Ferodo DS Performance/Volvo 240 pads

[Gopherit]

I am looking for a good road only pad to go into the Girling 14LF Calipers on the front.

I have used most of the old, usual suspects - Mintex too much dust, Ferodo DS2500 need too much aggression to keep temperature up, not a fan of any of the EBC varieties - Greenstuff doesn't seem to do a lot after the initial slowing (I hesitate to say bite!) , Yellowstuff I've used on track and took them out after 15 laps, similar feel to Green at higher speeds..... etc. Pagid 4-2s not legal for road use (strictly speaking neither are 2500s I believe).

Ferodo Performance look interesting:
https://www.ferodoracing.com/products/c ... rake-pads/

The problem is they do not do the exact Elan pad (in DS2500 this is the FCP809H). However, it appears the rear pads from an 80s Volvo 240 are very close - also used in the front of a whole bunch of Alfa Romeos, Alfetta, Guilletta etc. For these cars the DSP is available as the Ferodo FDS2.
The dimensional difference is in the width (some might see this as the height of the pad when positioned in the caliper) of the pad - Elan pads are 63.4mm, the Volvo pads are 61.7mm. Hole spacing is not a problem as far as I can see - haven't actually handled the Volvo pads yet.

Anyone tried these Volvo/Alfa pads in the Elan?
(for a quick comparison of the sizes see EBC DP2114 (Elan) vs DP2104 (Alfa)).

[rgh0]

You may want to try these. i use Hawk racing pads ( 9012 blue) on my Elan front and these are their performance road pad compound which works well on my sons Golf R32.

https://www.hawkperformance.com/pads/hb118v-560

cheers
Rohan

[Gopherit]

Many Thanks Rohan - I don't know when you get time to work on your cars you answer so many posts!

Unfortunately HB118V.560 not available in the UK and anyway do not meet the (stupid) EU regs that won't allow in pads that work better than their spec which is a +/- 15%. I spoke to both the distributors, Cambridge Motorsport were particularly helpful but reckoned the "V" compound would probably not get hot enough for road use and that none of the Hawk pads were road legal in the UK.
Paul

[rgh0]

Many Thanks Rohan - I don't know when you get time to work on your cars you answer so many posts!

Unfortunately HB118V.560 not available in the UK and anyway do not meet the (stupid) EU regs that won't allow in pads that work better than their spec which is a +/- 15%. I spoke to both the distributors, Cambridge Motorsport were particularly helpful but reckoned the "V" compound would probably not get hot enough for road use and that none of the Hawk pads were road legal in the UK.
Paul

Yes other Hawk race pads like the 9012 blue i use are very abrasive at road temperatures and destroy your disks in a few miles if used on the road. The HPS pads are their street performance compound and work great at lower street temperatures from what i can see. Pity your EU / UK regulations don't allow them (Banning better brakes may make some sense in stability controlled modern cars where they could upset the computer control but in an Elan i have not see a stability control computer recently ?????) , so not stocked in UK. I assume you could order direct from USA suppliers as I do but then questions of legality of use on road versus track which don't apply in Australia.

cheers
Rohan

[Gopherit]

For the record I have now installed the Ferodo FDS2 front pads and done about 250 miles after breaking in. Fit was fine, used stainless steel backing shims, no squeal, liveable dust and progressive braking. Not quite as much initial bite as I would like but better progression proportional to input , not the case with other materials I have tried.

For the moment they will do as a road pad.

Paul

[benymazz]

I'm afraid I don't have anything meaningful to add to this discussion, but that's a fantastic coincidence that of all the cars with similar pads, one of them is the Volvo 240?A bone-stock 1989 240 sedan is the car that I drive when rain or, uh, mechanical difficulties keep me from driving the Elan. It's pretty funny actually, because anyone that's driven a 240 knows that it is the complete opposite of an Elan. Doesn't break down, doesn't burn or leak a drop of anything, but it handles like an aircraft carrier...

300,000 miles on my "antique European touring sedan" and still going strong!