In my search for good cold-bite brake pads for autocross, I found out that for DOT approval, pads must have letter codes stamped on them which correspond to the coefficient of friction at 2 temps. The letter codes are 2 letters which indicate the coefficient of friction at 200F and 600F. "E" is the lowest I have seen and "G" is the highest. I believe the letters correspond to a 0.1 increment in f.

Here are the pads I was able to find out about, what do yours say?

EE - VGX
FF - Pagid OE BMW pads
GF - Ferodo street pad (older, not a "DS" compound)
GF - Axxis ultimate
GG - Carbotech Bobcat

Thanks to Matt at Carbotech for this information!

 

Stock ITR front pads = GG
$46.68 a set

Stock ITR rear pads = FF
$48.52 a set


[Modified by Willard, 7:20 PM 3/4/2003]

 

VERY interesting....

Here's more:

Metal Masters: FF
Hawk HPS: FE
Hawk HP+: GG

BTW, here's what the letters stand for:
E: between .25 and .35
F: between .35 and .45
G: between .45 and .55

Bobcat was *almost* rated a GH.

 

That's weird -- the set of MetalManglers I just looked at in the garage said "EE".

PF90 = GF (my favorite track pad of all time, too bad they're NLA)
Albany = FF (Autozone cheapies I used to use on the rear, lifetime replacement)

Couldn't find ratings on DS3000 or Hawk Blahs, er, Blues.

 

I'm working on a chart for my site (see sig) and should have it within a week or so.

 

Mintex "redbox:" FF

I'll check my Ultimates when I get a chance.

-Adam

 

Interesting. My old Metal "Manglers", were rather old. A set from the mid-late 90s that the Captain gave me for my Eclipse after he upgraded his to dual piston AWD brakes. Perhaps they've changed the formulation? EE is total crap. My "FF" Metal Masters didn't stop for **** compared to Ultimates and Bobcat.

 

Remember, MetalMasters used to be a lot better than they are now. When I first started out (mid-90s) they would hold up to fairly hard use. In the late '90s, shortly after the change in brand from Repco to Axxis, they went to hell!

That could explain the EE/ FF thing.

 

Makes perfect sense now. Mine were actual "Repco" Metal Masters. Thanks Bowie.

I've heard more than one racer say that back in the day, if you had Metal Masters, you had something! Boy, have we come a long way or what...