I'm pretty sold on getting PowerSlot slotted ONLY rotors for all four corners after reading and reading and reading on this forum. However, where I'm stuck is the pads...I know I want Semi-metallic for their softness to avoid damage to the rotors and good grab at cooler temps (car is daily driven and street use ONLY). The initial bite of the OEM ones are great, but I seem to have pad transfer to the rotors resulting in vibrations during slow speed braking (too soft of a material?). The original owner claims to have had this since new, but it drives me absolutely insane. It's quite embarrassing for passengers IMO too.

What are some good softer compound pads that will offer good initial bite, linear stopping feel all the way to zero and not transfer pad material to the rotor? Dust doesn't bother me as I had wash the car regularly to keep up with it. I'd like the price to be reasonable too...$100 or less for the set? Not sure if that is fair or not.

I drive the car conservatively about 10 miles a day and then it stays parked either at work or in my garage. I don't think I have heavy on the brake, but from what I hear the pad transfer may be a result of non-use...previous owner daily drove it 10-20 miles a day for the first few years, then it spent the last few years sitting in a garage most of the week. I've already tried to burn it off using in a pad bedding-in process and it seemed to work a little, but the vibrations are still there.

 

I know a lot of the members and my self have gone with the break motive setup which mine came with stop tech ceramic's and with one auto cross day they still stop like new and were pretty cheap for the whole car

 

Thanks. I looked into the BrakeMotive rotors due to their low cost, but found they did not offer Slotted ONLY (I contacted them). I'm not really interested in the cross-drilled bling and IIRC they did not have directional vanes like my OEMs. I found some very reasonably priced Centric branded (makers of StopTech) slotted only that I am planning to try.

http://www.tpsmotorsports.com/corvet...1997-2010.html

I just need to determine the correct pads for me. Stop Tech Street Performance ones aren't too much over my budget, what material are they made of? I like the description they use about "LINEAR" performance regardless of temperature. Although according to their graphs, the rotor life, noise, and dust are all below that of the Centric Posi-Quiets of various flavors.

 

Check out the Carbotech 1521 pad. I will be happy to help you, give me a call at 216-780-8825 to order direct and save 5%.

The Carbotech™ 1521™ is our high performance street compound. The 1521™ compound is known for its release and modulation, along with unmatched rotor friendliness. 1521™ is also a very low dusting and low noise compound with an excellent initial bite. This compound's excellent linear torque production provides incredible braking force without ABS intervention. Carbotech™ 1521™ operating range starts out at ambient and goes up to 800°F (426°C+). 1521™ is suitable for ALL street cars, perfect for your tow vehicle or fleet vehicle. Carbotech™ 1521™ is NOT recommended for ANY track use.

F $148 R $128 Less 5%.

 

Brake pad discussions can get almost as heated as what type of oil to use.

Personal opinions (take them as you will):
OEM rotors and pads are all you'll ever need for the street (extensive track use is completely different - there is NO pad good for both).
The shudder you feel when applying the brakes is due to improper transfer of brake pad material to the rotor (proper transfer is part of the correct bedding in process for new pads).
I'm a fan of PBR (also known as Axxis) "Metal Master" brake pads - low dust, friendly to rotors, good pad wet or cold, inexpensive. I used them on my previous 911 (and my previous to that 951) and I just installed them on my (new to me) '99 coupe - I've been very satisfied. (Check a couple of Porsche boards for street pads and you'll often find them recommended).

I'm not a fan of "ceramic" pads, but almost any street pad you choose will perform acceptably if properly bedded in (do a search for proper pad bedding in). Unfortunately, for you, you need to start with "clean" properly surfaced rotors - you can have yours re-surfaced but that may cost as much as new and, if not done correctly, a less well performing rotor.

Good luck,

Jerry M.

 

I tried GM DELCO Premium Ceramic pads and they stopped poorly and warped my stock rotors. I took them off early.

I then put on HAWK HPS pads, they stopped great and dusted less than stock Coupe pads (but they still dust). I STRONGLY recommend these pads! They will run you more than $100 for all four, probably $170 or more.

Here is more info on them:

Hawk Performance Street HPS Brake Pads

Recommended Use: Performance Street Driving
Delivers up to 40% More Stopping Power Over Stock Pads
HPS Pad Formula is Low Dust
Stopping Power is greatly increased
Hawk HPS Pad Compound Provides Extended Pad Life
HPS Formula is Gentle on all types of Rotors
Practically Noise Free Operation

One Bad Street Pad

The Hawk Performance Street HPS Brake Pad will increase your rides stopping power and produce less brake dust when compared to stock pads. The HPS Pad Formula has a higher resistance to fade which can come in handy during stop and go traffic or when your carving up some twisty mountain roads. The HPS Pad delivers better stopping power, but the compound won't chew up your rotors like some harsh performance pads can. HPS Pads are also designed for quiet operation. It doesn't matter what you drive because the HPS Pads deliver quick, quiet, and clean stops every time.

 

Thanks Jerry. I willl look into the Axxis Metal Masters. And I agree on the need to start with a "clean" rotor. I have used Garnet paper and also tried to burn off the deposits by attempting the bed-in process again. Both were temporary fixes at best. According to the previous owner, he complained to the dealership sometime after taking delivery and they already turned the rotors. Although upon an inspection of my own recently, I found the LF rotor on the RF hub and vice versa...so I hope their idea of turning did not mean to simply change sides!!

