124Spider

I'm doing a two-day track school this weekend, 300 miles from home. I've changed brake pads several times, but not enough to be a real jock at it yet. I've run hybrid pads the last three times on the track (Cobalt GT Sport), but I've decided that it's best to move up to true track pads for the track.

I have a set of Cobalt Spec VR front pads and Hawk Blue rear pads. I'd like to use them this weekend, but I'm not at all sure that I have the time to change pads, bed the track pads properly, change back to the street pads, and then, at the track, change back to the track pads.

In addition, the bedding directions say that it's important to have a film of the track pads on the rotor when on the track.

I'm contemplating just putting on the pads, bedding them at night on a back road, and then driving to the event with the track pads.

My question is--I know that one is not supposed to drive on the road with track pads. However, for track pads, these are fairly low-temperature pads. If I'm careful, and always leave a lot of space between me and the car in front of me, how dangerous would that be? It's _all_ interstate driving between home and the track in Spokane.

jeffxyan

Just be careful and keep alot of speed between you and the person in front of you. I think you will be fine.

payneinthe

How do you keep speed between you and the person in front of you?

Just realize they don't stop as well cold as they do hot. It's not like they won't stop the car at all. You should not be doing any threshold braking on the freeway, so don't sweat it.

payneinthe

By the way, the biggest concern is that they are much harder on the rotors when they're cold. You may wear your rotors down a lot more this way.

124Spider

So is it fair to say:

1. The track pads will stop the car ok cold, just not as well as the GTS pads I normally have on the car;

2. The tranck pads will be a little harder on the rotors than the GTS pads;

3. If the answer to 2 is "yes," the amount of damage done to the rotors should be pretty minimal, given that I will do very little braking on the trip.

Also, should I mark the pads so that they go back on the same wheel?

mikegarrison

I don't bother. I mix and match pads (of the same compound). YMMV, what I'm doing may or may not be the best idea.

gfacter

I drove to Beaverun in PA twice on the Cobalt pads (about 600 miles round trip)

Other than the horrible noises they make, they were fine.

Asura

If you are concerned about the stopping ability on the street, just do a couple of hard stops to get them up to temperature so they will stop when you need them too. Remember, agressive pads do more damage to the rotors when not up to operating temp.

124Spider

Well, you've convinced me. I'll put the dedicated track pads on at home, and drive to Spokane with them on (the hotel will know when I pull in, huh? ). If time (and brake temperature) allows, I'll switch back to the GTS pads after I'm done at the track, for the drive home.

Ludedude

Go ahead and drive them to the track. I used them on the S2000 pretty much all the time, track or not. No damage to the rotors from the VRs at all. The rear Spec Cs were different....I suspect the Blues will be the same but again, we're only talking to the track and back for you, not daily driving.

You'll be fine. The rotors aren't made of tissue paper