fluxen

Keep in mind that if the pad has the torque to engage ABS, there is no further "brake performance" possible. The only advantage he'd get by running a softer pad would perhaps be dropping his time to full brake lock by .001 seconds. On a track where he brakes full lock 7 times, that's a wopping .007 seconds off his times...sure as hell not worth another, say, $75 per track day in pads to me!

krazik

Of course I'm assuming he's not in abs every corner.

Richard?

fluxen

Well, whether he's in ABS or not isn't really the point, I was just using it for an example. How do you perceive getting more performance out of a softer pad, if the pad he currently uses is capable of braking the car to full lock? I won't be surprised if there's a perfectly valid argument for the softer pad, I just can't think of one. What ingenious technical tidbit have you got to share with me today?

rlaifatt

Couple comments. The seals not melting may be relevant to performance in that it suggests that the brakes may not be getting overheated as they were in my previous experience (unless the rubber material of the seal is now different on the '03). Recall also that Aaron B. drove my car at Spring Mountain and turned 1:50.xxx's and he thought the brakes felt great, and he was very surprised to see that we hardly wore the pads at all for the two days with both of us driving the car. The PFC97's are billed as endurance pads, but they seem to stop the car well enough, though to be honest I still want to try another pad as I rarely engage ABS even (maybe I am not sensitive or aware enough to feel it, or very sensitive and instinctively back off?). I do think there is less initial bite than I recall with the Brakeman #3's, but I am a lot smoother on and off the brakes than I used to be so not sure. Only answer is to try another pad, which I will.

krazik

As stated above I made some assumptions about richards brake performance. Based mainly on my experience with Pagid Yellows which are also an endurance pad. While they lasted for ever, when I switched to a "softer" (non endurance) pad I found the braking performance increased quite a bit.

If someone is able to achieve full lock with a "harder" compound that never wears that would be ideal. But from my experience w/ stock s2k brakes, we benefit from the extra bite of a non endurance compound.

vapors2k

Rylan, also keep in mind you are running very grippy tires in the front and higher Mu pads for you will make a difference where running RA-1s on high Mu pads would limit the tires as the braking factor to engage abs.

krazik

I ran RA1s for 2 years . Very familiar with the level of grip.

vapors2k

[QUOTE]Originally posted by krazik
I ran RA1s for 2 years .

fluxen

[QUOTE]Originally posted by krazik

cthree

Times will likely not improve much as you spend the least time braking. If you can trigger the ABS then you have all the braking force you need or at least can use.