[cdrptrks]

Originally Posted by N Camarolina

Finally, there's also the issue of brake pads.

When you drive on the track, you are going to get the pads hotter than they have ever been on the road. To ensure they perform up to task consider burnishing and bedding the brakes a day or so before you head out to the track.

How to burnish and bed the brakes:
...
This is particularly important to do if you have new brake pads as there is material in the pads that first needs to be off-gassed (through high heating) before the brakes will stop the car properly. It also helps to ensure that your pads don't get glazed, which can reduce stopping ability. In addition, the pad material (whether new pads or not) is transferred to the rotors and supplies additional friction to help the car to stop better.

I can confidently say from experience that brand new pads will still stop the car properly on track assuming they're the same compound as the stock Camaro SS 1LE (Ferodo HP1000). At many different tracks I've installed a new set at lunch during a weekend track event and gone straight out on track without any bedding/burnishing. Looking at PDR video recordings, the stopping g force tends to be a little lower on the brand new pads and I can usually smell them during the first session but they still function fine.

[N Camarolina]

I've observed less than the optimal breaking from the OEM pads until the smell goes away. Not a huge difference, mind you, but at least noticeable. So if I haven't quite burnished them enough on the "late night" highway procedure, it takes the first 2 laps to finish that.

But good to know you can put fresh OEM pads on at the track and go right out and use them without glazing them. Thanks for sharing!

[cdrptrks]

You're welcome, I just wanted to clarify that the car would still be able stop with brand new pads. It would probably be ideal to bed them in beforehand but I've only done it once in 5 years because I have to go out of my way late at night to find a spot where I'm able to do repeated near stops from highway speeds without getting rear ended and without encountering traffic so I can drive for 10+ minutes without braking immediately after.