daily driver brakes 135I?

[TheFox]

I have been reading through some threads the last few days trying to figure out what to do when my car needs new pads and rotors in a few months. I take the car down mountain roads every weekend and tend to overheat my breaks on some of the longer downhill sections of road (I have gotten some brake fade during some really aggressive driving).

I know allot of people in many of the break upgrade posts express some dislike for the stock breaks (I come from a e24 so the breaks on this car feel like they could stop the planet from spinning). Because my car is a daily driver I may get away with just adding some ducting to cool the breaks and switching to a slotted or drilled rotor.

I'm really looking for advice on rotors and pads or maybe other options (335 brakes?) to reduce some of the overheating and break fade I get with the stock setup, preferably something that wouldn't be a nightmare to daily.

[_Ryan_]

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1101908

[TheFox]

Originally Posted by _Ryan_

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1101908

I have looked through that thread and there isn't info on preventing overheating and brake fade. Are you suggesting that new pads is all I need to keep my brakes cool or at least prevent fade?

[_Ryan_]

Originally Posted by TheFox

I have looked through that thread and there isn't info on preventing overheating and brake fade. Are you suggesting that new pads is all I need to keep my brakes cool or at least prevent fade?

Long downhill on the street? Pads + fluid + don't ride your brakes. Then read the track focused threads on ducting.

[E82MSport]

What you could be experiencing is probably one of two things, and I'm betting it's the latter. There are two types of fade, pad and fluid, both of which can be handled with cooling but there's a better (and cheaper) solution that's much easier.

My first go-to with any car that will see hard aggressive driving is proper fluid. If you've never fully flushed your brake system now would be a good time. Even flushing the system with OEM fluid you will probably see improvements it both pedal feel and fade resistance. If I'm going to the trouble of changing fluid on a car (even on a non-tracked car) that sees a bit of spirited driving I would recommend something like Motul RBF600. Only a couple bucks more and worth the money IMO.

The other type of fade mentioned is pad fade due to the composition of the pad material in relation to the ability of operating at higher temperatures. OEM pads are actually quite good and for lots of people starting out at the track they actually prove to be quite adequate, which should tell you something.

The next step if you've determined pads are the culprit is to upgrade to an aggressive street pad or a dual purpose track/street. I'm not going into what pad, as there are many good reviews here on the forum.

Lastly, I'm in the camp that says for street driving or mild track use there's no benefit when switching to (individually or the combination of) drilled/slotted or 2-piece rotors. Unless you like the look, and that's certainly your prerogative, I wouldn't waste the money.

If money isn't a huge concern I would change the fluid, upgrade the pads and if so inclined, performance rotors. At that point I would also replace the flex lines with something like Techna-Fit for even better feel. Save the ducting for the track.

Hope this helped.

[JasonCSU]

I see your car has an automatic transmission. Are you riding the brakes on these long downhill sections? Doing so can overheat the brakes causing them to fade. Even though it is an automatic, you can still downshift and use engine braking in a lower gear.

[TheFox]

Originally Posted by E82MSport

The other type of fade mentioned is pad fade due to the composition of the pad material in relation to the ability of operating at higher temperatures. OEM pads are actually quite good and for lots of people starting out at the track they actually prove to be quite adequate, which should tell you something.

The brake fluid was changed by the dealership just before I purchased the car (4 months 6000 miles). Is there a better option than stock Brake fluid?

I plan on sticking with stock rotors using braided stainless steel lines and rebuilding the front calipers I really have no idea on pads but I'm still looking into that.

Originally Posted by JasonCSU

I see your car has an automatic transmission. Are you riding the brakes on these long downhill sections

I don't ride the brakes I just use a bit too much gas on the way down so I put a nice load on the brakes when it comes time to stop.

[tracer bullet]

Originally Posted by E82MSport

What you could be experiencing is probably one of two things, and I'm betting it's the latter. There are two types of fade, pad and fluid, both of which can be handled with cooling but there's a better (and cheaper) solution that's much easier.

My first go-to with any car that will see hard aggressive driving is proper fluid. If you've never fully flushed your brake system now would be a good time. Even flushing the system with OEM fluid you will probably see improvements it both pedal feel and fade resistance. If I'm going to the trouble of changing fluid on a car (even on a non-tracked car) that sees a bit of spirited driving I would recommend something like Motul RBF600. Only a couple bucks more and worth the money IMO.

The other type of fade mentioned is pad fade due to the composition of the pad material in relation to the ability of operating at higher temperatures. OEM pads are actually quite good and for lots of people starting out at the track they actually prove to be quite adequate, which should tell you something.

The next step if you've determined pads are the culprit is to upgrade to an aggressive street pad or a dual purpose track/street. I'm not going into what pad, as there are many good reviews here on the forum.

Lastly, I'm in the camp that says for street driving or mild track use there's no benefit when switching to (individually or the combination of) drilled/slotted or 2-piece rotors. Unless you like the look, and that's certainly your prerogative, I wouldn't waste the money.

If money isn't a huge concern I would change the fluid, upgrade the pads and if so inclined, performance rotors. At that point I would also replace the flex lines with something like Techna-Fit for even better feel. Save the ducting for the track.

Hope this helped.

Nicely stated! 100% agree.