Brake pad shim question for those who use 996 on track and street

I've been participating in track events with Porsches for over ten years, and I've been in the habit of swapping out track brake pads for street brake pads. Put the track pads in the car before the event, put the street pads in after the event. If I'm doing a few track events in succession, maybe leave the track pads in. I bought a 996 a year ago, and it is now doing double duty as a street and track car. My issue is that I've found that the anti-squeal shims prevent me from removing pads without first removing the calipers. I really don't want to have to remove calipers (and replace caliper bolts) every time I swap brake pads. I guess one alternative is to simply not use the shims at all. Any idea how bad the noise will be with street pads and no shims? Would it be OK to use the anti-squeal "goop" that can be put on the backs of the pads?

No need to remove calipers. You need to push the caliper pistons back in. Get a large channel lock pliers and some cardboard. Take the channel lock and straddle the brake pad and the caliper face. Put a small folded up piece cardboard on the caliper face so the channel lock is not directly on the caliper face. Squeeze the channel lock, the pistons retract and the pad falls out. Take the cap off of the brake fluid resoviour before you do this......and even using a turkey baster to draw some out. Plop the street pads or track pads in and top off the brake fluid. Works like a charm.

Tried that. The problem I have is that the shims/dampers (see picture above) adhere rather strongly to the brake pads. The cylindrical parts of those shims seat into the calipers, and no matter how much you squeeze, there is not enough space to pull out the pads along with those shims. If the shims are stuck to the brake pads, you can't pull them out without taking the caliper off the rotor.

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Now I understand.....I used a thin jimmy bar break the bond from my pad and shim. All was good.

I use no shims on mine right now and I haven't for about 3 years - the car is my daily driver and sees some track time as well. If you try to use track pads on the street without shims you will hate yourself for even trying. But if you use no shims and street pads with plenty of goop the brakes will still be very quiet. The benefit to no shims is that it literally takes you longer to remove your wheels than it does to replace the pads on your car when those things are gone. I don't miss them at all.

The shims are a great way to increase the cost of your brake job - I haven't found any other good use for them. I tried them ONCE - when I had some god-awful-loud ceramic pads on the car - and they didn't help much. If you use loud pads, they're going to be loud with or without the shims. With OEM pads and no shims, my car seldom squeaks.

I ditched them years ago...I may consider adding some flat shims to my Cayman just for the sake of minimizing heat to the pistons. Flat shims solve the problem of removal...

Reviving an old thread. I did a brake job last weekend without installing the shims and the brakes are as quiet as ever. 3 benefits I found without the shims : 1. For those that track the car, we all now that street pads are not for the track and vice versa track pads will play havoc on the street when its cold and you want to stop the car immediately. So changing pads for track and street makes a world of difference because it is so much easier. 2. With the shims and adhesives it does have a cushioning effect. Without the shims, you have a more direct progressive braking that is more connected when you trail brake. Some people might doubt that such a small difference has such an effect should understand that the pads only need about a micron clearance from the rotor when you release the brake pedal and that with the shim and adhesive cushioning the pads will require that space to be taken up prior to having any braking actions. That is what I mean when no shims are used, the feel on the pedal is more direct and progressive. Anyway, prior to the brake job, I never like the longer/softer brake pedal. Now it makes a world of difference without the shims. People might speculate that the longer/softer brake pedal was due to air in the system. This is not the case because I bled the system even with conjunction with activating the ABS cycle from the Durametrc and the brake pedal has always have long travels with the brake shims. 3. I also save quite a bit without having to buy those shims, which are not cheap.

No shims and probably 30k miles. No difference whatsoever. I'll never put those back on. (I tossed them)

metal spatula between shim plate and pads to separate.

Completely agree! I removed the shims from my car a couple years and many sets of pads ago, and haven't looked back. Changing all 8 brake pads on the car is a leisurely 20-minute task. My OE pads do not squeal on the street either, so if the main purposed of the shims is noise control, they aren't needed.

No shims/dampers have been on my 996 in years. Ferodo pads and minimal squeal on the street.

No shims here either. Textar pads and no problem with noise. It makes for quick brake jobs...

Seems like the general agreement is not to use those shims. I wonder why Porsche uses the shims. Personally I feel the shims add a layer of cushioning effect on the brake pedal. If the shims help, then perhaps the more shims added the better the dampening effect. I just don't see the benefit of the shims other than another layer of complexity that is not needed.

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When you are the original owner of a $100k car, you expect it to be quiet when you roll into the country club. $50 of shims is a small price to pay for this benefit. By the time you get to owner 3 or 6, who is buying a $15-25k car, you have different expectations.

When I replaced my front brake pads I found that the shims had rusted into the pistons and were totally stuck. I ended up having to get new pistons - and since you can't buy just the piston from Porsche, I opted for stainless steel pistons from Racing Brake. They're awesome, and since they're stainless they are able to be thinner walled than stock. Well, as a result the shims/dampers don't fit in them, so I left them out. No difference. At. All. I haven't noticed any more (or less) squealing from the brakes. Cheers Charlie

One piece of empirical data I have is from my brake pad change after I purchased the car. Three of the calipers had the shims. One did not. The brake pads were well worn and had been on the car for a couple of years. The pads were all evenly worn and I could not detect a difference in performance or noise. One thing I did notice is that the rubber seals on the pistons were in obviously better condition on the three calipers that had the shims. There was clearly more heat transfer to the piston and seals in the caliper that did not have the shims. Based on that observation, I purchased a set of shims and installed them with the new pads.

Old thread, but I purchased these OEM shims and just used some acetone to remove the sticky goo from the pad-facing side before installing them. The shims stay inside the pistons on the caliper and the pads (Pagid yellow, typically noisy) slide in and out quickly. Used a touch of hi-temp brake grease on the backs of the pads as well for good measure.