Brake Pad Compound Explanations for Different Brands
Hawk Brake Pads
| Blue Compound |
| Medium/High Torque compound. Low pad wear with good brake modulation. #1 selling pad material for SCCA. Temp Range 250F-1000F.
Please see note below. |
| HP Plus Compound |
| HP Plus can take the heat at the track and get you home safely without having to change your brake pads in and out. This compound was designed for the serious street and autocross enthusiast. Warning! Due to the dramatic friction levels produced by this product to achieve “Race Level” braking, rotor wear, noise, dust and pad life may be affected. The HP Plus compound is perfect for street driven cars that are used for HPDE and Time Trial track events. |
| HPS Compound |
| HPS material provides advanced braking characteristics to enhance your driving experience. Gentle on rotors, virtually noise free, extremely low dust, and long pad life. HPS also offers better stopping power over O.E. pads. The HPS is a good pad for drivers looking for increased braking performance on street driven cars. |
| HPB Compound |
| The “B” compound is an improvement on the HPS pads. All the same characteristics as the HPS with a higher Coefficient of friction. We are changing over all HPS to “B” as they become available. These started showing up around January 2015. |
| Black Compound |
| Medium torque compound designed to be a good, all-purpose low-cost racing pad. Temp Range 100F-900F.
Please see note below. |
| HT-10 Compound |
| Intermediate to high torque with a smooth initial bite. Excellent modulation, consistent pedal, good release characteristics. Temp Range 300F-1600F.
Please see note below. |
| HT-14 Compound |
| Very high torque with aggressive initial bite. Excellent modulation and release characteristics. Designed for cars with extremely high deceleration rates and down force. Supercedes HT-12 material. Temp Range 300F-1600F.
Please see note below. |
| Note: These pads are for racing only, not for street use. Using these pads on the street is essentially dangerous. Race pads require higher levels of heat and friction in order to function properly. These levels cannot be maintained during street driving. These pads will dust, squeal, and may consume brake rotors. |
Porterfield Pads
| R-4 Full Race Compound |
| The R-4 Full Race Compound is designed specifically for heavy-duty motorsports. The carbon based semi-metallic R-4 materials allow the pad to absorb tremendous amounts of heat and dissipate it at very even rate. Carbon Kevlar material warms up to race temperature quickly, which is quite helpful during restarts, and when track time is limited. When used with cast iron and steel alloy rotors, the R-4 compound requires minimal bed-in period. Throughout the entire heat range, the carbon kevlar material will give extremely consistent modulation and predictably. This is truly the most rotor friendly racing brake pad material ever. Good for road courses, oval track, rally, vintage racing, autocross, club events or professional racing events.
Please see note below. |
| R4-E Endurance Race Compound |
| R4-E Endurance Race Compound is a carbon kevlar compound made to last a bit longer than the original R-4 compound. The R4-E compound is designed to endure higher prolonged temperature and still has pad life as long or longer than Porterfield R-4 do. This pad is great for club enduro events and applications where temperatures are at their maximum.
Please see note below. |
| R4-S High Performance Street and Autocross Compound |
| For high performance and heavy-duty street conditions. Perfect for prolonged everyday street use while also being capable of tolerating the most severe street use without any fade. Rotor friendly of course. The R4-S friction level will give you an impressive increase in stopping ability with very minimum pedal effort. R4-S compound has the absolute lowest noise and dust levels, far below OEM equipment or any other high performance brake material. Good for autocrossing, some drivers’ schools, and rallies. The R4-S compound is perfect for street driven cars that are used for HPDE and Time Trial track events. |
| Note: These pads are for racing only, not for street use. Using these pads on the street is essentially dangerous. Race pads require higher levels of heat and friction in order to function properly. These levels cannot be maintained during street driving. These pads will dust, squeal, and may consume brake rotors. |
Raybestos Pads
| ST-41 |
| The best high energy input racing material available. This compound maintains high mu level at extremely high temperatures without sacrificing good wear – both pad and rotor. Needs some heat to work well.
Please see note below. |
| ST-43 |
| This compound features good performance over a broad temperature range with minimal rotor wear. The 43 compound is successful in a broad range of racing series, and has extremely consistent feel over a broad temperature range. It is a long lasting, easily modulated pad.
Please see note below. |
| Note: These pads are for racing only, not for street use. Using these pads on the street is essentially dangerous. Race pads require higher levels of heat and friction in order to function properly. These levels cannot be maintained during street driving. These pads will dust, squeal, and may consume brake rotors. |