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Wanted to document my search for brakes that can handle the turbo K on track.
For my first every track day my EM2 was K24a2/K20a2 swapped making somewhere near the stock ~200 hp. I ran with OEM style rotors and EBC Yellowstuff front pads. I had no braking issues over the course of the day. I have rear disc brake swap from an EP3 and was using stock brake pads and rotors. My only complaint was the first couple brake applications after the brakes cooled from a session felt very weird. Like there was much less friction and I had to press the pedal much harder. This only seemed to happen when driving through the parking lot. First corner on track felt fine.
At some point I got the itch for more power so I went turbo. Car made 333 whp and 276 lb ft. I was still using EBC Yellowstuff pads now with EBC BSD slotted rotors. Brakes were nowhere near up to the task. Radiator also couldn't handle the extra heat. I had to drive with the cabin heater on full in the middle of summer to try to help while also taking easy laps to let the engine cool. Anyways, brakes began fading just a few hot laps in and wore almost to metal over 1.5-2 hours of track time.
For the next track day I upgraded to EBC Bluestuff pads and a new set of rotors. Brakes were managing okay but I was having to take lots of easy laps due to coolant temps. Engine also popped at this track day almost certainly due to a poor engine tune. Likely would have happened at the previous track day but the poor braking performance didn't let me push the engine hard enough. This was the last track day I ran this level of power. I was getting to 140 MPH on the back straight at Mid-Ohio, absolutely terrifying in a Civic. Especially since there is minimal run off room before finding a concrete wall.
Engine rebuild over the winter. Block bored over 0.5mm and forged pistons installed. Everything else stayed the same. CR dropped from 10.5:1 to 10:1. Much more reputable tuner this time (they refused to tune it the first go around unless they installed all the turbo parts). Now it makes 365 whp and 306 lb ft on 9 psi. Radiator also upgraded to Mishimoto all aluminum to help with temps. Same EBC Bluestuff and EBC BSD rotors. I also decided to limit boost to 6 psi. Torque steer with this new tune is outrageous. On 6 psi it still makes somewhere around 310-320 whp. Now with a radiator that can handle the heat, the Bluestuff pads proved they were not up to the task. Fading would occur after 15-20 minutes on track.
Next track day I switched to Hawk Blue 9012 pads. This seemed to be a jump over the EBC Bluestuff pads. In this configuration, they can almost last a full session. Some very slight fading would occur towards the end of a session but nothing too bad. However, pad life wasn't great and I also experienced some pad deformation. Looks like the pads got so hot they expanded and were pinched in the caliper bracket. When the piston pushed in the middle of the pad it started bending. The inside pad that contacts the piston welded itself to it. I had some abnormal brake noises but no real braking issues like this. This was finally the straw that broke the camels back, I'd had enough.
Over the winter I finally started looking for upgraded brake kits. Purchased a Wilwood Race set, part number 140-14940. These were eye-wateringly expensive at about $1850 with the hose kit and an additional set of street pads. This uses a ~300 mm diameter curved vane slotted rotor, stock is 262 mm. Calipers are radially mounted, 4 pot with their Thermlock pistons to help with temps. Comes with BP-35 racing pads but I will swap to BP-10 for street/autocross use. Still in process of installing but will update later on.
Wilwood has a 4 and 6 pot kit with ~310 mm rotors for around $1100. They just aren't their "race" spec kit. The rotors can be replaced with a similar set and pads upgraded as well.
At a track day a couple years ago I had a wheel stud on the driver's side break while swapping tires before driving home. Only way to replace studs is to pull the hub. I went ahead and replaced the wheel bearing as well. Studs upgraded to ARP. Well, new two piece rotors are offset inboard further than stock rotors. They interfere with the dust shields. Only way to remove the shield (without cutting) is to pull the hub. Since I previously only did the driver's side, I decided to pull the passenger's hub. This way I can replace the wheel bearing, upgrade to ARP studs, and properly remove the dust shield. I consider it a miracle that I managed to get the snap ring and wheel bearing out of the passenger's hub. I've never changed it and the body has ~320k miles. It took everything my 20 ton hydraulic press had to get the old wheel bearing out. Driver side dust shield will likely just be cut unless I'm feeling extra motivated.
While I'm working on suspension I also decided to upgrade the control arms bushings to a set from Whiteline. The forward bushings have an offset hole to add ~0.5 degrees of caster. This is supposed to help with high speed stability. Plus the bushings should be much stiffer than stock which will hopefully help with some torque steer. If not, they were only $120. I wanted to get roll correcting ball joints as well but was surprised they were over $200. I can always do those later. Hopefully tonight I will get the new wheel bearing in, studs and hub pressed in, and control arm bushings installed for the passenger's side. Then I can actually get to the brakes before moving to the driver's side.
Didn't get much work done last night. Got the rotors bolted together. Red loctite then torqued to 220 in lb. Safety wire installed per instructions. First time ever using the stuff.
Slight backtrack to your original post, but out of those previous pads, which one's bit the hardest, initially through 50%? I ask since a better compound will probably work fine for my application since i'm not riding them aside from top speed.
If primarily street/autocross, probably the YellowStuff pads of something similar. You would only want the Hawk pads if you'd be going to the track at similar power levels (or on race tires). They're basically a track pad. On the street they were loud and had high wear rates as expected. I don't remember noticing much of a difference in the friction between them. The major difference was heat resistance. Yellowstuff handled 200 hp on the track without issues and were well behaved on the street. I assume you'll be north of that 200 number but don't recall if you plan on taking it to the track.
Finally finished up the install on Saturday and went to an autocross event on Sunday. Brakes feel great. Pedal feels much more responsive than before. I installed Wilwood's basic street pad for now (BP-10). The kit came with a set of racing pads (BP-35) that I will swap to for track days. Here are a few more pictures.
First track day in the bag. I am happy to report these brakes had zero issues. This is a smaller track, I had boost limited to 6 psi probably in the neighborhood of 310-320 whp, only reaching ~100 mph on the back straight. However, this is the same track I ran last fall with the old brakes and I had issues.
These Wilwood's with the BP-35 track pads bite hard. With a small amount of brake pedal input it sure throws your forward. Brakes felt phenomenal throughout every session. I shaved 1-2 seconds off my lap time just with these brakes. I will be going to another track in about a month that has a much longer straight. We will see how they perform there.
