I have a magnacharged 2004 Z06. The brakes fade at high speed. I bought a set of Wilwood SL6 full width calipers from LG motorsports. It states not recommended for street use. Why? I drive my car as often as I can, can I use these brakes?
Dennis

 

not to ask a stupid question, but did you bleed the brakes after you felt the fade? Your other choice would be to change pad compound.

I run stock brakes with racing pads at the track and in a 20 min session with hard braking I don't have brake fade. My brake fluid is changed before each track event.

 

The brake were bleed, still at 100+ there was significant fad. I already put on the wilwood's: the are great but make a lot of noise.

 

any aggressive pad will make a lot of noise. The reason they may not be good for street is that you cannot heat the pad up enough to get the full benefit out of them.

 

I use mine on the street with no problems. They don't have the dust shields a street caliper should have but I had burned the ones off the stock calipers anyways.

What Pad compound did Lou sell you for the street? He sold me the E compound first but that dusts heavily and does squeal some. A lot of people use it for a track compound. I went with the Q compound and got better performance on the street.

Now for your stock calipers. There is no way you should have been able to get enough heat into them to fade the brakes even with a Magnacharger. On the street you do not get anymore speed than a regular C5 does on a road course. I used to use the regular C5 pads (not Z06) on the track in my 97 and never once experienced brake fade even with repeated stops from speeds of 120 and 140 to 60 and 80. When I went to more agressive pads I would stop quicker because they generate more heat quickly and get to higher temps thus converting the speed to heat faster than the stock pads. I used Ford DOT 3 fluid and never once boiled the fluid with the stock calipers. The only thing that happens with the stock calipers is pad taper which will after repeated high speed stops will give a long pedal (not due to pad fade or brake fluid boiling). That will happen no matter which pad you use. The Wilwoods will give more reliable braking because they do not exhibit the long pedal symptom when the pads taper (which they do).

 

He sent me the E pad (although I order the Q pads). They squeal, but they stop, even a slow speeds in the street. There isn't any fade (or long pedal). When I told my friend Larry that I replaced the brakes, he told me that the last time he drove the car they really stunk. What is the mechanism that causes long pedal.
Dennis