I've been using Hawk 5.0 They're marketed as a "high performance street" pad. I've done track days with them and theyve held up but they're "street" enough that they don't take forever to get warm. Maybe it's my lack of experience with other pads but they are kinda dusty.
Always had good luck in the past with Hawk HPS pads.
Brake dust difference between stock Akebono pads on the front and Hawk Performance Ceramic on the rear. The backs would usually be about 70% as dusty as the fronts and now they're essentially clean
I've been tracking my 335i for a few years now, ive used ebc yellowstuff, and bluestuff pads. But they dont even hold a candle to the hawk ht10 pads I have in my spec e46, easily my favorite part of that car.
hawk hps 5.0 pads all around
I use Hawk HPS 5.0 pads. Definitely an improvement over stock and I haven’t had any issues with dust.
Depending on the track the factory pads may be adequate for your first day, but a more aggressive and higher temp pad would be my recommendation because nothing will up the "pucker factor" like your brake pedal going to the floor. A pad like the Hawk HPS 5.0 is what I'd consider to be minimally acceptable for street tires on an average track. I'm a big fan of GLOC pads and I can confirm their R8 compound on all 4 corners works great on the GTI/R/A3/S3 for street tires.
Hawk makes the DTC series for the 718 base. Can't go wrong with the DTC-30 for a pad that you can drive back and forth to the track and will perform very well on track. The dust is nasty and corrosive though, so I'd recommend cleaning the wheels and changing the pads out for street duty.
I only daily as well but I did a slight upgrade due to some spirited runs each year. I did Hawk ceramics and DBA T2 rotors. Theyre enjoyably different but likely overkill.
You will find the HP+ pads are possibly the worst pads ever. You get all the downsides of track pads and street pads. The dust from Hawks will also eat your wheels.
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