brakes

[nando]

HP+ are still a street pad though right? I don't really need two sets of stret pads :p

the set I used on a buddy's car a couple years ago was pretty nice for autox though!

[rwh11385]

Throw HP+'s in.

I ran HPSs a while back not thinking about it and had to stand on brakes to slow down. Used HP+'s from my track box and a fresh bleed = good to go for some HOT laps.

[nando]

the only reason I would consider a different MC is the cost of replacing the stock IX one is astronomical. I'll have to see if the one I already have will work or not first.

[jlevie]

I'm with Ranger... Use track pads all around (and good technique) and you should not have any problems. Different MC's, a BBK, etc., simply isn't needed on an E30!

[matt]

Get the master cylinder from an e34 M5. Direct swap for the iX.

Ducts and whatever track pads are cheapest or used or whatever. Definitely swap back to some street pads for the street. Squealing brakes make me crazy driving my roommates track car.

[RangerGress]

1. Everything you ever wanted to know about E30 brakes has been discussed at SpecE30.com

2. One poster suggested putting lower bite pads in the rear. I know of only 1 SpecE30 guy that does that. E30 rear brakes already don't do much. Not much sense in having them do less, I figure.

3. SpecE30 and BF.C Track forum has discussed E30 brake cooling to death. I was all "hot" on this issue myself. I went thru a number of backing late designs before I decided to create my own solution to aim flow exactly how I wanted it. Then, after all that work, I noticed last month that one of the top national E30 driver's hasn't done a single thing to cool his brakes.

4. Ferodo pads are old school. They do not hold up as well as Hawk10's and PFC01's, just to name a few later generation pads. And the latest pads are compression molded like Hawk DTC60's and BHP's. These latest generation pads are terrific. Hawk is coming out with a DTC60 for our rear and PFC is coming out with a new pad compound, so more stuff is on it's way. I burned thru a set of Ferodo 2500's and 3000's in 90min on the track. And that's crazy.

5. Use track pads on the track. Brake fade is scary. And that's what you're gonna get with non-track pads.

[e30pq]

I also vote for switching to different pad, I've used HP+ as well and was happy with them. I was even happier with Carbotech P+ pads though, 2.5 hours of HPDE, long straight I would get to 120+ and brake to 40ish w/o any brake fade on my old car with rbf600 fluid and stock 13" rotors.

They were fun on the street though LOL

Does Ferrodo make a pad for e30 calipers ?

I run stock E30 brakes and I've been running Ferrodo's for about 8 years. I can't remember the exact pad but I buy them from a small company that advertises in Roundel.

My car has an S50, GC setup with Koni SA, etc. etc. It's setup for autorcrossing. It would be a track car if it wasn't a cabrio.

[nando]

I was looking at your site for the HT-10s actually, the best deal I could find anywhere...

as far as the MC - are you saying the 25mm from the 7 series (whatever it was - 740 or something) won't work? It looks the same as my MC on the outside but I gave away my spare core before the price quadrupled (doh!) so I can't compare it to the stock ix part. I suppose there's always a rebuild kit...

[Elephant]

It's all been said pretty much but I'll reinforce a couple things. HPS are HP shit on the track, they're worse than most off brand street pads. HP+ at least but realize the HP+ is a still a street pad. I'd recommend starting off with a Porterfield R4. It's a real track pad (less aggressive than most) and plenty for a beginner up through intermediate as you develop your braking skills. Then move to a high end pad that you can abuse, at least a couple have been suggested. I currently prefer Hawk and hate Peformance Friction but I am shopping. ; )

BBK...yeah, a very nice upgrade but wait until you've truly exhaust the stock system.

MC...you're screwed, sorry. The iX unfortunately suffers from being a bit too unique here. I would be surprised if the 25mm MC fit...it's quite a bit longer IIRC.

Oh, brake fluid. I ran the ATE stuff (blue and gold) for quite some time but eventually switched to Motul. Have never needed anything else since then. For the most part the ATE stuff, or similar, will be just fine.

I would consider all new brake lines, clutch line, rebuild the calipers, generally make sure all those parts are fresh, that will help a lot with overall reliability of course. Definitely use what you have first before spending a ton of $$$ though.

Last year we ran an ITS E30 at the Nelson 24hr with no brake ducting on a single set of front pads...which performed very well. And we ended up doing very well in class considering of the 5 drivers 3 of us had never driven more than a 1 hr race and 3 of us had never driven Nelson. The stock brakes are not the best but there is quite a bit there to use up.

Cheers.

[nando]

ducts are secure, i made sure of that a long while back - running the offsets I do and the M3 cabs, the ducts kept popping out of the fender liner, so they're fastened securely now. :)

I'm basically looking at:
HT-10s
Valvoline fluid
install new lines that I already have
replace seals and clutch hose (the one that comes off the resivior, it almost fell off!).

ducting upgrades would come later if I need them. I can have it welded up cheap so I'm not worried about it, but I'd rather not add more crap to do to my car this year if I can avoid it.

[cheades]

Just do good pads and make sure your ducts are in Chris. I have been using HT-10's and fade is never an issue.

[nando]

Have you ever rebuilt your calipers?
I've seen people with the same setup as myself boiling fluid at the track and it turned out that corrosion/moisture in the calipers was what was boiling, not the fluid.

Even with no brake ducting (stock fender liners removed) I haven't had fluid boil on HPS pads, I was able to engage ABS on 615's until pad fade started. Fluid (valvoline syn) was never the issue. I'd be pressing the pedal just as hard, it would be at the same level, but the brakes simply did not work as well towards the end of the session.

the calipers have all been replaced at least once since i've owned the car, they're girling as well so no rubber guide bushings to deal with.

not really interested in a bbk - there's a lot of other things I'd rather do, and I think there's lots of potential left in my stock braking system. I don't really want or need to spend money on much larger wheels/tires yet either. if I really wanted to upgrade to bigger brakes, I'd probably jut go 5 lug anyway. :)

[Bimmerman325i]

Does Ferrodo make a pad for e30 calipers ?

Yes, they make the DS2500 pad in a standard e30 fitment for both front and rear. Call up raceshopper.com. I have the DS2500s on my subaru and love them. I do not know about the DS3000 and other racing pads however.

[silverblades181]

If you're ready to invest, Massive brakes are the way to go. I installed them recently and did my first track day with them. I could not bleed the rear calipers because the previous owner broke both bleeders and I found out 24 hours before the event. Even then, with very hard braking, I kept the same pedal feel from morning to night. I had to push my braking zones a lot later since I was used to OEM brakes and I was braking way too early. A friend of mine noted that in the front straight I was braking much later then anyone in my group and I seemed to still overbrake. No fade at all. I'm using ATE superblue, but then again only in the front since I could not bleed the rear. I'm running OEM disks and Hawk HT-10 in the rear.

My 2 cents.

Btw, Lee was at the same event, using the same Massives on his E30 M3 and he ran a good 8-9 sessions (he's an instructor) with no fade and a strong pedal all day long.

[AlarmedBread]

Have you ever rebuilt your calipers?
I've seen people with the same setup as myself boiling fluid at the track and it turned out that corrosion/moisture in the calipers was what was boiling, not the fluid.

Even with no brake ducting (stock fender liners removed) I haven't had fluid boil on HPS pads, I was able to engage ABS on 615's until pad fade started. Fluid (valvoline syn) was never the issue. I'd be pressing the pedal just as hard, it would be at the same level, but the brakes simply did not work as well towards the end of the session.