Quote:
Originally Posted by ajcacio
Yep, BRZ.  I'm very humbly returning to track days after a pretty nasty crash at Road Atlanta six years ago. I auto-x'ed my STi on Hawk HP+ for a while. I wasn't a huge fan of how noisy and dusty they were (which is obviously a tradeoff) but I felt they were adequate for autocross and some laps on a go kart track. Honestly, it's been so long since I've done serious tracking that I can't be any more detailed than that. For all intents and purposes consider me a total novice. I was looking at Project Mu HC+800, those seem to be a popular pad for mixed duty.
Edit: I'll be using 255/35-18 Pilot Super Sports for those track days. |
For autocross, there is not reason for the brakes to actually fade since the duration is typically only about 30~90 seconds long. And for short track duties, this isn't going to be heavy on huge braking needs until you start chasing after trophies. I can recommend Winmax W2 as something you can use with absolutely no noise and very minimal dust. It's still a non-metallic compound brake, but it's held up to my time attacks at Streets of Willow and Laguna Seca fairly well at some decent speeds and duration, and well beyond the limits and pace of OEM stock brakes crumbled to oblivion... So that's our very strong seller for the FRS/BRZ.
If you are a seasoned track driver, you might enjoy the slightly more positive braking touch (pedal feel) of a semi-metallic pad like W3 and W4 for a bit more cash, but again, this will start to venture you into a more dusty and noisy territory...not as bad as Hawk HP+ in noise but yeah comparable in terms of chores in cleaning.
Winmaxusa.com website should be open by sometime next week and W2 will be available for $115 per axle, so $230 a set. Which is a bit cheaper than Project Mu or Endless in comparable pads, and a little more advanced than Cobalts or Hawk in terms of materials used. W2's should serve you very well for the time being, till you run some serious track compound tires, or start lapping 100 mph+ tracks with deep braking zones for over 20 minutes at a time.
W3 will also serve you well, but as it is made with rare-earth metal composites, it does cost a tad more at $150 per axle. I won't say it's better since brakes are very much dependent on who drives and with what equipment. W2 is better for a dual-role city commute/part time shot track/autocross type application. W3 just extends that a bit more, while introducing to you a bit more of what a racing brake pad feels like.
Both W2 and W3 does stay relatively consistent over huge temperature ranges but with a bit of flavor for the stock/silent feel W2 or firm, positive, feel for the extended track and autocross...W3.
If you are on a budget and still want things to hold up much better than stock Subaru supplied OEM stuff, you can also try the W1 for very similar feel to the stock, but with a much bigger headroom for high temperature consistency. That's only $95 per axle...