^ HP+'s are sad IMO and could be part of the problem under severe use, but the description sounds more like a binding piston causing beveled pad wear rather than overheating, which is really hard to accomplish, even on track with stock brakes and decent pads.

All four rotors have the exact problem/wear pattern.

There was another thread I was following when the member had a shop changed hir rear pads and he mentioned that it was heating up, "... poured water and the water was sizzling on the disk brake." I'll find the link.

Oh, and I should have mentioned it before, this is because of track day use.

EDIT: I didn't experience any brake fade, or any performance issues. I'll post some pictures later this afternoon.

The shop didn't bother to adjust the handbrake cable?

That was my initial thought, it was close to a year ago and haven't been back to see what the cause was in that thread.

Thanks for looking and the thoughts.

Here are two pictures of the brakes. All four look the same so I have counted out instalation errors (unless I really screwed up :lol2: ) and manufacturer defects.


There is about an inch of what the rotor is supposed to look like on the inner part of the rotor and then on the outter part it looks glazed or something. The brakes worked great!


This is the front left

Attachment 230320

This is the rear left

Attachment 230321

Hey Scott,

First of all, your track weekend looked like a lot of fun. Can't wait to come back and run ORP with you guys. Some day...

Is this the first time you've had HP+ on the track? Just curious if you've had these on the car before without issue.

The outer ring looks exactly like what happened to me when i paired Racing Brake rotors with Carbotech pads. I didn't know this until after the fact but there is a well known issue with RB rotors and Carbotech pads. They are simply not abrasive enough to keep the rotor free of pad deposits at high temps (Racing pad selection and brake pad deposit - RacingBrake.com). It looks like a similar thing is happening here.

You've always been a good driver but from the last few videos i've watched of you I can tell you're getting really good :). You may want to step up to full on race pads. After trying an assortment of dual purpose and mild track pads i switched to dedicated track pads. It's made a world of difference in braking performance, feel, pad life and my confidence in the braking zones. I've really enjoyed the Hawk DTC-60's in the front with HT-10's in the rear and right now i'm really enjoying Cobalt Friction XR2 in the front XR3 in the rear. Carbotechs had great performance characteristics but like i mentioned i had a bit of a pad/rotor mismatch and sold them off after two track days. I prefer the Hawks and Cobalts to the Carbotech based on braking characteristics alone.

Now that your rotors have bad pad deposits on them are you experiencing any vibration at slower speeds? When this happened to me it took a week or so but the pad deposits started causing really bad vibrations when i was just driving around town.

Like others have said it may be time for a rebuild of the calipers. Its odd the inside is smooth but i suppose that could still be down to an install error or something funky going on with the HP+. If you want to clean the pad deposits off and try new pads all you need to do is get a set of racing pads. When i switched from the Carbotechs to the Hawk DTC-60/HT-10, my rotors looked almost exactly like yours do. A few hard brakings from ~70mph and they were clean as a whistle. Oh yeah, and i did it at night and the red glow from the pad deposits burning off was worth it on its own. I wish i had it on video because it literally lit the whole road up on either side of the car from the burning embers :FIREdevil

Thanks man!!! :wavey: And yeah, you need to get out here!

August was the first time I wasn't stock (except I finally got a seat in Feb woohoo!!! How nice it is not to be thrown around.) I ran the HP+ at PR on the 22nd, but I took it easy because I had changed my alignment settings to a more aggresive setting and things were much more twitchy than before. I had also just put the HP+ pads on and the initial bite still had me a bit unnerved. I wasn't expecting that much of a difference. So I was about 2-3 seconds slower so I didn't end up in a hill :lol2:

I'm not sure if I noticed the rotors at PIR, but I know I was hard on the brakes on the two straights. And then I definately noticed them ot ORP and I was way harder on the brakes than the last time I was there, also knocking off 4-5 seconds. Still couldn't keep up with dondo and it was his first time at ORP :cussing: haha The brakes were solid though. And I am glad I switched brake fluid (GS610,) because I had been boiling the cheap stuff last year.


I'm not experiencing vibrations, but they are singing, and as I drive around town the outer ring is starting to become cleaner/shiny. On a rebuild, what exactly do you change?


I'll need new pads very soon so I'll be in contact with you. Never thought I'd burn through a set of pads in a month. Thanks for the info!

This is addressed to justjim only.
I was wondering what is your background. You seem to know a lot about breaking. I can not afford a BBK, so I am about to build my own. I have all the machinery to cut any bracket and metal what so ever, but mostly is going to be aluminum. I just purchased 6 pistons front calipers off of a 2010 Z06. I got them both from eBay for $270. I am looking for the rear ones now and the front & rear rotors. I am aware of all the changes that I have to do but I am willing to try it. I LOVE TO PROVE MY FRIENDS & FAMILY MEMBERS WRONG. I am also going to use the same size wheels that the Z06 has, 19X10 front and 20X12 rear. Yes I am getting a custom build wide body kit, and also I am welding the back doors.
I hope you can give me good insight and facts. I do not care for people's opinions and taste, It is my car and I got my own taste, sweet or sour is mine and America is a free country.

Your abs won't like those calipers.
your suspension won't like 19 and 20" wheels.

Good luck.

For F8S RX8. I haven't been on this forum for over a year. My RX8 is for sale, it's running good but has 120,000 miles on it and I wanted to try a car with more grunt before I get old so I bought a Holden Monaro (AKA GTO). The RX8 still makes me feel like I am putting on a spandex body suit that fits me like a glove and it drive like it knows what I'm going to do before I do it. The GTO makes me feel like Mad Max.

