Stock ZL1 Pads for Tracking
 

Curious to know how many people still went back to stock zl1 pads. I seem to like it except that the initial bite is lacking. I was thinking of going to ferrodo ds1.11 but the price is almost double and i dont think the life of the pad is going to be longer than stock i would assume. ANyone here have experence with the ds1.11 and the stock pad back to back. I am trying to stay with ferrodo so that the pad materials are compatible.

Also wondering what you guys think about the pad life from this picture. Have a track day coming up soon, and not sure if this is enough for a track day.

https://i.imgur.com/Ixd5tfv.jpg

I’m a huge fan of carbo tech. I put xp10 on the front and xp8 on the rear and never took them off, they where so good. Very rotor friendly too.

On my zl1 1le I ordered xp12 and xp10 due to the better tires. Make sure you change out the fluid to srf these pad can handle a lot of heat

I had the same (12/10) on my ViperGTS.....lightyears better than the OEMs.

I was literally about to order a set of XP12/XP10 and wanted to validate the part numbers. I was showing a CT1835-XP12(f) and CT1053-XP10(r)....is that what you had as well? (and man those fronts are salty in price, but, they are a huge pad)

The rule i use to determine brake pad usage...


If the backing plate is "taller" than the brake pad material... it's time to toss em. :thumbsup:

Instead of eye-balling it, get a set of pad gauges. Factory pad material (not including backing plate) is 9 mm. If you can't get the 5 mm gauge in, then you should consider replacing. If you can't get the 4 mm gauge in, then you should replace.


https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0...?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Rule of thumb: if you have anything less then 50% pad left, swap them for a new event. That's a basic rule applied to pass tech inspections. But this will depend on how many days and/or sessions an event has, how hard a vanue is on brakes etc. NB I would not hesitate to do an extra day on your pads per the pic, but then i also check mine a couple of times per day. Suggest you do the same as a matter of good practice and regardless of any other circumstances.

Some thoughts on pads:

1. Stock Ferodos have a flat torque but they are great for modulation during deep trail braking and dont put out a lot of heat (think caliper health). Personally i like them a lot and run them on my SS 1le. Notwithstanding a fairly low and flat torque ive never had any issues slowing down the car, ever, no matter what type of venue.

2. Ive tried XP10s (all around) on my 1le and frankly they felt virtually the same and didnt last any longer, if actually a bit shorter (for more $).

3. Camaros are desiged to run equal torque pad F and R to achieve the best brake bias. Unless one experiences instability during threshold braking, or oversteer while trail braking, there is not one good reason to stagger pad torque! Now earlier Corvettes benefited from it and i ran XP10/XP8 on my Vette for a bit, but that's not the case on new Camaros as they are excellent as designed regarding brake bias. Putting lesser pad in a rear will elongate brake zones and make a car not as willing to rotate under trail braking.

4. XP12 is a good, more torque pad, but will last about 50% of XP10 if one pushes the car hard. Even Carbotech folks will admit it. Of course this may depend on how much one pushes the car, etc.

5. I had tried 1.11 on my Vette and didnt like the modulation factor and instead ran top dog DSUNOS which had better feel imo. But that pad is track only and not really suited for any daily driving at all.

Hope this helps. Cheers!

Thanks for the detailed input. After looking at the cost, i went with a set of factory pads, to lower my consumable expense. Figured, instead of constantly trying to buy the best component, I am going to work with the OEM brakes and improve my driving. To be fair, I have not felt fade in any of my track days, Maybe a little but by that time I was ready for cool down lap anyways.

How would you compare the modulation of the DS1.11's compared to stock pads on the track?

What are the DS1.11's like for the street in terms of cold grip and noise before they are warmed up?

Just replied to your PM :)
Cheers!

Thanks for the really good info, sounds like they are not for me. I'm still very new at tracking so I don't really know what I want yet, but I know I don't want to dislike driving my car on the street and it sounds like even entry level race pads might lead to that.

