Jim Michaels

I'm looking for a brake pad upgrade from the OEM pads. I'd like something just short of full race pads because I need good cold torque for autocrossing, and also don't want a lot of brake dust, noise, and rapid pad and/or rotor wear. I'll be tracking the Cayman at VIR at the end of the month and I'm afraid that the OEM pads won't hold up over the 3 days.

The in-between pads that I'm considering from the little info I have are: Ferodo DS 2500 (c.f. = .50), Hawk HPS (c.f. = .44), and Pagid Blue (c.f. = ?). I also read where someone running VIR used Porterfield R4 pads, but I'm not at all familiar with those. I'd appreciate comments on your experiences with any of these, or your other recommendations. Remember that I need the cold torque for autocrossing more than I need maximum hot torque on the track. Thanks.

FTS

I ran the Porterfield R4 pads about a week at VIR. They are a tad short from being full on track pads, even though they are marketed that way. They are very easy on rotors, deal with heat very nicely and they are cost effective.

They work best with r-comp tires, but they did fine with my street tires as well. Few downsides: 1- they are noisy, especially if you do not bed them in properly, 2- the initial cold bite is not impressive, but takes less than 10-12 seconds of gently riding on the brakes at slow speed (<20 mph) to bring them up to temp, 3- they don't release as fast as you apply them, meaning once up to temp, they bite immediately but as you move off your foot from the brake pedal, they don't release with the same immediacy.

Overall, I have always been very happy with Porterfield pads. I will be switching to R4S versions for the street, the R4/R4S combination makes like very easy without any need for bedding them in or other small annoyances of using seperate brands for track/street.

Cheers,

GT3 Nut

I am going to get the Pagid orange (RS44) for my Cayman. I cooked the stock pads in less than 2 days at Summit Point. I will probably switch them out for the street pads when not on track. I don't plan on pushing the Cayman too hard. I have the GT3 for that. On it I use Pagid yellow RS19 fronts and RS14 black for the rear. That's too aggressive for me with the Cayman.

pstoppani

Pagid Orange for me too

mooty

pagid yellow RS14 all around.

Jim Michaels

Thanks for your responses. I may end up getting two different sets of pads; one for autocross (maybe Hawk HPS) and one for track (maybe Pagid Orange), as track/race pads don't provide the cold torque needed for autocross.

Are the pads for the Cayman the same as the pads for the Boxster S? I called one place about pads and they didn't know. They had various pads specified for the Boxster S, but none specified (listed) for the Cayman, unless the two models use the same pads. Thanks again.

Oldnslow

I have used Pagid Orange pads in my vintage 911 for years, both on street and on track, including SCCA racing for 5 years.. They are simply superb, are good right off the bat, don't squeak much on the street, last a long time and are easy on rotors(yeah, a little dust but so what). I think the Pagid blue or black are more aggressive track pads that are harder on rotors. The Pagid orange are far superior to Porterfield R4 in my opinion.

pstoppani

RS 14's are black??? yellow is RS19. Both are great. I use the RS14s on the Elise and have used the Yellows on the front and orange on the back on several cars in the past.

http://www.braketechnology.com/racecharacteristics.html

Jim Michaels

Thanks again. That was helpful; especially Pete's link to Pagid compounds. The Porsche dealer parts guy said that the 987 Boxster S and the Cayman S have the same brake pad parts numbers, so I guess any 987 S pads will also fit the Cayman.

38D

Pagis yellow or blacks for sure. Yellows are more rotor friendly, but the black have more bite. The oranges are an intermediate pad and are not really that great for the track/racing, especially on a heavier car (on older, lite 911s it is a different story). Btw, many Le Mans teams run the yellows.

mooty

pete, i stand corrected. yellow = rs19 or rs29. i use rs19. i got probably more new pads in my garage than TRG, thus my confusion.

Oldnslow

I concur that for a modern, heavier car the Pagid yellow probably is better than the orange. My old 911 weighs under 2400 lbs. with a full cage and tops out about 135mph, while a Cayman would be a lot faster and weigh a lot more, so the orange might not be enough pad for you.

techno99

Just to give some input concerning your original choices which I have used. I used both the HPS and Ferodo DS2500 on my E36 M3 and the only good thing I have to say about the HPS is that you can't see it's dust. The Ferodo DS2500 is a very good street pad which was sufficient for use with street tires. I did get some minor pad deposits but they never faded at the track. The HPS didn't stand a chance even with street tire. There is no way either will stand up to abuse with R-compounds, not on my M3 anyways. I currently have Pagid Blues on my 993 C4S and they're fine at the track (again on street tires) but squeal like a pig on the street. Of the three, I rate the DS2500 much higher than the other two.

pstoppani

Just ran at Pacific Raceways yesterday on Pagid Orange pad with RA1 tires. The last session was 45minutes of hard driving with a 993TT and Supra; zero fade Man this car is fun! And fast

Jim Michaels

Update on pads. I now have have 3 sets, all Hawk because I didn't want to mix compunds on the rotors. I will probably send one or two sets back, depending on how the Hawk HP Plus pads work at VIR this Friday and Saturday, and at autocross this Sunday. The other pads are Hawk HP Street, and Hawk Blue. I expect the HP Streets will be marginal at autocross, and unworthy on track. The Blues are a more aggressive track pad, probably with all the positives and negatives that brings, including not working very well cold at autocross. The HP Plus pads work very well on the road slows I've tried. They squealed like a pig until I got them to an open road for bed-in, but they are quiet now. I think they may work okay for both venues. The Pagids may be great pads, but the place I contacted wanted almost $500 for a set. Thank you all again for your inputs.