lolachampcar
Well-Known Member
Did someone really post this on a car chat forum????????????
I love these guys; they are funny.
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Upgrading Brake Pads for Plaid - Racing Brake
- Thread starter T Bone
- Start date
I love these guys; they are funny.
Yes. Fitment is guaranteed or exchanged is warranted.
Since Plaid OE only comes with 19 & 21" and that's how we used as guideline per our selection chart. Generally aftermarket wheels are more forgiving than OE so we think 20" should fit 410mm kit.
Good to know and it makes good sense with larger wheels for X (vs. S) as X is not only heavier in vehicle weight but can seat 6 passengers (vs. 4)
However the X brake has the same caliper & pad as S except larger in rotor (395 vs. 380mm) which makes less sense.
However the X brake has the same caliper & pad as S except larger in rotor (395 vs. 380mm) which makes less sense.
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Any impressions on the RB street pads?
I had a few instances of my car not having any brakes when raining. I understand that the initial bite will be soft due to the water, but that was really bad. Wondering if the RB street would be an improvement under these circumstances.
I had a few instances of my car not having any brakes when raining. I understand that the initial bite will be soft due to the water, but that was really bad. Wondering if the RB street would be an improvement under these circumstances.
kazkioken
Member
I just got the 400/365 larger rotor and street pad upgrade from RB and it is INCREDIBLE. I will post on a separate thread with photos later but just wanted to say the street pads have great initial bite, and have not had any fade on the street after repeated full threshold stops from high speed. As I told RB this should be mandatory to get better rotors and pads from stock as the Plaid X is straight up an unsafe car in stock form, it simply won't stop in time in a panic stop as I am sure lots of you have experienced. The weight is of course an issue but also just the incredible acceleration and momentum really present challenges to how fast you can stop. The street pads have no noise, have not been dusty so far and get the X to actually stop as you would expect it to. Photos and video to come on separate thread 
BTW I had mine installed on the factory 20's and everything fit, have since moved to aftermarket 21's (also fits)
BTW I had mine installed on the factory 20's and everything fit, have since moved to aftermarket 21's (also fits)
I think Tesla should add brake pad drying like BMW has been doing for years. Not that hard to do, I think BMW is based on wiper usage, they apply brake to dry the discs when the wipers are in function. Then when you need the brakes you don't have the few seconds of nothing happening.
I took my Model S Plaid (19“ factory wheels) to Laguna Seca yesterday, which was only my second time on track with this new daily driver. The first time was half a day at Thunderhill West last year, with stock brakes and before track mode was released - which went badly with brakes going to the floor after a few laps.
Beforehand I upgraded to Unplugged Performance PFC front and rear track pads for the stock rotors, along with Castrol NRF DOT4 brake fluid and UPP stainless steel brake lines (probably not necessary but was a small incremental cost). Total was $2,200 including install at The Driveway in San Jose which took 5 hours. I also removed the aero covers for cooling, and dropped tire pressures by 6 psi.
This made the world of difference on the track. The PFC pads don’t have much bite (quite a bit less than stock) until one or two hard brakings to get them up to temperature, but after that they are solid on the track. I only felt a little light softness towards the end of a 20-25m session. This may have been as much the impact of the Castrol NRF brake fluid which boils at a much higher temperature.
On the street it seems fine, as most of the braking is via regen anyhow. I think even with less initial bite when cold, it’s still fine for emergency stops - you just have to push the brake pedal harder/further than stock. I did have an issue on the last session under hard braking at the end of the main straight before turn 2 (from at least 110mph, but less than my prior session max of 129mph), when the car suddenly had some glitch - causing an ABS front tire lockup and which disabled several functions (brake hold, stability control, lane departure, cruise control, regen) for several hours. I had to drive home with no regen and a flat spot, and I could hear the brakes against the disk even with light braking - you wouldn‘t want these pads in for daily driving without regen.
I was able to run in the 1:44’s by the second-to-last sessions, and while there is some more in it at my skill level (1:42 Porsche 997 Turbo best lap), that would mostly be about me braking less and later. So I don’t feel the need to upgrade brakes any further, e.g. to larger or even ceramic rotors. The biggest issue is now powertrain and battery endurance. Even with track mode pre-cooling, the battery gets too hot after 15m of 2000Wh/mile of driving and reduces power. Also using up to 50% battery during a 25m session means a round-trip to a supercharger between every sessions. When they enable the newly installed superchargers trackside at Laguna Seca, that will help the second issue.
