal we can work out on exchanging the fronts for HP+ to match the rears...we shall see.

[icepenguin66]

Well,

I got the pads from Gary today - Hawk HPS fronts, Hawk HP+ rear...

Too much rear bias.

Rear end locks up every time the brakes are stomped hard.

I've emailed Gary to see what kinda deal we can work out on exchanging the fronts for HP+ to match the rears...we shall see.

Oh hi! So you must've been the guy at Gary's I was telling how much I hated thi HP+ pads I tried! So how are they working for ya?

[bmcreider]

I beat the shit out of them, and they squeak, and they dust...a lot.

But they stop fade free.

[icepenguin66]

Oh yeah, see that is not the performance I would want for a street or daily driven Miata. NO freakin squeaking dammit!

The EBC Yellows I'm running atm I would say have the same performance as the HP+ but without the terrible squealing. They only squeak slightly when the dust builds up from not washing the car for a couple weeks. They don't seem to dust as much but still more than an OEM or similar pad.