Porterfield Brake Pads: Wrong choice ? | FerrariChat
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Porterfield Brake Pads: Wrong choice ?

Discussion in '360/430' started by SorpassoRosso, May 17, 2010.

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  1. SorpassoRosso

    SorpassoRosso Karting

    Jun 5, 2008
    78
    #1 SorpassoRosso, May 17, 2010
    Last edited: May 17, 2010
    Ever since I put a set of Porterfield carbon/kevlar pads on my 360, the braking performance has diminished dramatically. I literally have to stand on the brakes when I'm in need of a sudden stop.
    The reason as to why I chose this brand is mainly because of their very low dust release.
    Before installing the pads, I had the 4 discs cut very lightly, and after 7 k miles, although the pads look new, the front discs show irregular coloration and spots. The rear ones are as clear as a mirror.
    Could it be the wrong choice of pads? I know the Brembos stop on a dime, but they are extremely dirty, and I never track the car.
     
  2. timmp

    timmp Rookie

    Jan 19, 2008
    5
    #2 timmp, May 17, 2010
    A couple thoughts - did you bed the pads in? This requires bringing the car up to speed, and then landing on the brakes. I usually will do this from about 50 mph, 5 or 6 times in a row, then drive without braking for as far as you can to let the pads cool, and then park it. With new pads, and fresh rotors, this procedure mates the surfaces. While ceramic pads are hard, and won't give the kind of bite organic pads do, it sounds like the pads have glazed. I suspect that their performance will increase dramatically if you bed them in.

    best of luck!

    tim
     
  3. Ricambi America

    Ricambi America F1 World Champ
    Sponsor Owner

    Dec 7, 2003
    16,448
    Winston Salem, NC
    #3 Ricambi America, May 17, 2010
  4. BRADAN

    BRADAN Two Time F1 World Champ
    BANNED

    Aug 29, 2009
    22,661
    West Babylon, NY
    Full Name:
    BRADAN
    #4 BRADAN, May 17, 2010
    Ditto. Porterfield make great pads. Sounds like the pads were not bedded.
     
  5. SorpassoRosso

    SorpassoRosso Karting

    Jun 5, 2008
    78
    #5 SorpassoRosso, May 17, 2010
    Thank you Tim, and Daniel.
    You are right, I never did the "bedding process", and the pads probably are no good anymore.
    Will order a new set (Porterfield part # AP 592.15 R4-S ) and do it right this time.
     
  6. Need4Spd

    Need4Spd F1 Veteran

    Feb 24, 2007
    6,678
    Silicon Valley
    #6 Need4Spd, May 17, 2010
    Last edited: May 17, 2010
    Try bedding the ones you have, first. Not likely that you need to replace them if they're otherwise not worn out. BTW, if you want to try a different pad, consider StopTech street pads. Zeckhausen has them in the size needed for 360s (same size front and rear). http://store.zeckhausen.com/catalog/index.php?cPath=230_995
     
  7. DonJuan348

    DonJuan348 F1 Rookie
    Owner

    Aug 5, 2008
    4,442
    Taxing Jersey
    #7 DonJuan348, May 31, 2010
    are the stoptech low dust?
     
  8. Need4Spd

    Need4Spd F1 Veteran

    Feb 24, 2007
    6,678
    Silicon Valley
    #8 Need4Spd, May 31, 2010
    Lower dust than most OEM pads, but I wouldn't call them low dust. It's like they say in cycling, you can have strong, light, cheap; pick two. In brake pads it's something like, wide heat range so they bite well when cold (you need that as a defense against the random idiot, especially on the highway, as the pads don't really stay hot enough for some pads at those speeds and airflow and you know there are times when you need to stop like RIGHT NOW), high MOT so they don't melt/fade at high temps, and low dust; pick two. In my experience, very low dust pads tend to be deficient in one of the other two categories. I know people swear by Porterfields, and that's probably the only streetable pad I've never tried, so I can't really compare against them.
     

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