My daily driver gets 2 or so track days a year. At the last track day I noticed my brakes were so hot that they were smoking. I have stock brake system except for Hawk HPS pads.

Should I consider drilled/slotted rotors? Do these really help cool down the brakes? I hear a lot of negative things about them: they break/warp much easier, slotted rotors eat up brake pads, etc

I have a 210hp (260 if I go with stasis ECU and exhaust) and I race in the novice class. Do i even need such high performace slotted/drilled rotors. I hear a lot of people saying these are only for incredibly high performace cars

Is there any kind of inlet setup for an A4 to let air into the front brake area? I feel this kind of setup would work far better at cooling the brakes than any design you put onto a rotor.

Edit: I want to add that my current brake setup works amazingly. Even with the smoke I did not feel any fade. Just wondering if I should be worried by how hot they are getting and if I should upgrade to help cool them down.

 

If they are so hot they are smoking, you should be feeling some fade.

The argument against cross drilled rotors is only for the cheap ones because the holes are drilled, this is why they crack easier. The ones Porsche, Audi, Mercedes, etc... use are cast with the holes in them so the integrity is not compromised.

Hawk HPS really aren't the best track pad, more suited for a quiet daily. You can try upgrading just the pads, but if your doing that you should be getting new rotors anyway. If you feel they work fine tho, there's no need for upgrade.

 

Thanks for the input.

I'm not sure what to say, but nope, didnt feel any fade. and i was definitely punching them pretty hard all throughout. smoke was slight, but still there. didn't notice any of my friends with the same issue.

Do you know of brands that have cast rotors and those that drill. im sure brembo and stoptech dont drill.

Actually Hawk HPS are not a track pad at all. They're a compromise pad. Street performance but will hold up for the occassional track day. i dont want to have to swap pads, id rather just compromise. if by quiet you mean no squealing i guess so.

 

Have you looked into upgrading to a larger rotor using OE components from different Audi's?
When I went from a 288mm rotor to a 312mm, the new rotor had a much larger vent on the hub side that allowed for better cooling.

 

Ya i have actually. I have a thread under "B8". Im talking to Jason from ECStuning and he's telling me about the big brake kit which essentially gets me S4 caliper mounts so I can use S4 size rotors. seems real affordable.

I was turned off though when I was asking who the intended buyer was and he mentioned, 'someone who likes the look of bigger rotors'. i dont care what my rotors look like. i dont care if they are 10", or 12", or 14", or 6". I just want great performing rotors, whatever that size may be. it made me worried that this is more aesthetics than actualy brake performance gain.

i havent found an in-depth explanation of the brake performance gains you achieve just by moving the caliper out. i'll make sure and post an article about this once i find one. still looking.

Edit: oops, i missed the part where you mentioned the cooling. interesting. i'll seriously consider these then. thanks