I've been on the boards for a while familiarizing myself with the 6 and 7GT3 as I intend to purchase one in the somewhat near future (I can't wait), but I'm suprised how few people I hear ever using Porterfield R4 and R4E track pads, not to mention the sheer lack of pad choice in general.

Anyway, I'm just planning for the future, and unfortunately since I don't have a bottomless well to draw money from, I spend some time trying to find some good performance values in consumables and thought some of you guys may also be interested in this info along with my experience with using them compared to other pads.

Places like Livermore Performance carry R4 pads for 6GT3's for literally $410/full set, and you can get them for the 7GT3 directly from Porterfield for $479/full set.

http://www.livermoreperformance.com/...s.html#port996
http://www.porterfield-brakes.com/

I've tried lots of compounds, PFC01, Pagid (orange, yellow 19 & 29), etc. etc. and I keep coming back to Portefield R4 (carbon-kevlar) because they are simply great pads, WAY cheaper than Pagids(somewhat overpriced), and for the weekend warrior it is more than enough pad. They have great cold bite, are super easy on rotors, and are easy to modulate.
Coefficienct of friction is a very stable .5 througout the temp. range, and they are fine up to 1400-1500 degrees.

More importantly, for those who don't trailer, they are very safe to drive to and from the track, and easy to bed-in because the operating temp starts considerably lower than Pagid RS19 & 29's....to be honest, those pads are borderline dangerous to drive on the street. You could leave R4's in for street driving with better bite and safety.

I run in the advanced & instructor groups in a highly modified E46 M3, and these pads have no problem with the pace (which includes plenty of GT3s). My M3 is also heavier than the GT3, so they'll work even better in the P-cars. I know they are the popular choice, but honestly, there are alot of people who use RS19's or 29's that shouldn't be because they can't get enough heat in them to work...so towards the end of a session, they finally start working...not what you want, nor is that really fun.

Most people outgrow the pagid oranges and need something more....this Porterfield is what I think slots above the orange, but below the "enduro" compounds like the RS19 & 29's....most of us are doing 25-40 minute sessions, not 2.5 hour sessions.

Anyway, I'm not trying to sway anybody from what they like, or say that Pagids or PFC's are bad (they are awesome), but rather give people some options they might not have been aware of, and save a few buck while you're at it.

 

I'm interested and emailed Porterfield for sizing. I tried their website and when I fed in 2007 GT3, it kicked out odd information / sizes, talked about ceramics, etc. I've been trying to find that "in between" pad that's more robust than OEM and quieter than RS29s.

Edit:
Porterfield replied and said they have just the R4-S in the 997 GT3 size. It's an "intermediate" pad - Performance Street. Appropriate for AutoX and light track use (DE). But when I look at the characteristics (hard to find real info / data on these) it looks promising. Like it's an upgrade from OEM (Pagid RS 4-2-1?). I like the coefficient from .41 to .46 along the whole temperature band - all the way up to 1300 degrees.

 

I just put a set of R4's on my front Brembo's. There are even fewer choices for the six piston Brembo's with 380mm rotors and the Ferodo made pads that come from Brembo are $400 for the fronts alone and last about one weekend on the track.

My initial impression with the R4's on the street is that they bed easily, don't squeal and have enough bite at lower temps to be a good street/track choice. I haven't had them up to temp on the track, so I can't comment yet on their track performance or durability.

 

I actually called them and talked to them, and they said they have the front R4 in-stock for the 997 (pad shape D0991) and the rear has to be made, but can be made in less than 2 weeks...$249/front, $229/rears.

That's the beauty about porterfield, they will make R4 and R4E's for any pad shape and the cost is fantastic. Call them instead of emailing, it I've found it that you get much better service, and they make a zillion pads, so keeping them up on the web is where they lag behind.

The R4-S is a good compromise, but the R4 is really what you want for the track. It's possibly the perfect DE/"track day" pad.

 

Wow. Rick you and I do so much of the same mods at the same time. I just ordered the Ferodo/Brembo pads from Dan at Vivid. He always charges me $435 a set plus $14 shipping. He had one of his people there call me back and say that he didn't have them in stock, and that he would let me have the Porterfields for the same price. I had never heard of them. They should arrive at my house tomorrow in time for my VIR track weekend coming up. 3 days. Friday is open, Sat and Sun are Trackquest format.

So, how much are you paying for your R4s for the big Brembos?

 

MVez,

You've likely done some of us a great service starting this thread. Thanks man.

Jared

 

No problem....I love these pads, so I was on a mission to make sure they were available for the 6&7 GT3 when that day comes.

Ferodo's full track pad compounds can be caustic, so they like to eat wheel finishes and paint if you don't wash off the brake dust pretty quickly, that's why I would shy away from those. The Porterfield R4s are great and don't harm anything on your car or wheels.

This exact reason is also why most vintage racers use these carbon-kevlar based pads, because they have great bite at low temps, are still full race compounds, and don't destroy the finishes on their very expensive race cars.

 

I've never known or thought of the effect on the finishes. I should really pay attention to that. Thanks again.

 

we deal with Brembo USA for kit replacement pads. Pads usually have no mark up. Our margin is only 20% usually. I will speak with Brembo in regards to this thread to see their thoughts on pricing.

 

Sweet. Can't ask for more than that. Thanks Dan.

 

Email sent.

 

I'm using the R-4S pads in my street driven 6GT3. They are quiet and wayyyyyy cleaner than the factory pads the car came with.

 

I agree, these are awesome pads. I've run them on my BMW track car and have nothing but god things to say about them.

 

I have used this pad on several cars including a modified 360 that I tracked. Great pads and as promised, do all the things Mvez appreciated.

 

R4S --------- NEVER EVER USE THEM FOR TRACK USE!!!!!!!!
They even come with a warning against track use!

Pagids, baby.