atr911

I did my first DE this weekend and got my first warning about the linings being worn. I did not experience any fade on the stock brakes/pads on my 'base' C2 but coming off my last lap there was a noticeable smell. One of the corner workers even commented on it at the gas station on the way home.

Is this normal or is this an indication I'm overdriving the car/over braking? I have motorcycle experience and one of the areas that I see as a huge opportunity to improve lap times is braking harder and later. Again, I must note, all my previous experience is on a bike. The brakes on those things will stand you on your nose in a hurry and you always knew you were at the limit when you had to shift your weight back to keep the tail from coming over.

Should I be investing in a good set of track pads for my DE? I already changed the fluid out before the event and did not experience any noticeable brake fade.

Thinking about some pagid oranges or yellows. As always, I anticipate your feed back.

FFaust

Hey Adam, I'm sure you had a blast

Did the IDS last week and it was lots of fun. Only got some brake smell during the threshold braking drills but nothing on the track.

Was the smell the only "warning" you got? Not sure if that warrants replacement. It'll be interesting to see the comments from the experts.

brendo

i'm on expert, but

you're not overdriving the car or overbraking. however, the track use will tax the base setup of the car.

i switched to motul fluid and pagid yellows. i used stock pads off and on but the biggest difference i noticed was with the fluid. the pagids are awesome but with 2 little kids, i didn't always make time to chagne out the pads - just too busy...

for about $12 you can put some better vents that bolt onto the suspension for the front brakes also...

number9ine

Did you actually inspect your pad thickness? Brakes smell when hot, and track driving heats 'em up. I'm not sure what was actually said in your "warning," but "check your pads" should've been part of it. If you didn't experience fade, your pedal stayed firm, and visual inspection shows pad thickness thicker than the backing plate you should be fine.

After every run, you should be visually inspecting your pads. It's not tough to do, just peek through your wheels. While you're at it check your tire pressures, oil level, and look around and under your car looking for anything out of place.

atr911

Ya did all that. Tweekong tire pressure was a big part of my after run routine. When I got the warning I checked and there was about 3mm left. It's time for new pads either way.

mdrums

You can use either Pagid Yellows or Performance Friction PF01 for the track. I just swap my street pads out when I put on my track wheels...very simple and only takes an extra few minutes.

You can drive on the street with the race pads but they will squeal and squak like a city bus at every stop plus on the street you will glaze up the race pads very easy with every day driving as they are just not designed for street use.

The smell is normal by the way and is worse with race pads.

utkinpol

C2 base car brakes do have tendency to overheat. They are smaller than C2S brakes and, well, there are 2 things you can do - simplest is to use pagid yellows and if you will have 996 GT3 LCAs installed you should also install GT3 air ducts on them to ventilate brakes better. I am not sure if you can get those vents on stock LCAs but you can check.

And always get pads checked before sessions to make sure they are almost full size thick - if they get less than 50% of original thickness - you need to put on new ones as they will overheat very fast.

Best idea would be to install proper bigger brakes like ones from 996 GT3 car but problem is - those front calipers on C2 base car have 130mm between caliper bolts and C2S and turbo brakes have 140mm - so you cannot simply replace them, you need to replace also, i forgot part name, that part on which caliper gets mounted on and it is an additional $600 per side so it gets costly.

rdstemler

Get used to expending the expendables.......tires are next! Then a GT3

rdstemler

Then expend brakes and tires on the GT3! It is a natural progression when you are an addict!

alexb76

I am not sure what's the cause of the smell. Brakes and many other things DO SMELL after a DE event, and that's to be expected. I don't believe you've reached the limits of your braking yet, as you haven't had any fade, believe me, you WILL know when you've reached the limit.

Do a new set of OEM pads, go out there and see how it does next time (never right after pad change). If you over heat them, then upgrade to GT3, or 997.S brakes.

RonCT

Hold on everyone - if the guy is still on stock pads at 3mm and not glazing up the rotors or killing his tires, it's not yet time for control arms, pagid yellows, motul / SRF, etc.

The smell is normal - I get it after every run because I'm using 99% of the braking potential.

My gut says to get a new set of stock pads or maybe a set of the Porsche "sport" pads and use those for a while. If you fill us in on more detail about your run group, # of days, etc. we might be able to help a bit more. Bottom line is if your pads are at 3mm, that's "used up".

russo

The faster your lap times the faster the brakes and tires wear out. At least you know you are improving.

TrackDays247.com

If you ever do make a change - go directly to Pagid Yellows for DE days, marking the pad locations (as well as the PEM locations) - anything else is a compromise.

Of course this entails pad changes, but look at it as an opportunity to get intimate with the car that you rely on to safely get you through that DE. Smell is normal, those pups get extraordinarily hot.

acadian_dad

Alleluia Ron ...

mdrums

Ron, if the guy killed a set of stock pads at an event he should get some pads that will last him longer. I was into Pagid Yellows after my 3rd track event. Then around my 5 event I got some Toyo RA1's because the stock tires where wearing too fast and I could use more grip. I went solo on my 4th event.