Seth Thomas

As most of you know there was a discussion last week about the use of Pagid brake pads on track and why most people use those. My Pagid RS-19 were shot after 6 DE events and I needed new pads. I ventured out of the Pagid realm after using them for the first set of track pads on my GT3 and ordered up a set of Performance Friction PFC-01 pads for a DE event at Road Atlanta.

Before track and install impression: The pads are super easy to install. I did 4 pads and two rotors in all of 1 hour. The difference in looks between the PFC pads and Pagids are the clean manufacturing look of the PFCs and the thickness. The Pagids appear to be a slight bit thicker overall. Overall I would give the PFC the edge here with the initial impression. They come packaged in a box that is padded and will travel well with moving the pads from track to track. Their initial look is one of exacting standards with a very clean appearance of a manufacturer that produces their products to the best standards of the racing industry. Did I also mention they come pre-bedded so there is no need to bed them in on the street like other pads.

Track Impressions (the most important): Wow! I really like these pads. My first thought upon the first application of the brakes when coming into T10A at Road Atlanta at 155MPH braking inside the 175ft mark is awesome! I love this stuff. The initial application of the brakes really bites hard but not hard enough to get into the ABS (which I try not to do under braking for reasons I can explain later). As I get deeper into the brake zone the pads are still biting but even more as they get hotter. I then start to modulate the pedal to keep from locking them up and trailbrake into the turn. All the way through the brake zone and turn in I could feel exactly where the brakes were and about how much I would need to get the exact amount of braking done I needed. Trailbraking I never got any lockup and I never had a problem with one end or the other biting more or not enough. You could really feel both ends of the car (brakes) working together all the time. One was not overpowering the other. The advantages of the PFCs over the Pagid were the initial bite being aggressive but smoother than the Pagids, through the brake zone the bite increased but not enough to trigger ABS, and the ability to feel the pedal effort needed to trailbrake into the turn.

The next spot to really try them out was in Turn 1 at Road Atlanta. This is a high speed right hander up a hill. It is not a super hard brake zone but it is very important to be able to get the car pointed correctly without upsetting the suspension or angle of attack. Trailbraking is reall important here. My first venture into turn 1 was amazing and it stayed the same the whole day. A nice abrupt hit of the brakes initially had lots of bit but not too aggressive. The rest of the brake zone was nice easy modulation followed by lots of trailbraking. The whole car was working together the whole time and I could really feel how much I needed to trailbrake into the turn. The rear had the same bite as the front and it was never at any point too grabby or caused any concern. The attitude of the whole car stayed poised with a sligth drift through the braking and first half of the turn until I released the brakes. The release was also a lot more controlled here. There were no sudden movements or jerks on the brakes or suspension from the brakes. The Pagids were different here in that I really had to watch how I trailed into the turn. Their initial bite caused too much nose dive and the release of the brakes was a lot more noticed. The PFCs won out here over the Pagids by a long shot in my opinion due to their ease of use, consisitent braking, and predictibility of their release under lots of trailbraking. This opinion was also shared by another driver that weekend who drove my GT3 and his first comment was about the brakes in Turn 1 trailbraking in.

Overall Impression: The PFC 01s are a superior pad for track driving. They are the same lap after lap, I never had a fading problem with them, they were easy on the rotors, they are relatively the same price as the Pagids, and were amazing from the first application of the brakes. The install went super easy compared to the Pagids (the Pagids were thicker and required more messaging to install). As the weekend went on I really became more and more impressed with the braking capability of the pads along with the ease of control with the pedal. At all times I could feel exactly how much baking capability the car had and I could keep it on the limit a lot easier than before. In my opinon these pads are the best for the car and I will be using them on my car from now on.

I hope this does help to add some more info to the brake pad discussion. Any questions just ask away.

Chris L.

Come on guys...here is someone with much more knowledge than me and thus is able to give you a much better explanation about the modulation and capabilities.

I love my PFC 97s and nice to hear a good report on the O1s from Seth.

Thanks Seth...for this and for Snellings Walters.

NJ-GT

Thanks a lot Seth.

I've to get pads for this season. There is a lot of positive feedback on the PFC-01 on the BMW forums.

Have you ever run the RS14 on your GT3? I'm thinking on combining PFC-01 at the front with RS14 at the rear.

bgiere

+1 on the PFC's...I switched 2 years ago from Pagid blacks and have never looked back....no more rotor deposits and fussy bedding procedures for me!

Seth Thomas

I haven't ran the RS-14s on the GT3 as I have only ran the RS-19s. I can't comment on how the RS-14s would work on the rear with PFC 01s on the front. I have ran two different manf of pads front and rear on a BMW racecar before and the results were horrible. The rear would allows brake more than the front causing rear lockup and the car sliding sideways in hard brake zones. From that experience I usually try to use the same manf of pads front at rear on a car on the track. If I need to I will use different compounds front and rear but get the advice of the manf on if they will work for the type of braking I am looking for. PFC can definitely help you out with this.

