offroadr35

I have a set of these pads sitting on my counter and was planning on having them installed in the Elise today. I'm having second thoughts now though. Are they totally unsuitable for street use? I generally only drive on the street to and from the track but occasionally on a nice day i like to go for a spin.

Also, when i pick the car up from the shop this afternoon it will probably put me right out into traffic. Am i going to kill myself driving home with brand new R4's that haven't been bedded in? Am i going to ruin the pads and rotors before i get home?

Thanks,
Steve

Sideways

I found they were much louder and dirtier than R4S or factory pads. They definately have more bite. Go easy on them for the first 100 miles or so. Hard early usage can increase the screech at low speeds. You can drive in traffic without pushing it and all will be fine.

offroadr35

i don't mind dust and noise at all, i just want to be safe and not have to replace pads and rotors every week.

PedalFaster

I had R-4s (not to be confused with R4-S's) on my 944, and I had the same concern that you have. Much to my surprise, they worked very well cold, although I sounded like a city bus braking for every stoplight. Probably murder on the rotors, too, but I didn't put enough miles on that car to accurately gauge their life expectancy.

Steve

offroadr35

i'm trying them out. i'll report back if you all are interested. this car is fairly easy on pads and rotors because it is so light so i'm not too worried. first track day is monday.

-Steve

Doug Hayashi

I use the R4 pads on all my street cars. Works great, as long as you brake extremely HARD at all stop lights. If you glide in the with brakes, they will screech.

-Doug

The Reverend

I've used them and I don't like them. They're too loud and messy for street pads. And they're not nearly aggressive enough for track pads - they fade, wear too quickly and crumble under hard track use. I give them

krazik

I used them for a long long time and while they are a good pad, they don't hold a candle to the Cobalts.

I've never had R4's crumble.

Doug Hayashi

Didja use them with brake ducting?
They work fine on my car. The Cobalts seem good also, but they don't give that initial bite like the R4 pads.

I've been running the R4 pads on my S2000 the past four years...

-Doug

Well...really 3 years, since the motor was dead for 10 months...

The Reverend

Yeah, 2.5" brake ducting. Fried them at the CA Speedway pretty bad. Got some fade with them at other tracks too, but not as bad.