Another victim of the Abingdon track day (that wouldn’t become apparent until the next time I drove it) were the brake pads. The heat put into them (they were smoking at the end of each session) wasn’t handled particularly well and the pads glazed. It’s a shame really, in terms of stopping power they were quite good and certainly didn’t seem to fade. It must have been as they cooled down.

I removed the front pads and sure enough, there was quite the reflection in them.

I’ve sanded them down and they’re beginning to approach normality again, but they will definitely be replaced before the next track day in July. They’re starting to show signs of wear (in terms of thickness, not the obvious) so they’ll only ever be less able to deal with the heat.

They’re the cheap OEM style EBC pads, so it would unfair to criticise them for not standing up to track abuse. From what I can gather, genuine pads are up to the job but another pad recommended is the Mintex 1144. I may well give this a go next.

There is another option, and that is the Flyin Miata Little Big Brake Kit. Essentially, uses the standard size discs but with Wilwood four pot callipers. Doesn’t come in particularly cheap mind. Rally Design also do a version. I’ve got a quote for the Flyin Miata kit so I’ll sit on it a week or so and see if I still think it’s a good idea. Surely overkill in terms of brakes, but those callipers are about 1kg each lighter, and of course, look good.