[Jazzbass]

Thanks for the advice, Dirk. I'm as green as they come, and I think you're right - there is a very good chance I'll get lazy and leave the pads in all the time. Probably just get the Kool Karbons with that in mind.

[Alan Herod]

This answer is not really for Bob Novas who has ginormous brakes on his car and was asking about good street pads. I don't think he will be running any street pads in black run group -- but others are following this thread. (The street pads on the Boxster S only last a few laps in Black or Red.) Corner-Carvers might offer a more diverse opinion.

Don't get the wrong impression from this thread.

unlike Performance Friction's they don't chew up the rotors either

I have used a variety of pads including PFs and Pagids that ate rotors; but, saying that either chew up the pads is a generalization. For what it is worth I have never been led astray by OG Racing or Paul Weston and have relied on them for my braking needs and advice. Of course they both have a dog in the fight. I have now settled on OG for race pads and Paul Weston for rotors.

PF 97s do not chew up rotors; but, 90s or 93s did, and unfortunately I cannot remember which one it was. Whichever one it was, was particularly hungry. I am on my fourth set of 97s, not on the same rotors of course. Somewhere in there I used Pagid Orange with less then satisfactory results and the rotors did not appreciate it either. Tried Ferodos on SCCA car with less than satisfactory results many years ago; but, that was one of my datapoints in acquiring information on every type of brake failure. Also, note that some pad wear and/or rotor wear may be the result of differences in braking technique.

[Lucky]

Chris,

I've been away for a while... sorry for the slow followup.

Yes, I do run the Blues on the street & don't bother to switch back to street pads. They work fine, even when cold. Pedal pressure needs to be a bit higher when the pads are cold, but as long as you take it easy while you warm up the engine you aren't going to get into trouble.

The Blues do make a bit of noise in street driving since they never really get up to their ideal temperature range. I've found that the noise, however, is confined to a rather narrow pedal pressure range. If I ease off or brake a bit harder the noise stops, so I modulate the brakes to minimize noise.

As others have suggested, as a beginner to DE you shouldn't jump straight to track pads -- they are typically a bit harder to modulate near lockup. As you move up through the run groups you will inevitably need to change to track pads and tires as street versions of both will disintegrate after a few fast sessions. You will do fine with an aggressive street pad in both green and blue run groups -- many like Hawk Blacks as they work well as a street/DE pad, but there are others from Pagid, Ferodo, etc.

Up until my promotion to White, I used Metal Masters which are dirt cheap but the last time I used them a new set only made it through half of a DE weekend and made for an interesting experience in T5!! Like I said, it will be obvious when you are ready to move to track worthy pads and tires...

Tony, thanks for your data point on the Blues... they are amazing pads and I agree with you that the messy dust is well worth the trouble.

[Jazzbass]

Thanks for the tips, John. I think I'm just going to go with a street/DE pad for now.

Now that is settled, I need to get a new set of tires for the 3/12 Summit Point DE. I want to get a set of Hoosier slicks - Does anyone know who has the best price on them? I hear they grip a LOT better than RA-1s, and I hear that will really help me learn the car in my first few DEs.

[Chopper Dropper]

NO, green group use street tyres. You will not I repeat not learn better with track tyres especially slicks. You are not in a race nor are you concerned with setting track records, ain't going to happen. Street tyres let you know both by sound and feel as they reach their limits giving you time to correct etc before you loose it, besides you are probably still learning the correct turn in, apex and track out points etc. Track tyres, RA1s etc are less forgiving will grip longer and let go with a lot less warning. Slicks well, if you don't want to spend money at the body shop, stick with street tyres!!!. Remember this is Driver Education, you are there to learn your car and learn how to drive it faster and safer, hopefully so you are a safer driver on the road and meet any need for speed in the appropiate setting.. I really would like to see any go faster car mods, track tyres, etc banned from green completely and only allowed from middle ,upper blue and beyond. Probably won't happen.
Dirk

[Lucky]

Dirk, I'm pretty sure Chris is just kidding about the Hoosiers... even without the requisite smiley.

[BillJ]

Lets hope so If i see a green car come through tech with slicks he will not get a signature on his form from me... as a matter of fact, not sure ANY car is supposed to be passed with slicks.

From the tech form itself:
TIRES – Good condition. No cord showing. No cracks or plugs. Speed rated appropriate for model, Z-rated
recommended. Tire pairs (i.e., both fronts, both rears) should be same size and type. Minimum tread depth of
3/32” on contact patch area of street tires. Discernable tread on DOT-approved competition tires.

[Jim Richards]

I'm not feeling any love here guys. Remember, this is not as serious a place as the PCA Potomac web site. It's just a gear-head hangout, OK?

Let's keep the PCA stuff on www.pcapotomac.org . It's an excellent site for proper DE training. We all listen and we all believe. You can count on it. But here, tongue-in-cheek rules. 8)

[Jazzbass]

I was just kidding, guys.

I'm not even running R compound tires. Just plain old $90 Es-100s.

[BillJ]

Me thinks you think me too serious! Just throwing a fact out there thats all. If tongue in cheek, just use tongue in cheeky emoticons like 8) :P Any of these would have worked. Certainly someone new to track events would appreciate not buying expensive track tires, showing up, and being turned away.

oh and i got the exact info from the pcapotomac site