I am planning on doing a track day this November and I am trying to get my car ready. I am going to replace all four rotors and pads. I have researched, and it seems like most people who track their cars go with OEM replacement rotors. I am looking at either the Centric (which from my understanding is owned by stoptech) premium replacement rotors or a set of Duralast replacement rotors from autozone. The Centric rotors are a little more expensive than the Duralast. The Duralast shows they come with a 2yr. warranty. With the way everyone seems to crack rotors, the 2yr. warranty might be nice. Does anyone have any experience with the Duralast Rotors? Also, as far as pads go, it seems like alot of people say that OEM is very good for the price. If I end up going with the stoptechs, there is a sponsor in the marketplace that has a great deal on the stoptech rotors and pads. Are the Stoptech pads good for daily driving and track use? Here is a link to their s2ki package:

http://store.excelerateperformance.c...i-1798792.aspx

Does anyone have any experience with ordering from XLR8? Sorry for the lengthy post, and thanks in advance for the comments!

 

I don't think anyone thinks OEM pads are good for track. If out of the heat range, you can burn up pads very quickly. Stoptech have a decent heat range, but can still fade during track use.

Don't forget to bleed your brake fluid and use FRESH DOT4.

 

the centric premium is in a whole different ball park then the duralast.
I cracked my duralast in two hot laps / heat cycles (timetrials). The centric premium lasted 5 and had less wear before failure.
I wouldn't recommend any stoptech pads, its not there department of expertise.
trust the usual contenders

so to conclude... get centric premium rotors, change your brake fluid out for something dot4 rated (ate typ200 works great but there are plenty of contenders), and get some race pads (carbotech xp8,cobalt xr3,hawk hp+ at a minimum?).
Then go easy on those braking zones until you are ready to put in some ducts

 

thumbs up for hitting the track!

My first advice for you, is you need to be real honest about your driving ability. I till this to everyone who is starting, there is no golden setup and skill takes time to develop. If you stick a novice into a race car, he's probably going to go slower than if he were given an Automatic rental car.

If you are new to tracking, I think you should be able to make it through the weekend if you have:
Fresh Dot 4 brake fluid, minimum ATE Super Blue
Greater than 50% pad & rotor life
Steel braided lines, these don't actually enhance braking - they just keep braking performance consistent through out the day.

Once you can baseline how your brakes feel, you will be able to step up and to a more track oriented pad like a Hawk HPS or Carbotech AX6.

As far as rotors are concerned, blanks give you the most surface area for the brake pad to grab (think slick tires have more grip than grooved tires). I give a vote to Autozone Duralast, their return/warranty policy is no questions asked and fairly hassle free. Whether it's centric or autozone or chinese brand X blank rotor, they are all going to crack, it's just the Autotzone one is more convenient to get a replacement.

Huge piece of advice, inspect your caliper and make sure your dust seals, guide pins and sliders are all properly lubed and functional - seized up guide pins, pistons cause more brake problems than anything else.

 

Thanks for the replies! This will be my first track day and possibly my last this year because there simply aren't any more after this in my area. I am saying that because, after this track day, the only time I will drive my car is on the street most likely, and I don't really push my car on the street. So if I went with the Stoptech rotor and pad package from XLR8 Performance, would this be ok for one track day and street driving afterwards? Also, does anyone have any experience ordering from XLR8? Thanks for all the input and suggestions!

 

One of my friends is pretty new to tracking and during his first four track days EVER, he drove on autozone specials...that's rotors and pads. He did have motul600 for fluid, but brakes... all cheap stuff.
He did Laguna Seca, Chuckwalla, Spring Mountain twice... all of which can burn thru brakes pretty quickly.

I rode with him a at each track day and he didn't experienced any real fade (there was fade, but he was instructed to slow down when he felt it), but he wasn't pushing it 10/10ths either.

While I don't recommend going the route he did, it could be done for the first track day. If you'd rather play it safe, go with proper pads (XP12s)...

 

Get ProjectMU HC+800 from Speed-Freaks.net. I think they will be perfect for what you are looking for and a great price to boot. They give S2KI members 10% off also.

https://www.s2ki.com/s2000/topic/978...#entry22342596

 

You could likely get away with a set of stoptech street performance pads for your first couple track days but it will be easy to grow out of them depending on your learning ability, car, and the tracks you're going to. Though the Project MU HC+800 is one of the best starting points for someone who will be taking their car to the track but doesn't want to swap pads between events.

 

Also agree. The HC+800 are a great pad to start with and aren't nearly as expensive as full on track pads with a similar feel. And for most people they should be adequate for most tracks.j

As others mentioned. Whatever you do, make sure you get a good brake fluid. ATE should be enough but I definitely recommend spending more and get Project µ, Endless RF650, Motul RBF660, or Castrol SRF. You could have $1000 Endless endurance pads but without a good fluid to match and you will have problems. Better to have great fluid and crappy pads than the other way around.

 

Just make sure to check the amount of pad you have left between sessions. All the brake fluid in the world doesn't help if you're worn down to the backing plate. Ask me how I know...