psychoazn

Let me explain. Your race car is not being driven at 100% of its potential for the entire 24 hours. You need to conserve driver focus, fuel, tires, and brakes. I, on the other hand, drive 20 minutes at a time, with a fast lap being my only goal. Tire wear, break wear, and fuel are not issues for me; they just need to last long enough for me to put down that one fast lap. Every lap will be driven at 100%.

You attempt to use the GT-R as an example, but lets go more in depth. How much kinetic energy is being dissipated (weight x velocity) in the GT-R versus a street driven s2k? Obviously, the GT-R is heavier and going faster. Lets turn that into a ratio. Now, lets compare the surface area of the GT-R's brake pads, versus the surface area of the S2k's brake pads (swept area). Additionally, lets compare the mass of the GT-R's brake rotors, versus the s2k's brake rotors (heat sink "volume", surface area for heat dissipation). The ratio of brake pads/rotors is much larger, than the ratio of energy being dissipated.


I'll be waiting to see the review for the set of pads that have been sent over to the states. Forgive my skepticism; I like proven products for my specific application.

Dixon Motorsports

Trust me we do take it to 100% for a long period in a 24 hours event, sometime when you need to do catch up you will hear from your radio that your pit crew telling you that you have to do 20 qualify lap. 20 minute on the track is really nothing, you can push it 100% every single lap as you wish for as long as you like.

Yes I understand your point of view of the GTR, but remember the standard size brake wasn't designed for 800bhp and full on full slick either. I have tested a lot of r35 in UK and the OEM pad will get fade just after about 3 laps and that wasn't even on a heavy braking track.

Let me answer a few question from PedalFaster

The Disk and pad are really suitable for road and track use. The R01 pad doesn't make any noise at all on road use but the RA pad dose but only at dead cold temperature, dust is just same or a little bit more than OEM for road use. Disk and pad life doesn't effect much as I mention before regarding they use the Graphite compound to help lucubrate the disk surface to stop the attack from the pad. On track use they don't make any noise at all and you will always have the same pedal feel lap after lap.

I understand this might be abit new for you so it might need to time to disgust and to be proven on the result. This is some new technology they use in the disk and pad, thats why makes them unique compare to the other and it is pretty addictive once you get used to the strong initial bite, this is one of the reason the Dixcel user keep coming back as they cannot find anything will bite as sharp even at low temperature and perform exactly the same at track use.

First set of Front RA and Rear R01 pad is going out to the States tomorrow morning and we should have some review from one of the S2ki member here soon.

Thanks

Dixon@DMS

lovegroova

With regards to road use:

I'm afraid I'm going to have to disagree with Dixon there. The R-01 pads are quite noisy for road use (the "steam-train" effect as they rub the disc). It is only noticeable at low speeds with the roof down, but it is certainly there.
The Z-Pads make no discernible noise.


However, I can confirm that they do not squeal and work fine from cold, even in below freezing temperatures. Not as well as OEM, but certainly more than well enough.

They do dust pretty badly however (so much so that I ended up using a teaspoon to get the worst of the baked on dust from my wheels).

As for longevity, it's a tricky one, as I've had varying degrees of success. My first set lasted for 6 trackdays and about 10,000 miles, using plain discs. My second and third set of Z-pads lasted just two trackdays and little road mileage each, that was combined with the slotted discs which seem to make the wear a lot worse.

My current set with plain discs seem to be doing better. However, now that I have a bit more experience with these pads, I certainly give them a lot more punishment on trackdays than I did with the first set, having just come from OEM.

It would certainly be an interesting experiment to use some cheap blank discs with the pads to see how that worked out. I remember I used the Dixcel PD discs with my first set of R-01 pads and all was well with those. The PD discs are $110 cheaper than the FCR versions.

Do also remember that UK prices for stuff are way higher than those for US stuff. The Dixcels cost roughly the same as the Carbotech XP10 here.

Hope that adds to the discussion.

Oh, FWIW, the OP bought some in the end - you can read his experiences here: https://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/937...on-brake-dust/

takchi

This is a very long overdue brake pad review on the RA/R01 brake pad setup. I've been busy doing lots of testing for the S2000 and the BRZ lately.

