lobuxracer

iTrader: (2)

There was a post on a C-5 forum some years ago from a guy who had a front wheel fail - on the freeway. It broke all around the lugs, but the lugs were still firmly attached to the hub. The rest of the wheel separated, and he crashed into a guard rail after a 30 yard tour through the tulips.

Regardless of who makes your gear, you really do need to inspect it carefully before any track day. Especially wheels, tires, and brakes. And every site sponsoring track days I've seen says you need to bleed brakes, inspect tires, and check your brake pads before arriving at the track. Sound advice for sure.

KKelly

That kind of failure is way more likely to be a cracked or thin rotor (as you said, inspect before you track the car) then a factor of R compounds. I don't see a BBK as a safety feature. If you are losing braking due to heat you should be paying attention and know it -- just like you should know when your tires have gotten a bit hot and you don't have the grip you had the lap before.

I will say without hesitation that of the many, many experienced track junkies I know most will recommend not buying a BBK.

al503

Doesn't that take the fun out of tracking the car and take away from the concentration you should have on the line, when to start braking, etc? It would make for a long day if you had to pull your wheels off and bleed the brakes after every session you started to get fade. Then there is the chance of not estimating the extent of the fade and the possible consequences.

I'm very interested here. Could you elaborate on reasons?

keeeeez

I would just like to say - I hereby volunteer to be a stoptech guinea pig. Please send me front and rear brake kits, as well as 2 stoptech stickers and I will gladly market your beautiful brake kits.

al503

LOL!

I talked with the nationals sales manager. You can imagine how many sponsorship requests he gets.

lobuxracer

iTrader: (2)

ROTOR, Supra, w/Turbo, Right 93-94 $76.26
ROTOR, Supra, w/Turbo, Left 93-94 $76.26

From Champion Toyota in Houston. 5 years ago they were only $65 each.


This has something to do with it for sure. Especially when it's a 320mm curved vane 30mm thick disc. The hat isn't the most expensive part of the proposition, and you have to replace the attachment hardware when you replace the rotor itself. OK, you don't HAVE to, but you'd be foolish not to.

al503

At the same time, the OEM brembo rotors on my 6MT G coupe were going for over $400....each at the dealership. At the discount online shops, you could get them for around $400 a pair. So, I could have gotten the stoptech replacement rotors (all hardware is included) for ~$200-300 depending on the size, which would definitely last longer or spend more and get the OEM's that wear out faster.

I don't know how much the rotors are for the IS but it's probably closer to the G's than the Supra's.

lobuxracer

iTrader: (2)

The design and execution is almost identical. The IS just has another 14mm of disc. It will be criminal if they are priced like some of the other discs.

I priced front brakes for an STI and I was stunned to see the OEM parts going for $300+ per disc. Pads were also $300+. The only excuse I got was Brembo is expensive. Except Brembo makes OEM replacement discs for a number of mundane cars that are competitively priced with the (really cheap) OEM stuff.

I hope the IS isn't as ridiculous as some of these others are.

KKelly

Usually, they opine that the person will overbrake and it is just overkill and they should spend the money on more track days. My buddy tracked his 1988 M6 and all he did was add a bigger factory BMW rear brake (from the E34 540i/M5) and run Hawk pads. The thing STOPPED. Not to say you never had to bleed them but they would last a day or a weekend without much problem. Even with a BBK you are going to want fresh fluid and bleed them before events. I tracked my 3800lb M5 for quite a while before I went to different front brakes and my stock brakes are not up to newer car standards. I also never tried an actual race pad on my stock brakes before spending $1800 for my Euro M5 front brakes. I wish I had tried to because the stock front rotors are only $55 each and I could have run a serious race pad and not cared if they ate rotors.

I don't want to tell you how to spend your money but most newbies barely threshhold brake anyway. I would at least wait until it is clear your stock brakes with a good pad are not getting it done.

My comments about a soft brake pedal only pertain to the comment that a big brake kit makes it "safer" on track.

NovaIS350

Are these solid rotors that have been drilled or are they engineered with holes in place? I hear that this causes a lot of durability issues along with a slew of other issues?

al503

They have drilled rotors but they don't recommend those for the track. Solid or slotted will do just fine on the track.

NovaIS350

yeah