I called Andie at Cobalt Friction to buy some brakes and asked what setup would be best for a daily driven R with mild road course and auto-x usage. He sold me on a front set of Axxis Ultimate brake pads and ATE Super Blue brake fluid. I also called back when I recieved my products to ask about proper installation, rotor prep, and breaking in the pads and one of the Cobalt representatives spoke with me for about 15 minutes discussing all those subjects and answering everything completely.

Last weekend I ran at Willow Springs Raceway on The Streets road course. Track sessions were 30 minutes a piece, and never in any session did the Ultimate pads begin to fade or the ATE fluid begin to boil and turn the brakes into mush. The brakes were solid the entire session for every session and I was very pleased with the products and recommendations from Cobalt Friction. So to Andie for running such a great business with amazing customer service that led to me having the right products doing what I needed them to do.

So for my short product review, the Axxis Ultimate pads worked great and are a very good multi-purpose pad having good heat fade resistance while still being very streetable with no noise and a good cold bite. The ATE Super Blue fluid is an effective yet relatively inexpensive brake fluid you can afford to change often and keep dry. The boiling point on the ATE fluid may not be as high as some of the other more expensive fluids but it seemed to work just fine for me, no pedal mush the whole day.

 

nice. Glad you had fun at the road course. Nice review.

tj

 

its always good to hear about members gettin good service from other members... its a refreshing breath of fresh air amongst all these.. "i got scammed by ---" and "does anybody kno --- so they can get my $$ or my goods back? and kick the...."

I've also heard great things about cobalt friction and its good to hear that they are continuing their great service. i plan to pick up some pads from them myself (same ones as you, the Axxis ultimates) when my pads wear down and i have some cash.. (hoping these two happen at the same time).

 

Buying from Expo Sponsors

 

I picked up a set of Ultimates for last weekend's adventure at VIR. Andie's service was very helpful and i got to meet him at the track.

I was running carbotech panther plus and XP's and going to the Ultimates after that, i really did not like them. I thought the pedal feel sucked, initial bite was terrible and they would fade at the end of the session - however i know i was asking too much of the pads at that point.

For next time, i would recommend a more track oriented pad. Hopefully andie will have his lineup ready soon!

 

I'm also rocking the Ultimate's all round and the Super Blue fluid - awesome is the best way to describe this combo. There is a noticeable increase in initial brake "bite" (over stock pads) and the pads work great cold and hot. Together with the stainless lines, they make an excellent upgrade to the already potent stock brakes.
Now if I could just get to some trackdays to really test the brakes...
Andie gets from me too


[Modified by Philly_NBP_R, 9:18 AM 2/25/2003]

 

Andie is the best.

 

No fitment for DA Integras..... this is what i wanted

His track/race compound(s) were not ready yet....

After this past weekend i wish i had. Braking at marker 5 sucked. A few times late in the sessions i had to bail on T1 to keep the car on the pavement. Good thing VIR isnt that hard on brakes. I'll have something better on the car front and rear before CMP.

 

The Ultimates are definitely not track-only pads for the more advanced road course drivers who really give the brakes a workout. I mean they are a street pad that holds up very well on the road course, but of course cannot be compared to a race-only pad.

 

Yeah, but I have yet to go to another track where you experience as much braking force as the back straight at VIR. I don't even know why they have the numbers up on the side there, because if you're doing it right, you're past all of them before you touch the brakes

Warren

 

uphill-braking kicks A$$!
especially if you're using real track pads.. not street pads. (I use XP 1108)




[Modified by XR4racer, 12:02 PM 2/25/2003]

 

I could get a *tiny* chirp of lockup there...... thats it....... weaksauce