I prefer to not have students worry about their safety equipment - ie brakes - working or not working and use that brain power for working on line, pace, traffic mgt, flags, etc.

As an advanced driver yeah, I was able to get a hotlap or two (track dependent) out of stock pads, but nowhere close to a session or anything

 

I've had the XR2/XR4 combo on my car since 2010. They are amazing flexible on a race track (HPDE Advanced), and they are also perfectly fine on the street, hot or cold. However, if you're sensitive to brake noise when you're coming to a stop, not the best choice. Personally I could care less, but that's just me.

 

Very interesting to hear about the XR2/XR4s. Could you describe how bad the brake noise is? What measures have you taken to quell it? eg. anti-squeal compound?

I didn't realize Porterfield could create custom pads from existing compounds, that's an interesting option. Has anyone run DTC-30s on their RX-8?

There's lots of great feedback in this thread, thanks for all who have contributed so far.

 

they don't create them, if there is a large enough pad available from an appropriate vehicle they will machine it into the required shape

I already posted my opinion of the DTC30 compound, not recommended

 

^well, it only happens 5mph to 0mph, and it's predictable. Sounds like squeaky disk brakes, you know, like a number of simultaneous, but not terribly loud little skreaches. My theory is it happens because on the street coming to a gentle stop I'm not applying the brakes hard, in fact very minimally and so there is a resonance vibration setup. If I just brake somewhat hard, it doesn't happen, and under track use, it doesn't happen.

I also have noisy drum brakes in the rear of my PT Cruiser after it sits for while, say after some rain - totally different sound. That's more like 50 nails being scratched across a blackboard. It goes away after a bit of use.

When I put the Cobalts on, I used shims, I use brake anti-rattle grease where it should be put. I'm meticulous really about that. It really doesn't stop the 5mph to 0 mph noise. It may stop other noises, but that seems consistent and not affected by those applications. The fact that the brakes work well, and hot or cold, makes the noise only an annoyance,

 

Because they're race pads, they all do the same thing more or less

 

Why is there so much worry about dust and break noise, this is the racing section.

 

Because its a daily driver, not a dedicated track race car

Doing some high speed tuning yesterday and max braking from about 100 mph down to 0 due to pavement limitations with a fairly new set of R4-1 pads, was pretty amazing with very little drama, seem to work extremely well with the ABS system as very little pulsing feedback, just slammed down to a stop. Too bad you just missed Porterfields mid year sale, buy one set if pads get a second set of equal/less value for 50% off. Ended July 31.

 

Taking a car to a circuit with pads that are good for track & street use, is like lapping with all-season tires.

 

Sometimes you have to try and do it all with one set of stuff. Adds to the challenge

 

There's no challenge really, if you want to do it - get the Cobalts, I know they work and work well There may be others that are as flexible, they just aren't the sure thing the Cobalts are - without someones experience with them.

 

ahh, here we go again ...

 

OK, I can't resist

I can tell you exactly how well the DTC-60 pads work on the street. I typically drive them for a week before and after an event. Fundamentally, they work, but I do switch back to street (oem) pads for daily driving. Why?

1. Cost - I don't really have any data on how fast race pads and discs wear on the street, but given that they do wear discs faster, and are themselves much more expensive I am sure it is cheaper to run street pads daily.
2. Noise. There are times when I don't want to explain why my car sounds like a bus coming to a stop.
3. Braking consistency. Street pads work better on the street
4. Dust. I never had a problem cleaning this off, but it sure is nice to have clean wheels without needing to clean them as often.

So, I use oem pads because I use the RX8 every day, with a 30-60 min commute.
I use full track pads because I get the brakes really hot when I drive on track.

Some full track pads might be better on the street than the DTC-60s, but I don't think any would be as good on the street as oem

If I was somewhere in between. i.e. did not daily the car, or did not hit such extremes on track, I would consider something between the two, and have done this in the past.

 

You seem to have mistaken my intention, but good info just the same