The Mustang Forum for Track & Racing Enthusiasts

Taking your Mustang to an open track/HPDE event for the first time? Do you race competitively? This forum is for you! Log in to remove most ads.

  • Welcome to the Ford Mustang forum built for owners of the Mustang GT350, BOSS 302, GT500, and all other S550, S197, SN95, Fox Body and older Mustangs set up for open track days, road racing, and/or autocross. Join our forum, interact with others, share your build, and help us strengthen this community!

Oh, no, not again! Another pad recommendation thread...

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Yes, the question about what pads to use has been asked a thousand times. But hear me out, because I have specific reasons for asking this the way I do.

Firstly, my setup: 2014 Mustang GT Track Package version (hence, Brembo brakes) with Stoptech pads and Laguna Seca brake ducts.

I'm at the point where I'm exceeding the capabilities of the Stoptech pads I use (which are good to 1300 degrees) when I'm on the track. And I do not want to switch pads between street and track. So the pad I use has to work on the street. Now, I don't care at all about noise and dust. After all, the noise just says "race car". :D But I do care about stopping capability.

I don't mind if the pads I use require a little more pressure to stop the car, but they must still be able to engage the ABS even when cold. When Carbotech says that their XP12 is not recommended for street duty because of dust and noise, I have to at least hope that it means that the pad will in fact function well on the street when it comes to stopping the car. For me, that's a necessity.

And that leaves the other characteristic I'm after: linearity. Carbotech advertises its pads as having very high "initial bite". But that makes me hesitate to buy them, because what I'm after is the greatest amount of linearity and controllability possible. That means that when I gently brush the brakes, the pads should generate relatively little braking, because when I'm doing something like that I'm doing it to control the weight transfer on the car or to subtly alter my line, and obviously a strong braking response under those conditions is highly undesirable. I'm after as much linearity in the pad's response as possible, because linearity gives controllability.


So with that in mind, and keeping in mind that I'm looking for something with substantially greater heat handling capability than the Stoptechs, what pads do you guys recommend? I'm inclined to go with the Carbotech XP10 or XP12 (depending primarily on whether or not there's an appreciable difference in how they handle on the street -- if they're about the same then I may as well go with the XP12) on all 4 corners in order to retain the front to rear balance that I have with the Stoptechs, unless the use of differing compounds (e.g., XP12 front, XP10 rear) is what retains that balance.

One last thing: I'm on street tires (Bridgestone RE-11s) and will remain on them when on the track. So I certainly don't need too much pad -- I'm primarily concerned about heat handling characteristics and linearity when on the track. If the XP10 won't overheat with street tires then it may be the way to go.


Thoughts?
 
Last edited:
I run the G-Loc R12 compound on the track (Carbotech XP-12 equivalent) and on the street because I'm too lazy to swap them back and forth and my car is not a daily. I drive my car to and from the track which for me involves a 5+ hour freeway trip both ways if I go to Road America.

I have never had any issue with stopping power or response on the street with the R12's. Yes, they squeal a bit, and yes they create mountains of dust, but as you said - they're race pads so that's to be expected. I've had no concerns with running them on the street.

I would not recommend the XP10 compound for serious track use - I fried a set of R10's (G-Loc equivalent) in less than a weekend. These cars are heavy and more pad is better.

I run a similar tire to you track and street (200tw DOT rubber).
 
Oh, excellent. I was hoping that would be the case.

How's the linearity of the pad? When you gently brush the brakes, does it behave the way you'd expect it to, or is the result a lot more braking than you'd expect?
 
Which Stoptech pads are you using? I believe they make more than one.

I'm using Pagid RSL-29's and they work well for me on both street and track. I do not change pads pack and fourth for track days. They have more bite than the stock pads but not an aggressive bite like some pads have. They are relatively easy on rotors as well. I usually get six track days out of a set and that includes a few thousand miles on the street. @PeteInCT from Track Day Solutions sells them.
 
I'm using the Stoptech 309 pads (https://www.amazon.com/StopTech-309-10010-Street-Performance-Front/dp/B003K2ERJU). These have a maximum operating temperature of 1300 degrees F. I looked up the Pagids you're running. The temperature graph for them (and for all of the RSL pads) maxes out at 700 degrees C, which is 1300 degrees F, and they start falling off at around 625 C (1160 F). Unless Stoptech is "optimistic" about the 309's heat handling characteristics, it sounds like I might well cause the Pagids to fade on track too.

Stoptech makes race compound pads, but only for their calipers.

The G-LOC R12 pads are rated to nearly 1900 degrees F (over 1000 degrees C), well beyond the temperature capability of the Stoptechs. Since the R10 pads are apparently not up to the task for at least some here, and yet are rated to handle up to 1500 degrees, I have to conclude that if I'm going to permanently avoid pad problems, I'll need the equivalent of the G-LOC R12. I guess I can start with the G-LOC R12 and switch to something else if I don't like them.
 
Last edited:
Oh, excellent. I was hoping that would be the case.

How's the linearity of the pad? When you gently brush the brakes, does it behave the way you'd expect it to, or is the result a lot more braking than you'd expect?

I think it's pretty good. They're race pads so they inherently behave a little different than street pads, but I've never had them surprise me on the street by doing something unexpected, and I've never found myself having to alter my driving style on the street. Again, my car is not a daily and I don't drive it in rush hour traffic or anything, but I've never had any concerns.

I've not run the Pagid's that VoodooBoss mentioned but have heard very good things about them from others also, so those should be a contender for you as well.
 
Got the G-LOC R-12 pads on now at the track. They're excellent. No fade at all and because they're "grabbier", they don't require as much pedal effort to engage the ABS. They are a bit touchy on the street, but it's fine as long as you're gentle with them. Stab the brakes and it'll go straight to ABS. Just means you have to drive them with some precision.

It'll be interesting to see how they wear and how the rotors fare.



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

TMO Supporting Vendors

Latest posts

Buy TMO Apparel

Buy TMO Apparel
Top