The Hawk DCT 70/60 have optimal temps starting at 700 degree F so that sounds bad for the street too, the DCT30's on the other hand have an optimal starting temp of 100 degrees F, but only seem to be made for the rear. This is the compound my father uses on his heavily modified 1975 transam that was recommended to him given the weight of the car and the Hoosier R7 tires he's using.



For anyone else wanting to see the answer here it is

I didnt like 1.11 as it felt very flat torque wise. From what i recall i switched to DSUNO shortly after. Cant recall details: it has been many yrs now. Neither pad was street friendly. VERY loud and not a good performer when cold. That's the main issue with full on race pads: their op temps are much higher so when cold they may not perform very well at all and scar rotors big time.
I know what you mean about the stock Ferodo, which is likely a DS2500 compound (street/Track). If you think it is not quite doing a job for ya, i would suggest a Hawk DTC60 for all 4 corners. Several folks run these and like them. They also appear to be ok for occasional street use. KNS Brakes (Ken) carries them. They will put out more heat so Castrol SRF fluid is a must (so you dont worry about boiling it). Your pistons are vented (mine are not) so they may handle extra heat better. Seals and boots will go sooner, but a rebuild fixes that. Proly every 2+ yrs at 10 days a season? Brakes are a rather personal preference item - set up wise. The only way to find out is to try a set. If you hate them, you can always keep them as an emergency spare in your track box. A good idea to have a set with ya regardless

I've run both the ds1.11 and the 3.12 on my AP brakes and both are great pads. I currently run the 3.12s and love them however took a full weekend or so to get acclimated to bite characteristics especially trail breaking! I personally think the ds1.11 are perfect pad for HPDE however did not have great longevity and had some chunking issues on a set.

Only way to know what is best for you is to try them!

Most guys I know with ZLEs and stock calipers run hawk DTC 70/60 and have great feedback from what I've gathered!

Hit up KNS brakes if looking for some pads for Camaro!

Well said: you wont know until you try them :)

As far as feedback on DTC70s: ive seen a few posts about folks frying their calipers with them. Especially running split torque F vs R, which is neither necessary, nor desirable with a Camaro at all, as the bias is designed for the same pad F and R and the car does not experience any instability under threshold braking with the same pads all around. Neither does it exhibit excessive oversteer on entry.
So the only resulting effect is more understeer (vs designed handling) on entry and F brakes working harder than intended (which is counter productive to longevity of all front components, incl tires!). My 2 cents.

Also, there is a large step up between DTC70 and 60.
Going from a stock pad, DTC60 would make more sense to me. Again, my 2 cents.

Lastly, we are discussing top dog *racing* pads. There is no such thing as a top dog racing pad which will also excel on the street as a regular dd pad (perhaps mild driving to/from track excepted). There is a good reason why manufacturers have big warnings about street use for them. Plus, tons of folks here trailer their cars...My last 2 cents :)

I'm going to be using these on the street too so I'm concerned about using the DTC60's and I'm thinking the DCT30 might be better for me, though I'm not sure if they make them for the front, KNS is only showing DTC30 rears for the ZL1 but they are showing DTC30 fronts for the ss1le.

Any thoughts on the DTC30's?
Know anyone on the forum whose used them?

If you're going to run the same pads on the street, you might want to look into rotor wear rates (especially in the street setting when pads don't get anywhere near the temperature they're rated for in track use). Total brake system consumable cost has to include periodic rotor replacement as well.

Perhaps that's part of what the Carbotech/G-loc price premium buys you; at the XP10/R10 level that I know of, rotor wear rates are about the same as Hawk's HPS street pads. The 12 level pads aren't quite that gentle, but they're nowhere near as rough as Hawk's HP+.

What I don't know is how the 60's and 70's compare to either the CT/G-loc lineup or even Hawk's own HPS/HP+, rotor wear-wise.


Norm