Brake Pads...Hawk HPS vs. HPS Plus?!?!
01-29-2003, 03:18 PM
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Re: Brake Pads...Hawk HPS vs. HPS Plus?!?! (ZR1 MK)
95jersey,
If you are a beginner or not that aggressive when running a track event you probably can get by with the stock pads. I did so for several years even though I was running in the advanced/instructor groups from the time I got my car. I had been using PFCs on my 86 but there were no aftermarket pads for the 97 when I traded to it so I just adjusted to the limitations of the stock pad. This meant I had to adapt my braking technique to minimize pad taper and to expect some amount of low pedal after a two day event. By using the stock pads I was able to put a new set of pads on a week or so before the event to burnish them in on the street. The day before the event I would flush the brake system and wouldn't bother with the brakes until the next event came up. However, the brakes always felt like they were at the limit even though they probably were not.
When I went to the Blues I always knew I had plenty of brake (more than needed). The Blues will attack the rotors when cold. Most of my rotor wear with the Blues came from driving the car 5 miles down to a local car gathering the day I installed the pads. Every time I hit the brake they grabbed hard and sounded like I was grinding the rotors with the backing plates. In ten miles of easy driving I covered the wheels with a thick coating of rotor dust. Two days later when I was on the track with the pads up to temperature I had the best brake system I have ever experienced on the car and rotor wear dropped off quite a bit.
The PFCs just did not give the same feel as the Blues. Although that could be due to the fact that the Blues are advertised as a high torque pad.
Using either the Blues or PFC 01s/99s you will have to swap rotors to go to every track event. If you have a trailer this is not so bad since you can do it at home.
If you want to just go and enjoy yourself without all the work use stock pads but expect some compromises on the track. They will stop you but you will have to be more cognizant of their weaknesses. One advantage to using the stock pads is a low likelihood that you will boil a brake fluid since they do not run as hot as the racing pads.
Bill
If you are a beginner or not that aggressive when running a track event you probably can get by with the stock pads. I did so for several years even though I was running in the advanced/instructor groups from the time I got my car. I had been using PFCs on my 86 but there were no aftermarket pads for the 97 when I traded to it so I just adjusted to the limitations of the stock pad. This meant I had to adapt my braking technique to minimize pad taper and to expect some amount of low pedal after a two day event. By using the stock pads I was able to put a new set of pads on a week or so before the event to burnish them in on the street. The day before the event I would flush the brake system and wouldn't bother with the brakes until the next event came up. However, the brakes always felt like they were at the limit even though they probably were not.
When I went to the Blues I always knew I had plenty of brake (more than needed). The Blues will attack the rotors when cold. Most of my rotor wear with the Blues came from driving the car 5 miles down to a local car gathering the day I installed the pads. Every time I hit the brake they grabbed hard and sounded like I was grinding the rotors with the backing plates. In ten miles of easy driving I covered the wheels with a thick coating of rotor dust. Two days later when I was on the track with the pads up to temperature I had the best brake system I have ever experienced on the car and rotor wear dropped off quite a bit.
The PFCs just did not give the same feel as the Blues. Although that could be due to the fact that the Blues are advertised as a high torque pad.
Using either the Blues or PFC 01s/99s you will have to swap rotors to go to every track event. If you have a trailer this is not so bad since you can do it at home.
If you want to just go and enjoy yourself without all the work use stock pads but expect some compromises on the track. They will stop you but you will have to be more cognizant of their weaknesses. One advantage to using the stock pads is a low likelihood that you will boil a brake fluid since they do not run as hot as the racing pads.
Bill