I’d like to emphasize that this is my personal experience of these brake pads on California race courses. I'd like to thank Dixon Motorsports for subsidizing the shipping costs for this US (stateside) review. I paid for the Dixcel brake pads in full from Dixon Motorsports and have invoice to prove to show I am not writing this review to please anyone. I chose to dive into this endeavor to settle my personal curiosity of the brake pads. This review is my opinion. Thanks for your understanding. />/>/>

Car Setup with Dixcel Pads
S2000 CR
Tein SRC Evasive Spec
Berk Test Pipe
Hondata Flashpro
Non-staggered RE30 17x9
Hankook RS3 255/45/17
2940lbs with driver and 5/8 tank of gas

Introduction
Dixcel is a large Japanese brake company that has its name tied to many prominent racecars including those in Super GT, Super Taikyu, and other One Make race groups. It is an up and coming brake company that rivals the well known Japanese brands such as Project Mu Racing and Endless Brakes. Many of their pads and rotors had much success in the tuner market especially on the Mitsubishi Evos and Nissan GT-Rs. To get a taste of what Dixcel has to offer, I decided to take a plunge and order some pads from Dixon Motorsports to see what the hype was all about. Dixon from Dixon Motorsports recommended the RA/R01 combo for my setup.

Past Experiences
I have used following brake pads on my car:
Project Mu Racing 999
Carbotech XP10/XP8

I have driven other S2000s with the following brake setup:
Carbotech XP12/XP10 w/ ducting
DeFigo prototypes w/ ducting
Bro’s MS Racing w/ ducting
Hawk DTC-70 w/ ducting
Hawk DTC-60 w/ ducting

Specifications:
RA:
Friction Materials: Carbon Semi Metal
Effective Temperature Range: 200 – 900C (392 – 1652F)
Average friction coefficient: 0.40 – 0.45 (Initial: 0.51)

R01:
Friction Materials: HD (High Density) Graphite Metallic
Effective Temperature Range: 200 – 900C (392 – 1652F)
Average friction coefficient: 0.38 – 0.43 (Initial = 0.48)

PMU999
Material: Super Graphite Metallic
Temp Range: 200 – 800C (392 – 1472F)
Friction coefficient: 0.42 – 0.59

Carbotech XP12 / XP10 / XP8
Material: Ceramic carbon Kevlar
Temp Range: 250-1950F / 250 – 1650F / 250 – 1350F
Peak Friction Coefficient: ~0.65 / ~0.60 / ~0.56

Hawk DTC-70 / DTC-60
Temp Range: 400-1600F

Initial Impression
RA and R01 pads were packaged with some thin foam and packets of copper anti-squeal grease.

RA & R01


Inside packaging of RA


The RA front pad design looks similar to the Project Mu Racing (PMU) 999 front pads look. I assume JDM pads are going to be similar in design all around. The Carbotech XP10 fronts have a little more surface area and slit in the center. The pad seems a little small and the pad thickness looks a little thin compared to the other two pads I have used in the past.

PMU 999 (top) / Dixcel RA/R01 (middle) / Carbotech XP10/XP8 (bottom)




The R01 rear pad design has a standard shape, but has significantly less surface area to work with due to the large holes in the pad. I do not understand the necessity of the holes. Carbotechs have similar design as well, but the holes are slightly smaller. PMU999 does not have holes in the pad.



Installation
I used brand new Brembo blanks front and rear for this test. All shims from OEM pads were used with some of the copper anti-squeal grease that the pads came with. As an old habit, I use the OE shims on all my brake pads. It does help bring the noise levels down very slightly. ATE 200 fluid (gold version of Super ATE Blue) was used for this test.

Brembo Blanks


Copper Grease comes with each brake pad box


Road Tests
On the street, the pads had proper initial bite and felt good to the touch. The bite was not as strong was the PMU 999, but had a better feel than the XP10/XP8 setup I used prior to this setup. Modulation is a little tougher with the Dixcel. It has closer to an on/off feel for street use. Locking up the tires/brakes is not an issue and can be done easily.