OldVetter: I appreciate the input on the Hawk HPS. So many here seem to like them, but there are also many satisfactory alternatives for lesser cost. I've been delaying this purchase a long time, mainly due to funds. A popular option nonetheless.

 

I've run a bunch of pads including HPS and AC Delco ceramics. The dust from the HPS pitted the inner barrels of my CCW Big Street Classics. The ceramics I absolutely hated. Grinding sound on my Eradispeed +2's and wouldn't retard the car quickly enough when I asked them to.

I now run Carbotech 1521's and I'm extremely happy. Not quite up to the stopping power of the Hawk pads but they do work well for "spirited" street driving. What little dust they do have is non-corrosive - unlike the Hawk pads - so they will not tear up my CCW Sp500's. The dust is also a pale gray color so it's not that noticeable anyways. They are also very rotor friendly and leave a nice polished surface. What's not to love?

My bud - MCLEOD - here also runs them with the same experience.

 

I'm glad to finally see someone speak of the Carbotech brand without it being a copy/paste post. It seems like a good pad, my only gripe is the high cost of entry...maybe this is the classic 'get what you pay for' situation, but these cost more than the rotors...

Anyone using the Stop Tech Street Performance pads? Thoughts on them? Still can't figure out what material they are...Ceramic or not?

 

Bumping this up to see if there are any other suggestions. At this point, I see the StopTech Street Performance are a Para-mid composite, which if I understand correctly are a bit closer to Ceramic in that they are a harder compound.

I'm also considering the Centric Posi-Quiet Extended Wear. It's a semi-metallic, but may be better at lower temps for initial stopping.

I'm interesting in hearing thoughts on these specifically if anyone has them or knows about them.

 

For performance pads, my experience is in StopTechs and Hawks (both ceramic and semi-mets), though given the on-hand availablity, I would have tried the CarboTechs this time, but the StopTechs were comped, so I can't complain.

For a street-only pad, none of these would serve you poorly. Oddly enough, the StopTech metallics are actually dusting less than the Hawk ceramics were....

For a track-day pad, I'd stick with either the Hawk or StopTech semi-mets (or maybe the CarboTechs, but I have no experience with them, so it would be unfair to judge them, good or bad).

I'm a Centric dealer and sell over 30 sets/day, and while the Posi-Quiets are fine for passenger cars that require little to no bedding, they are hardly a performance pad.

 

I had those on my Boxster as well, but I can't find them online for Corvette. Can you point me toward a source?

 

I had a set on a Sentra (with NX brake conversion), and they were a nice pad that didn't squeal, but I haven't seen them in a while....

 

'Shifter: By "performance pad" are you referring to track usage or meaning for a sports car used on the street?

Are the Stop Techs going to work in a panic stop situation if they are not heated up?

Does pedal feel change at all with either choice over stock?

 

the stoptechs are an excellent street pad. they behave somewhat like an hps with less dust and a higher fade resistance. great cold bite and they won't fall off like an hps does after a couple hard stops

the pads are a kevlar metallic composite. actually more gentle on rotors compared to the hps as well

the axxis metal master is an ok pad but it's not really any different than a bendix semi metallic. the axxis ultimates were the good ones but i have no idea if they still use the same compound since PBR quit making the pad and if i remember right, bendix now controls axxis. the ultimates were labeled as a "ceramic" which was almost laughable since they would grind grooves in your rotors, turn your wheels black and throw you through the windshield when you hit the brakes. they had more in common with the HP+ than any ceramic pad

the stoptechs are something like 100-110 shipped for front and rear via amazon.

 

Thanks Racebum. Your explanation on the StopTechs has helped me get a better feel for what those are all about. I've been watching a set on the auction site for about $105 shipped. New slotted rotors were ordered Saturday and should be on their way sometime this week.

 

Sorry it took so long, I haven't checked in for a couple days.

IIRC I got them from www.autopartswarehouse.com


Jerry M.

 

A search there coughs up one set of fronts, but for some other car as a clearance item. Guess they're not stocking them anymore.

Thanks anyway.

 

I run Carbotech XP10 (f/r) on the track. Track season is over for me now so, I just swapped them to the 1521 street pads yesterday.

My $0.02 on pads:
I started street/track driving with Hawk HPS pads. Great street pads. They worked fine for me on the track when I was a track n0ob. However, as I got better the Hawk pads wore out quickly.

I went to the XP10's and love them on the track and, they last a lot longer than the Hawk's.

As stated, I removed the XP10's yesterday. They're WAY too noisey/dusty for street use. I went to the 1521's due to the same compound as the XP10's. This eliminated the re-bedding process. So far, they are fine.

 

I had contacted StopTech directly to get more information on the Street Performance pad. Thought I would share what they had to say in case it could help anyone else.

Our Street Performance pads are aramid based which is more commonly known by the trade name Kevlar ® .

Given your driving description, I would not recommend our Street Performance pads as it prefers regular high temperature exposure caused by regular aggressive street use, autocross or light track.

For the preferred characteristics you listed, our pad recommendation for you would without a doubt be our PosiQuiet Ceramic pads which will offer a nice level of performance with very low noise and dust levels while not contributing any vibration issues. It’s likely that the pads you used previously were not driven aggressively enough which led to the uneven pad deposits, something we see when our Street Performance pads are also driven casually.