I want to participate in two 2 day Track Time performance driving schools. I have been checking out info about brake pad vendors and brake pad compounds, rotor life, etc. posted on this forum and have spoken with a few vendors plus Track Time. Total confusion. Any help would be appreciated.

 

Some have used stock pads but they are not great for heavy track use. Many of us have used Porterfield R4S that have higher friction and do well but cost a bit more, dust more, and are tougher on the rotors. I don

 

I've had very good results with Porterfield R4S last year. Dusty but my rotors are fine. I bought them through Comptech

http://www.comptechusa.com/vehicles/vehicles.html

 

I've just been through my first week of street driving and my first track day with the Porterfield R4-S pads.

They stop noticeably better than the stock pads on the street, although they do take a couple of stops to warm up when cold; it's not that they're terrible when cold (like some race-only pads), in fact they're probably close to the stock pads when cold, they just get better when warmed up.

They survive the track much better than the stock pads, though. I glazed the stock pads pretty well on my previous track day, and I was trying to go easy.

The R4-S pads do make quite a bit more dust, and it's dark. You'll need to clean your wheels more. I haven't noticed any more noise, and don't see any unusual wear on my rotors yet. One caution: when RT and I were installing these pads, there were fit problems, especially on the rears. He did a fair amount of filing and dremel work on the pads to get them to seat correctly in the shims. Also, the wear indicators are on the stock pads, and the Porterfields don't have any, so you'll have to visually check for pad wear.

DOT 4 fluid is also a very good idea if you're doing track days; I used ATE SuperBlue.

Hope that helps,

Ted

 

I want to thank everyone who took the time and trouble to reply to my questions. All of you seem to be quite knowledgeable and experienced with the S2000, which leads me to my next question -

Do you recommend changing out the front sway bar to a stiffer one (such as King MS's 31.8 mm bar) for general street use to minimize snap oversteer? If so, is the King MS/s bar the best one to use? Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Thanks

blam

 

Change the front sway bar? Not only yes, but Hell yes! There are several bars out there, or will be soon. If you are only going to street the car, the Mugen bar should be fine. However, if you are looking to do track days or autox, you'll want something more stiff. Myself, Jason, and a few other autox-ers around here are testing a Comptech prototype bar. Mike B from Comptech will be making an adjustable bar based on our feedback.

These are the two I have experience with. From what I've seen and heard (and felt), the Comptech prototype is mostly there for autox, which means an adjustable Comptech will be good on the street.