Track Testing
I tested these pads at Laguna Seca and Buttonwillow. Laguna Seca is perfect at testing how well the brake pads hold up due to the large speed differentials entering corners as well as extreme elevation changes. Setting up for Turn 2, the car will need to have speeds cut from ~115mph to ~45mph going downhill. After a couple sessions spent to bed in the pads properly, session 3 was used to begin testing out the brakes. However, the pads would fade by lap 3. Brake fluid was still good as the pedal was solid, but the car was not cutting speed as quickly as the first couple laps. Initial bite decreases significantly and modulation becomes difficult to define. Because of these issues, the rest of the day was spent on enjoying LS. I did however place 3rd in the S2k Challenge Mod Class with a severely ill-prepared classed car. />/>

Car cooling down after a session


Decal shots to show what I was testing for the day


Buttonwillow doesn’t really abuse the brakes as much as Laguna Seca, but it does hint at the limits of the pads. This particular day was very hot (105F) and both psychoazn (Mike K.) and I had a chance to each do some hot laps in the car lapping similar lap times. His feedback reflected my own: brakes faded first before the fluid and modulation was decent.

Some interesting observations:
The front tires are easy to lock up if the brakes are in the cooler portion of the operating temperature range. Although easy to lock up, they are not as easy to modulate towards locking.

The paint on the R01 backing plates did not burn off. This definitely lives up to Dixcel’s claim that the pad does indeed have“low heat conductivity.”

The RA/R01 pad combo had similar wear (approximately 65% left) after 5000 miles of driving which included no less than a few spirited runs and 2 track days. This shows that the rear is working quite hard. From experience, I change approximately 2 front pads for every 1 rear pad.

Brake dust is pretty bad in front but decent in the rear. It is very difficult to wash the brake dust off the front wheels despite spraying on IronX equivalent Sonax Full Effect Wheel Cleaner and lots of scrubbing.


Summary
The RA/R01 combo does work to a certain extent for beginner/intermediate drivers whom do not want any ducting on non-staggered street tires (Hankook RS3s). Other S2000 owners with this pad combo had success with these pads, but the most important aspect was the fact that they used ducting and had weight reduction. Racecars that used these pads had big brake kits as well as extremely light weight bodies with ducting. This is a completely unfair comparison even if the car produces 500hp and wins competitions. Perhaps a RA front/rear combo may work better, but it still doesn’t explain why I’m fading these brake pads so quickly despite proper bedding and warm up/cool down laps.

The most interesting observation made was the fact that the rear rotor was indeed doing work, but the R01 backing plate paint did not burn off. Perhaps if Dixcel could make a pad that’s similar to the R01 with a significantly higher initial bite and average friction coefficient. The RA is not exactly “better” than the R01 variant. With some tweaks to the pad, I believe the pad could have significant potential. Manufacturing quality could improve as well. Some changes to the pad design to introduce more surface area similar to the Carbotechs would be a nice addition as extra pad equates to slightly more heat capacity. Some explanation as to why large holes are required in the rear pad needs to be discussed.

Overall, I believe this pad combo did not work as well as advertised with the S2000 unless significant upgrades are made to accommodate this pad setup which include, no less than, ducting and additional 100-150lbs of weight reduction.

Feel free to ask any questions regarding my experiences. Thanks for reading! />/>

PedalFaster

I hate to say "I told you so", but, well...

takchi

Just opinions from my end. Doesn't mean there are other people in this world who feel the same way. I made a promise to write a lengthy review of my experiences and I did my best to address as many issues as I could with my limited time on them.

#172CR

Nice review David

andrewhake

Great review takchi, thanks for posting up actual information rather than just being negative about something you haven't used yet. Have you had better luck with other pads you have tried with your setup?

Something I think should definitely be included in a brake pad review though is how the driver specifically uses the pads as far as driving style is concerned. Time-attack events in a near-stock car is definitely going to be tough on most pads. In the end I think people just need to try a pad/brake setup themselves before making any judgement as there are just so many variables even if the type of event is the same.

Ludedude

Raise your hand if you're surprised by this outcome...

Bullwings

The pad favorite thus far has been the Project Mu 999. However, when used on the street, the pad material tends to burn away quite quickly, but for track use, it's by far both takchi and psychoazn's favorite.

I'm curious to try it, but i want to know if anyone has used endless pads.

BMW used the P. Mu 999s on the e90 M3 in the ALMS, but apparently the Ferrari Compitizione (sp?) that won the class and the Class winning Corvette we're using Endless pads (this according to a friend that was working one of the ALMS events - Long Beach, I think).