racer63

I am in the process of buying a GT3. It will be used mostly for open track days and autocross. My question is, for open track days, are the stock pads going to hold up reasonably well. If they will hold up, not fade completely and not disintegrate, they would be easier on the rotors than a more abrasive track pad. But I also don't want to find myself at the end of a straight with no brakes (been there a few times and don't enjoy it).

FWIW, I will likely run a very mild DOT road race compound like a Toyo RA1 or Pilot Sport Cup (if one of the two makes the right size for the GT3). I will also drive the car more like 9.5/10ths rather than 10/10ths as I do the racecar. I don't intend to abuse it. I'm just going to use as intended... It won't be competition driving. Just fun in between Grand Am Cup and BMWCCA races.

MatroxMGA

I am also in the process of buying a GT3 and would also like to know about the pads. Another question, does the original brake fluid cope with the track or should it be changed to Catsrol SRF for example? Will also be using mine on public roads and the track, only for fun.
Great forum!

Racerron

Do NOT use the stock pads for track use, you will destroy your rotors.

Use the Pagid RS-19 Endurance pad they are great.

Look for other threads related to brake pads on this forum

I personally use Motul 600 Racing fluid or ATE Blue/Amber racing fluid is also a very good choice.

Z06

As long as you do not have PCCB brakes.

When you wear out the stock pads you could replace them with several pagid pads, the RS-19 seems to be the most popular pad, some say it is the original pad that comes with the GT3 (yellow), you will get very little dust, good modulation and long disc life.

I have the PCCB rotors and have just bought the front AP racing rotors and i am going with the RS-14, it has more bite than the RS-19. I run my car in the Solo 1 events and this is a great sprint pad.

The stock brake fluid works great and the aftermarket fluids are better, again it's all about maintenance and severity of use.

You can check in the Driver Education forum for more info.

Larry Herman

1) The OEM yellow pad IS NOT the RS-19 compound. I don't know why Pagid confuses the issue like that. Maybe they ran out of colors?

2) IMHO the last thing that I want with brakes this powerful is more bite. I can brake hard enough using the RS-19s on slicks at 150 mph to get into the ABS. The last thing I want is MORE bite. I want good modulation so that I can stay out of the ABS and good release properties.

Z06

As far as the stock pads, did Bob R, not get by with them while using the PCCB.

When i have called Pagid USA and a few others they all seem to think the stock yellow is the same as the RS-19

Larry,

In the Speedvision series they are using Toyo R compound street legal tires and they feel the need to use something better then the RS-19, they were all using the PFC 01, this includes the Porsches and the Corvettes. They are considered better then the RS-14.

One Porsche team running the Turbo car said that the RS-19 do not work well at all and even the
RS-14 are weak. They all swear by the PFC 01, I have use the 01 pads and they are great for track use but not for the street, the dust is unbearable and they are hard on disc, very hard. And they work cold.

If you can activate your ABS at 150 mph there must be something else going on.

Larry Herman

I don't know who you are talking to about the brakes. Everyone I have talked to, and a visual inspection of the pad compound shows me that they are different.

One thing that I have learned is that there are usually reasons why pro's are doing something different. Maybe the RS-19s hot performance doesn't last as long. For DE's you only run hard for about 20~25 minutes at a time. Are they using the same size brakes, same weight car and same terminal velocity? That would all affect your brake pad selection.

As far as my brakes go, I can go deeper than other cars I run with. I have found that even at very high speeds, imperfections and small bumps in the braking area can trigger the ABS. If you didn't have it, you would be locking up. The fastest way to stop is on the verge of triggering the ABS, and if you do on dry pavement, lighten the pedal pressure so that you get out of the ABS. That is why I feel that modulation and release is so important.

One final point. I am 6'1" and 230 lbs. I can put a lot of pressure on the brake pedal. Maybe some of these teams would want their brakes to be grippier because of driver fatigue over a longer stint?

Lastly, I have been running DE's for 20 years & club raced (and won) for 6. This is what I have learned in my experiences.

Greg Fishman

The RS-19's are made for endurance racing and will last for a 24 hour race. Most teams in the ALMS run a different choice on shorter racers and/or for qualifying. I would think the R-19s would take a long while to heat up but I have no direct experience with them.

cosmos

I have been running the PFC 097/98 for a while on the e46 M3 with the Brembo GT kit and swear by them. They are by far the best brake pad ever made.

I am switching to the PFC on the GT3 as soon as I can find me a nice slotted rotor cause this much is sure, the pads do eat thru rotors and the fancy factory drilled ones, will not be able to hold up.

bob_dallas

Stock yellows are most definitely not the RS-19.

skl

Two questions: Are the RS 19 pads ok for the street or do they need a lot of time to "warm" up? And where's a good source for Pagid pads...thanks.

MJSpeed

I'm using the RS-14 (Black) along with Motul 600 Brake Fluid and they are fabulous!! I ran them very hard all weekend at Homestead, FL and had little to no fade. I have not run with the RS-19 so I can't compare them. Oh and BTW the stock pads are NOT the RS-19's. Just my $.02

Karl S

I ran my GT3 at Mid-Ohio (3 days) and Road Atlanta (2 days) in DE's with the stock tires, pads, and fluid. The brakes stayed firm the entire time and there was no abnormal wear or cracking on my steel rotors. I just did the annual maintenance and replaced the OEM brake fluid with SRF because I happened to have a spare can in the garage, not because I felt I needed to. I haven't run with anything other than the Pilot Sports, so a sticker tire might require a different pad but I have no complaints with the stock set-up.

Karl

macfly

Just to chime in, I am not a racer, but I am a very enthusiastic track day player.
I have 7,000 miles on the car, 3,000 of them at the track.
I am using RS-19 with Brembo High Temp Fluid (and MPCS tires).

I can't tell you if the pads look different from the OEM because I didn't inspect them visually against each other, but I can tell you they perform very differently.

I found that the stock pads and fluid work fine until after about 20 mins of hard track use, after which I could feel a loss of pedal feel, and strength of stopping power.

When I switched to the RS-19 & Brembo fluid I noticed that the brakes are less effective cold, but once up come up to temp they are far more effective, and never loose their feel. (They also make a great deal more noise on the street, which I don't mind.)

These three considerable differences would suggest to me that they cannot be the OEM pad material masquerading under a different name.

I changed the pads & fluid at 3,000 miles. The scoring started by the original pads was exagerated by the RS-19's and at 6,500 miles I had to replace the OEM discs as they were totally shot, cracked like ice in a spring thaw, and scored up like an old LP.

JS

Stock GT2 and GT3 pads are made by PAGID but they are not RS19. The RS19 pads are fine for the street and do not require being warmed up.