Determining the Best Racing Brake Pads for Your Vehicle
Determining the Best Racing Brake Pad Compounds for Your Vehicle
One of the most common questions we get from club racers is about choosing the right racing pad set up. Most drivers who club race have made their choices over time by trial and error. We try different manufacturer’s pads and compounds. We talk with our fellow racers. We browse forums for the best track day brake pads. Ultimately, the driver’s preference is what matters, and very few are alike.
A common mistake made at the club level is the tendency to choose the most aggressive racing compound. Assuming you need the most aggressive racing brakes may not produce the result you are looking for. This can result in a poorly balanced race car, among other issues. Many times, finding the right setup means dialing in the right balance in the front and rear of the vehicle.
How to Choose Your Racing Brake Pad Compounds
In a perfect track brake system, you should be able to use the same compound front and rear. This means accounting for factors like bias, line pressure, deflection, caliper “stiffness” and swept area. Few weekend warriors have a perfectly balanced track day brake package (rulebook and cost factor play into this). Most club racers need to find the right balance between the front and rear.
As a general rule, we find the best racing compound for our front calipers based upon our racing requirement (endurance, time attack, etc.). Then, we often take a step down in torque for the rear pads. This helps us avoid locking in the heat of battle and causing “wheel hop”. This strategy works well and is practiced in even the highest professional levels.
Raybestos offers a wide range of racing friction compounds to fit all types of racing, applications and driving styles.
Track Day Brake Pad Setup Example
For example, a heavy endurance set up requires pads with a very low wear rate. A typical set up may include ST45 compounds in the front with ST43 in the rear. Both of these formulas are long-lasting, fade-resistant and complement each other at high heat. They ramp up aggressively while maintaining a drivable balance, with a slight bias split front to rear.
See the graph to the right to view the coefficient of friction of all our racing formulations through the temperature cycle.
Researching the Best Track Day Pad Formulations
Finding the best track day brake pads is a key to winning on every level. We recommend starting by researching all of the compounds available to you.
Raybestos gives a thorough breakdown of each of our racing compounds. We help make it easy for you to see what each compound delivers along with its ideal usage.
If you have any questions, we have the technical advisors available to help you navigate these decisions. Please email info@raybestosracing.com with any questions.
Once you are ready, you can purchase your racing brake pads directly on our website. Click the button below to start shopping.