Track mode is a game changer too. The car now allows some slip in the corners, but gives just the right amount of stability control, so you need to correct with steering and acceleration but don’t need to be super fast (which I‘m not). I used the race preset, except with a custom version disabling the brake temperature warnings. These are software modeled not measured, and get very distracting after several heavy breaking applications, with loud continuous beeping that isn’t relevant with upgraded pads/fluid but is distracting on the track.
Beforehand I upgraded to Unplugged Performance PFC front and rear track pads for the stock rotors, along with Castrol NRF DOT4 brake fluid and UPP stainless steel brake lines (probably not necessary but was a small incremental cost). Total was $2,200 including install at The Driveway in San Jose which took 5 hours. I also removed the aero covers for cooling, and dropped tire pressures by 6 psi.
This made the world of difference on the track. The PFC pads don’t have much bite (quite a bit less than stock) until one or two hard brakings to get them up to temperature, but after that they are solid on the track. I only felt a little light softness towards the end of a 20-25m session. This may have been as much the impact of the Castrol NRF brake fluid which boils at a much higher temperature.
On the street it seems fine, as most of the braking is via regen anyhow. I think even with less initial bite when cold, it’s still fine for emergency stops - you just have to push the brake pedal harder/further than stock. I did have an issue on the last session under hard braking at the end of the main straight before turn 2 (from at least 110mph, but less than my prior session max of 129mph), when the car suddenly had some glitch - causing an ABS front tire lockup and which disabled several functions (brake hold, stability control, lane departure, cruise control, regen) for several hours. I had to drive home with no regen and a flat spot, and I could hear the brakes against the disk even with light braking - you wouldn‘t want these pads in for daily driving without regen.
I was able to run in the 1:44’s by the second-to-last sessions, and while there is some more in it at my skill level (1:42 Porsche 997 Turbo best lap), that would mostly be about me braking less and later. So I don’t feel the need to upgrade brakes any further, e.g. to larger or even ceramic rotors. The biggest issue is now powertrain and battery endurance. Even with track mode pre-cooling, the battery gets too hot after 15m of 2000Wh/mile of driving and reduces power. Also using up to 50% battery during a 25m session means a round-trip to a supercharger between every sessions. When they enable the newly installed superchargers trackside at Laguna Seca, that will help the second issue.
Track mode is a game changer too. The car now allows some slip in the corners, but gives just the right amount of stability control, so you need to correct with steering and acceleration but don’t need to be super fast (which I‘m not). I used the race preset, except with a custom version disabling the brake temperature warnings. These are software modeled not measured, and get very distracting after several heavy breaking applications, with loud continuous beeping that isn’t relevant with upgraded pads/fluid but is distracting on the track.
lbowroom
Plaid, white on black, CF, 8/27/21, Track Pack
Wait a second.... brake pads, brake fluid, and SS lines cost you $2200 installed?
$840 UP pads, $295 UP brake lines, $80 Castrol brake fluid, $875 labor (5x$175/hour), $114 taxes, $5 hazmat = $2209. SF Bay Area.
lbowroom
Plaid, white on black, CF, 8/27/21, Track Pack
The car for sure has a lot more in it - Tesla factory driver did just over 1:30. I know I can do a few seconds better than 1:44 with less and later braking, but I don’t have skill or risk tolerance for much more - especially not first time at Laguna in this car, given I have to drive it home, and already did temporarily break something re: the ABS as it was.
MarcG
Active Member
Thanks for sharing your experience!
I took my Plaid to Laguna Seca in June and still felt like I was very brake-limited. My setup was RB 2-piece rotors (390mm front, 365mm rear) with G-LOC R12 pads and RBF660 fluid, stock lines. I had a staggered 20-inch wheel setup with PS4S tires, which I’m selling here. Best lap times were high 1:39’s and I’m sure there were a few seconds left to gain, but like you I wasn’t willing to push it.
Despite being a cool day in the high 60s, I was surprised by the inverter temps getting high and perhaps being the limiting factor before the battery, though it also warmed up after a few hot laps.
I’ve since decided to stop tracking the Plaid and went a whole new direction, hence acquiring a super lightweight track car: an Ariel Atom 3R!
My RB brake rotors are now also for sale here, if anyone’s interested.
Happy & safe tracking!
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