Brakes
Brake pad testing requires time and money, neither of which I did, so this setup represents more of a best guess of ideas at this point of time.
Pads, Pads, Pads
My first foray into brake pads entailed installing Project Mu Club Racer (RC09) pads and a new front rotor. Along with the stainless lines and better tires, this was a large step forward from the stock setup on the track.
Project Mu is a preferred brand for my simply because of its willingness to share some technical information about its pads, which makes them comparable. I discovered that Toyota created a one make race series called the 86/BRZ Race in Japan, and Project Mu supplies a front (RSF01A) and rear pad (RSR02).
Since I have a pair of Project Mu Club racers still on, I decided to keep the front pad and change out the rear pad. The following table describes the potential changes. The idea was to (slightly) move brake bias rearward to allow for more rotation under braking.
The operational temperatures of both pads (RSF01A & RSR02) are similar at around 200 deg to 800 deg (900deg for the front). The key difference lies in the friction coefficients. We can see that initial bite is indicated as 10% higher in the rear at 200 degrees, and 18% higher at the 800-degree mark. In their promotional video, the calipers and discs seem stock.
This is intriguing as it seems like the team at project Mu was trying to push the brake-bias rearward without changing the mechanical parts which are common to the car. The diagrams supplied for both the front (left) and rear (pad) seem to confirm this idea.
I do not think this is an outright replacement for a well engineered big kit, particularly for cars that see multiple laps on longer tracks. For more information on that, please check out the excellent article by Point Me By below.
The AP Sprint Brake Kit
A chance came up to buy a brand new AP Sprint Brake kit which a friend decided to sell, and in a moment of insanity, I pulled the trigger. 4.5kg of unsprung weight reduction drew me in, but the real benefit has been in brake feel.
It's subjective, but there is a huge pleasure in braking down hard from high speed. Brake pads became more of a challenge to get right, and I bought 3 sets below.
Carbotech 1521
Temperature Range: 0-426 ºC
Peak Friction: 0.47
My current street setup with just the right amount of feel, and NVH levels.
Fedoro DS2500
Temperature Range: 150-650 ºC
Peak Friction: 0.42
This was meant to be my original street/track pad. The reality is that it did neither well, with excessive noise on the street, and average braking on the track.
Carbotech XP12
Temperature Range: 121 - 1093 ºC
Peak Friction: 0.65
Balls to the wall track pad, which sadly I haven't gotten much use of this year.
Brake Master Mount
This is a harder one to comment on, but there is a brace that seems to solve a problem that I did not experience myself. That said, in the pursuit of perfect feel, I decided to add it.
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Resources:
Which Big Brake Kit for the FRS - Excellent article.
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