Raybestos ST43 brake pad review!!!!
 

Well I finally got REAL brake pads for my otherwise stock FRS. I installed ST43's all the way around with ATE type 200 fluid. Here is my impressions:

Power: AMAZING....it feels like 50% more. I reviewed my data and I am hitting peak braking of approaching 1.2G vs only .85 or so before...quite an improvement given the stock garbage tires.

Modulation: Also good, high firm pedal that never dropped. I could actually feel the true 4 channel abs working when I attempted trail braking.

My lap times were not good, but everyone was complaining of low grip that day. My G forces in the corners were consistently lower than I usually pull by around .1g...this makes sense for higher lap times....of course my extreme hangover didn't help either:bonk:

Downsides: NOISE....extremely annoying in street driving...constant squeal and lots of dust.

I have a set of BFG R1's in my garage...need to mount those and get out again for so hot laps....less drinking the night before is mandatory:bow:

that's what I am seriously considering for my next set, I am currently running Carbotech XP12s since I never tried Carbotechs before I wandted to give them a shot they are alright but compared to ST43s they're nowhere near the consistency and stopping power levels..

I used ST43s on my previous cars (Evo and C6 Grand sport) and noise was terrible due to C6 Grand sport / Z06 s 6 padlet design ..people with aftermarket BBK s didn't have the problem of course..
Since we don't have the padlet design I think the noise should be bearable for street use, also ST43 is one of the few race pads you can definitely use for street since they are not harsh on rotors :thumbsup:

The squeal is annoying, but not horrible.....my friends with the same pads on Z06 is worse...much worse....I am leaving them on for now....I do love the increased POWER they give....so its worth a little squeal right when you stop (last couple MPH) at light load.

It was very humiliating with the Vette also one stop in the parking lot and everybody gets scared :)

Another good thing about st43 , they last forever :)

Do you have the part numbers for the OEM calipers?

I use the ST series pads exclusively on the front of the race car. 42, 41 and 43s are just amazing. I've tried countless pads over the last 10 years and nothing comes close. The majority of the other racers (of production cars) in the paddock have come the same conclusion.

Before we could buy them from Raybestos and knew their real name, we had to buy them from a private reseller and they were originally known throughout the paddock as the "miracle pad". It still holds true.

I wonder where I can find the part number for ST43 I was checking on Porterfield-brakes.com but couldn't locate it

Doesn't our car have the same caliper as a Legacy wagon or a WRX?

I am not sure about that

I think I've found them :)

http://www.lpiracing.com/Raybestos-R...761p210630.htm

I bought mine from LPI racing too

http://www.lpiracing.com/Raybestos-R...761p210630.htm

it turns out Porterfield-brakes also has them but you'll have to search for the product number, instead of picking the car from drop down..

Front":

http://porterfield-brakes.com/produc...roductID=20788

and rear:
http://porterfield-brakes.com/produc...roductID=20837

Thanks for the review. Keep us updated on how you like these pads, especially with the R1's!

That's the store. I was hesitant on them in my Brembo calipers but LPI assured them to be a good fit. After sending measurements from the previous Brembo pads, they had a match and I picked them up. At this point, for track purpose only, I don't think I could settle for anything else. The squeal is noticeable but only at the last couple feet of stopping the car (street driving).

Sweet!

I can't imagine what the FRS will feel like with R1's....that should be impressive!!

thanks for the review, should be trying them soon as my track pad is gone already!

Hey,
I just got my ST43 brake pad and just found out that they are made by porterfield!?
its using the Porterfield box but it said St43 on the side. is your like that as well?

I've just ordered my ST43 (couple days ago) and have been told that it will be custom made so I think it's normal

i was going to install them then find out...they made a wrong size one..... its like one size bigger. Now I don't know what to do, track day in 2 days.... FML

yikes :thumbdown:

I just posted this in the Track Pad thread:

@mtsui: Call Tim IMMEDIATELY and tell him! I don't think he'll be able to get correct sized ones in time but how different are they? Take a picture of them and the stock pad for us please. You may be able to make them fit with a little time on a grinding wheel. The Raybestos Pads are the BIGGEST pads I've ever bought because they usually run the material to the extent of the plate unlike most other pads. We need pics.. post pics right away!!

@glamcem: You guys running a race-only pad on the street just blows my mind! Anyway, after using the 43's, if you feel you need a step up, you should try the 45's. I plan on using the 45's at the Ridge w/ NASA in August I tell you how they work compared to the 43.