NJ-GT

Seth,

Thanks a lot, and good luck on the Speed WCTC this season.

Mr. C4

+1 Got the PFC and when my mechanic came back from test drive after 1st time installation he was smiling from ear to ear and shouting "this is even better than PCCB".

Mr. C4

smlporsche

I switched from Pagids to PFC's this year and agree with the assessment also.

Question, what made you try the '01's instead of the 97's? (which is what I run).

Seth Thomas

Uh oh my secret is out.

You are correct in they do sponsor our racecars and supply us with all our braking needs. What I don't know is if you are insinuating the reason I wrote such a positive review on the pads is because they are a sponsor of BimmerWorld. If you are then the answer to your question is no this is not the reason. The reason I wrote the review is because there was a discussion in the last month about Why always Pagids when choosing pads? I had a weekend at Road Atlanta coming up with a fresh set of PFCs on my car. My opinion from the weekend was an unbiased opinion on how the pads performed compared to the Pagids. If they didn't perform up to par then I would have reported how they didn't perform up to what the spec pad for GT3s is.

In my opionion this internet forum is here to spread information about the GT3 and to keep open discussions going. If everybody uses the same parts on their GT3s and never try anything else then we have closed our database without looking into all the options. My review is a very accurate report on the PFC pads that can now be added to our list database.

Seth Thomas

When I talked to the guys at PFC their first thoughts were to go with the PFC-97s as that is what they mostly recommend for the cars but after talking longer they said lets go with the PFC-01s. The 01s are very similar to the 97s in feel but they have a slightly better bite in the beginning and towards the end of the brake zone. The main characteristic that the either of these compounds have is the gentle release of the rotor at the end of the brake zone. This helps to keep the car planted without overloading the suspension making trailbraking easy and more natural.

Chris L.

I have the 97s on my GT3 and can confirm that they certainly are superior to the Pagid RS-14s in their ability to come OFF the pedal without upsetting the car.

LVDell

Is there any literature to read up on the differnces between the diff compounds available to us from PFC? I visited their website and damn that is diffucult to navigate and find stuff. Needless to say, I didn't see anything talking about the differences.

Seth Thomas

Yes there is. I have copied this straight from their website under the motorsport link:

Second Generation Performance Friction Compounds
Developed to provide the same unrivalled stopping power of previous compounds but with reduced pad and disc wear and improved controllability. These compounds are extremely versatile and suitable for all forms of motor racing, from GTs to single seater to rallying.


97 Compound
This compound was designed as an all-purpose pad where excellent controllability was a priority over ultimate stopping power. Due to its excellent modulation characteristics, this pad has proved very popular with race schools, rallying, and as a rear pad for applications such as touring cars. 97 has the lowest wear of all compounds, typically providing two to three times more life expectancy than competitors. This compound can also dramatically extend disc life.
97 is a medium torque race compound and as a result can provide reduced brake temperatures in situations where poor cooling can result in premature disc failure. 97 has the flattest torque curve of all the Performance Friction compounds. Effective from 167°F and reach 2000°F (75°C, reach 1100°C), 97 uses Performance Friction’s unique lubrication package that maintains a minimal transfer layer on the disc to help prevent brake judder and provide excellent release properties, therefore reducing overall drag in the brake system. 97 is extremely easy on the discs with very low wear.

97 is now being used in Bondurant, Derek Daley, Dale Jarrett Driving Adventure, Panoz, Mid Ohio, and Jim Russell racing schools because of it's long wear vs. performance vs. control and modulation.


01 Compound
Released in 2001,this compound has increased initial bite and improved modulation. The friction level has been increased for the first two-thirds of the braking event, with flatter torque curve and more linear friction curve compared to 83 and 93. This allows the driver to attack the brake pedal later, reducing the time spent on the brakes. Very smooth release will not over-slow the car, and won't overwhelm the car's set-up.
Like 97 compound, 01 has excellent modulation characteristics that improve controllability and driver confidence. 01 uses Performance Friction’s unique lubrication package that maintains a minimal transfer layer on the disc to help prevent brake judder and provide excellent release properties, therefore reducing overall drag in the brake system. 01 is extremely easy on the discs with very low wear. Effective from 167°F and reach 2000°F (75°C , reach 1100°C), optimum operating range is between 860°F and 1004°F (460°C and 540°C).

LVDell

That's fantastic Seth! Thanks for posting that up



So, as a follow-up, would if be safe to say that the 97's are better for us spirited DE guys and the 01's would be much more suited for club racing, etc.???