To answer your question, I'm 59, I'm a hydrogeologist with a Master of Science degree. I've had a life long interest in endurance racing and sports cars. I started tracking my Acura RSX and immediately came up against braking inadequacies common to FWD cars. I have a mechanical background and I talked to a lot of knowledgeable people with track experience to find out what works, and most importantly I tested what I heard and read on the track so I could see what worked and what didn't.

Eventually I moved on to tracking the Mazda RX8, and then successfully racing a Mitsubishi 3000GT in the Chumpcar series (7 top ten finishes, 2 seconds, and 2 firsts). I've focused a lot on braking with tracking my personal cars and even with the Chumpcar, because it the biggest bang for the buck on the the track and street brakes usually are inadequate at the track when pushed.

To summarize my personal experience. As I just said above, almost all street brakes are usually inadequate at the track when pushed. However, that doesn't mean the brake design is necessarily inadequate. Track brakes don't work well on the street and vice versa. Same for tires, tires that work well in the snow and potholes don't race well and slick R-compounds won't hold up or stick on cobble stones. The primary deficiency in street brakes when swithing to the track is either pad compound or rotor diameter. Pad compound selection is always a trade off between grip, longevity, noise, dust, cost, pedal pressure, and toxicity. Many cars can be successfully tracked even on R-compound tires with just a change to the proper pad and I count the RX8 as a classic example of this. It has excellent stock brakes. For the street I used stock RX8 brakes (pads and rotors) although I had ducting which may have helped. Pad change and tire change, and sway bar setting change and the car was good for the track.

Specifically to address your plans. There is nothing wrong with your project in principle. If you are smart, careful, and pay attention to detail, what you plan could work and you may achieve a working brake system. If your plan is to create something that works and show your friends you could do it you will likely be successful. If your plan is to make a braking system that stops shorter than the stock system, and works well at the track under racing conditions, you may find this to be a lot more complicated than it seems and I would put money on not accomplishing that task.

In general I would suggest that the parts you have selected are mismatched for size (calipers, rotors, and wheels and tires) for optimum performance. I say this not knowing the actual piston diameters of the Corvette calipers or the rotor diameters, etc.

My only advice is to take some baseline measurements before you execute your plan (stopping distance from a variety of speeds and conditions) and compare them when you are done. It would also be good to track test the car before and after (lap times).
Good luck and post the results for the benefit of everyone else. I don't know everything.

Very nice post thanks. I'm due for new rotors and pads this helped a lot

Hello everyone and sorry if my question might seem stupid to you ..

The thing is .. I live in Europe ( Romania ) .. and it`s really really hard to get good aftermarket parts in this region for a RX8. I am looking to change my rotors this summer ( maybe an upgrade ). I am not looking into BBK .. I just look for some good rotors for my 8. My car is stock .. 2004 ( 6 gear manual ). Maybe a Caliper upgrade also. Could you please recommend me smth. good ??

P.S. I don`t wanna go OEM because they rip your wallet at the dealership.

Could anyone direct me to the best rotors and break pads I should re place the stocks ones on my rx 8? Thanks!

Just street daily driving? or other??

hello.. im having problem with my 8.. i did a diagnose on it it it came up C2778 (sensor power supply failure) seems to me it didnt indicate which one of 4 is messed up.. or is it the calipers i need to deal with? i noticed when im braking/panic braking i had to pivot the wheel a lil bit to the left just to get the car straight on the highway. pls help...

OEM shims w/ AXXIS ULT Pads?
 

Hello folks. Since AXXIS Ultimate pads were mentioned a couple of times in this thread I thought I'd ask here...

I have a set of the Ultimates on the front, but my mechanic did not re-use the OEM shims. The pads seem to have an "integral" anti-squeal shim, but it looks like just a sticker on the back of the pad. Right now they are too noisy, and I'm thinking that putting the OEM shims back will help. I would like to confirm that the OEM shims will work with the AXXIS pads without dragging on the rotor?

Also, is there a way to buy just the shims without the pads, or the side clips (like in the attachment kit F1Y4-33-29Z?)?

Thanks!

You can buy the 'hardware kit' from the dealer or elsewhere consisting of the shims and clips, don't think the shims are avail separately..

Hey guys, I hope some people still lurk here. I was wondering if anyone has had any experience with Power Stop brake products. I found a set of rotors and pads, that seem decent, for a steal! So... I was wondering if that's because I'm lucky, or if they suck. Anyone heard anything about them?

Unless you track or are a serious autocrosser they should be fine. If they are used I suggest you get them re-surfaced.

Thanks for all this informations it is much appreciated! Will be back to look for information at a later date.

I have a question about the front bottom caliper slide pins (the ones with the rubber boot.) I track my car several times a year, and when I am putting on and taking off my track pads, the bottom slide pin is always super tough to get out. I end up taking a 15mm open end wrench to the inside with a 17mm box wrench on the bolt head turning back and forth to get it out. I use the purple ceramic grease from Orielly's. It's like the rubber has swollen and doesn't want to come out. When I grease it it slides in and out perfectly, but after the track day I'm back to the struggle.

Is there anything I am doing wrong? Any tips? I end up going through several pins a year because the rubber boot gets all messed up.

Heat :) All you can do is clean/replace them ...and grease and replace the boots as needed.

One of the reasons I went to a four piston front caliper that doesn't have rubber seals

Thanks Dan, just wanted to make sure it wasn't somdthing I was doing :)