The problem I have with the 43 is that half the time they put down an irregular transfer layer and I end up getting horrible shutter. Part of the reason I rarely have the luxury of actually bedding pads, I usually need to toss them in a GO! Tim at RaceBrakes (porterfield) said the 41s and 45 are much less prone to this.

lol, I don't think its able to grind it down, haha
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...s3cec6453.jpeg

Thanks for the info, I will definitely give them a call and make sure ahead of time..

in my previous cars I had no problem with using ST43 on the street as they are not too harsh on the rotors and operating temps were not an issue the only problem was the noise especially with the Corvette's padlet design, OMG it was the most annoying noise I've ever had haha but since I don't have padlets it should be ok.. In addition to that, I have a separate set of pads and rotors (OEM) for street but I am too lazy to switch them back and forth , I know I can easily changed them in like 30 mins but since I don't really put a lot of miles on the car I figured I can at least keep them on the car for the summer season and replace them with the OEM rotors and pads :thumbsup:

I am looking at the differences between ST45 and ST41 on Raybestos' website and ST-43 looks like the sweet spot since the ave wear on the ST-41 is looks very big and it doesn't look like the multi purpose pads like the ST-43 and ST-45.. and ST-45 looks like it destroys the rotors (hot disc wear looks almost double with a slight advantage of initial bite and higher temp durability) but it's worth to try since I have been running Centric rotors and they are so cheap to replace, haha


https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/-T...Raybestos1.JPG

https://lh5.googleusercontent.com/-6...Raybestos2.JPG

The st43 are 'tolerable' on the street, just watch out for the last couple feet before complete stop. Being a DD, the pedestrians glanced at the car making the noise as I drop/pick up kids from school haha. Besides that last couple feet, their fine on the street. On the track or spirited driving, that's another story - grip!! And yes the st41 and st45 can do more but that's not what I was recommended if I wanted to save rotors and 1% chance of street driven. These are on Brembo's 4pot and apparently Raybestos had the measurements already existing. LPI Racing (NorCal) has provided sets for a few.

Are you kidding me? That'd take me all of 10 minutes. The part in green probably doesn't need to be ground down if it doesn't touch the rotor hat.

I've done this very same thing with S2000 pads for my CRX. The S2000 pad is the same shape as my CRX caliper just slighter larger so I just grind it down to fit. http://honda-tech.com/showpost.php?p...4&postcount=15

Use a sharpie to outline what you need to remove and get to work.


http://i1273.photobucket.com/albums/...s46a57f3d.jpeg

Centric makes some of the absolute best rotors money can buy. They are worth 2x what we pay for them. Just outstanding.

I will let you know how the 45's do regarding rotor wear. To me, rotors are $35 a piece so I only care that they last just 1 weekend. :D The 42's say they're almost identical in hot rotor wear but that's not true at all the 42's almost seem like they add material to the rotor, they really are the friendliest race pad to rotors I've ever run. Tim said the 42 is the most expensive compound for Raybestos to produce too. The 45 is the successor of the 41. Tim said if the 43 isn't enough then you should jump the 45 as opposed to the 41.

dude, you're crazy I wish I had the skills/experience to do that I would probably ruin the whole thing :D oh btw, it may touch the rotor hat since it was a tight fit if I remember correctly

@mtsui

Skills schmills.. Go buy a $50 grinding wheel from Sears, some safety glasses and have at it. Seriously. Mark what you need to remove with a sharpie and just hold it to spinning grinding wheel until that part is no longer there. It takes literally no skill at all. Even the part that may contact the rotor hat, take that off too. Don't trust yourself? Grab a metal piece of something you don't care about and start grinding to get a feel for it.

The $49.99 one is all he needs 1/6th HP
http://www.sears.com/craftsman-1-6-h...2&blockType=G2


http://c.shld.net/rpx/i/s/i/spin/ima...arpen=1&qlt=85

Or for the same price get the 3/4 HP one from Harbor Freight:
http://www.harborfreight.com/garage-...der-39798.html

I paid for a pad and I need to fix it? what is wrong with this market? if they refund it back to me and let me have it, then i will mess around with it

and that's exactly why I don't mind using ST43s for the street :)
I seriously considered ST42s in my Corvette before the ST43 since as you can see in the first field/column it's somewhat easier on the rotors ..after the ST43s I might try ST45s too :)

I might actually just get one of these and play with it, I wish I had these when I was working on the backing plates it would make the job 100x easier

I got really curious about ST43 everyone is raving about. I am running XP12 F/R and brake bias is on front, with/without pedal dance.

Does ST43 has similar friction compared to XP12? Swapping front only is the cheapest option for me, but I don't want more front bias or too much shift to rear.

You may as well get the rears so that you would be running the same compound pads to make sure, rears only add about $130 to the total cost and since these pads will last a lot longer than the XP12s it will make up the difference IMO

Adare Motorsports miracle pad?

That's the one.

Yep, just ordered both. Now I have 5 different compounds F/R - more freedom to mix and experiment :)

:) I should be receiving my ST43s today can't wait to put them on and do the bedding procedure ..woot!

Looking forward to your impressions. I still have two sets of XP12s to burn through ...

I will keep you updated, are you planning to come to August 19th event at RMP (CMS)?

Yes. And the 5th and 8th. Just upgraded to Ohlins so gotta test, er, play :)