987.1 brake advice needed

I am the proud new owner of a 2006 Cayman S 3.4 liter 6-speed which appears to be 100% stock with 63K miles on the odometer. It did have a new clutch installed at 53K. I plan to drive it for leisure and perhaps five or six days per year on the track. Water pump bearing failure occurred enroute from the seller’s house to mine. While it was up on the lift, the mechanic made numerous recommendations to make it trackworthy. Since there’s not much left on the rotors (they are the originals I think), I was keen to hear his opinions on brake upgrades. He strongly prefers slotted rotors over drilled. Stoptech is his go to brand. Two piece rotors are expensive and it appears Stoptech no longer makes rotors compatible with the OEM calipers, which I don’t intend to change. Options under consideration at the moment: Zimmermann drilled Pagid drilled Sebro slotted Girodisc slotted 2-piece The first three options are essentially the same cost. The Girodisc is about double. I will install myself, so my only financial cost is the parts. I am not certain how long I will keep the car (I really wanted a 911 , but those are well out of my budget at the moment). So. I don’t want to overspend on upgrades that cannot be recouped if I decide to trade up. I would love to hear thoughts from anyone with experience in this area.

Most rotors are now made in China. The Zimmermanns I've seen are, and it wouldn't surprise me if Pagid and Sebro are. Rotors are low-tech casting. I would be quite surprised if there is any wear or performance difference between those 3 - I'm guessing the Zimmermann will be the least expensive. In my experience - the Chinese Zimmermanns seem to work just fine. Since you're considering swapping to a 911 if one comes along - the less expensive rotors might make sense if they can hold up to track use - and perhaps someone who does that can comment... Let us know what you decide to do..

The Girodiscs are certainly better but perhaps overkill for only a few track days per year. I’ve used slotted Sebros with good results. If you track the car, slotted is the way to go as you avoid cracks between the holes that you get with cross drilled.

I just did the brakes on my 2006 Cayman 987.1 . I used SWH Performance rotors from Pelican Parts . They were $170 each. I used Porsche pads (from Suncoast ). Note: The calipers have damping shims that have cylindrical plugs that fit into the caliper pucks. On one side they were rusted hopelessly in place. I could not remove them on two of the pucks. There is a sheet metal shim that attaches to the inserts - with a small screw. The sheet metal ripped through the screw, leaving no way to put any pull on the insert. I ended up replacing the caliper with a used one from Redline Auto - they had one with the same mileage as my car. Everything is back together working fine. A mechanic with more experience may have a way to pop out the pucks, remove the inserts and rebuild the caliper. Porsche Cayman Disc Brake Pad Shim Parts | FCP Euro Porsche Cayman Disc Brake Pad Shim parts online. Buy OEM & Genuine parts with a Lifetime Warranty, Free Shipping and Unlimited 365 Day Returns. www.fcpeuro.com

I decided the best compromise is a Sebro kit including slotted rotors and Ferodo Racing DS2500 pads. The front and rear kits are cost effective (similar to OE replacements and half the price of Girodisc). They do include new set screws, wear sensors, and spring clips with retaining pins, but no brake pad shims or caliper bolts. Going a little bit more granular... Are there any thoughts on the following? One of the YouTube videos I watched suggests that the caliper bolts be replaced, but others do not. I don't see the point in replacing bolts whose torque spec is not that high. Several YouTubers shorted out the wear sensors instead of replacing them. I don't really see any downside to keeping this feature alive (especially since the kit includes what is needed). Am I missing something here? No one seems to replace the other hardware associated with the calipers, but since they are included in the kit, I suppose there's no reason not to. Right? My hope is to get all this done in the next couple weeks, validate the install in some daily driving, then hit the track at the end of May.

Sounds great! Why not use the sensors? They are cheap and would keep you from trashing the rotors. I'd use the new hardware too. My bolts looked good but I had already ordered new ones. I used blue Loctite and torqued to 63 ft-lbs. If your shims are stuck - I'd stop and get professional help. 👍

Zimmerman and medium Hawk pads. I had a shop do mine as I took drivers side apart and got the metal backers all bent up. So took it to the shop. They did an excellent job, esp the wires to the wear indicators which I use. The shop added metal backers sourced from somewhere. The only issue is the brake dust on my black chrome Signature SV-104 wheels. I should have ordered ceramic material that does not coat the wheel after every use. Hawk pads do squeal a little and they stop better than OEM pads. The Zimmerman rotors look really great under the Signature Black Chrome forged wheels. You can clearly see the clean metal rotors. Even from a distance pictures show the clean rotors in action shots. I don't think you are going to cause brake rotor cracks with 3 track days a year. Just wash them up with wheel cleaner and you should be good to go. I use engine braking a lot so that helps keep the rotors clean.

The Zimmerman rotors are available with full plating - meaning the vent part in the middle of the rotor surfaces isn't going to rust up and look ugly. The hub also seems to be holding back rust better than the stock rotor did. Usually, I paint the hub before installing the rotor (the outside/visible part), but I didn't bother with the Zimmermans, and no rust so far.

What kind of paint do you use on the hub?

I feel the same for no black paint on my Zimmerman rotor hubs. No rust so far but they look very clean through the Signature SV-104 wheels. After washing the wheels and rotors, then a drying drive around the neighborhood, I usually had a rust circle on the wheel barrels. No rust circle as dellenberger explained as Zimmerman coats the inner cooling airway so no rust is found to deposit on my Black Chrome wheel barrel surface.

Having gone through several sets of OEM Porsche rotors due to cracking at the holes due to track use, I now use the Sebro slotted on my 981 , and haven't looked back. You get free replacements for life (minus the cost to ship them back) from FCPeuro . I use them with Pagid RSL-29 pads, which are awesome on the track and last a long time. I swap back to street pads between track outings. Wade

What is the downside to using the Pagid RSL-29 pads full time?

Wade, For street use, how does that work out? How much squealing as you creep along the freeway at 5-10 mph.

The squealing is pretty bad, so I swap back to street pads. I've got it down to about a 45 minute job to swap all 4 corners on my 981 . I have a different set of track wheels/ tires , so I have to pull those off anyway, then you're halfway there. The rear drop-ins literally take more time to remove and reinstall the wheels than it does to swap the pads. It takes a little bit longer on the front, but I have studs for the front calipers (which are not drop-ins) so it's not bad. I found if you swap one pad at a time in the front it goes much quicker than pulling both because it keeps the anti-rattle clip compressed.

IMO, just throw some EBC Bluestuff NDX pads on with stock rotors/calipers and flush the fluid for your preferred performance fluid. The stock brakes are exceptionally capable with good pads. If you track it enough to crack your stock drilled rotors, then you should upgrade. Don't drop money on fancy brakes before you get wider wheels and stickier tires too. With bluestuff NDX pads, you'll hit ABS because of your tires unless you're on something sticky. (edited for clarity)

Any ideas on the best street ceramic pad that does not leave much on the black wheel barrels. Currently, I'm using Hawk medium pads that stop great but leave way too much brake dust on the wheels. I would even be in the market for 987.1 PCCB if they were available as my next door neighbor has them on his 2021 Turbo. He says his wheels stay incredibility clean.

@Apex1 I know someone with a 997.1 who has the optional PCCB. I wonder if the 987.1 and 997.1 have interchangeable brakes?

@Apex1 I have read good things about Akebono ceramics. There was a post here somewhere about that being a really good option, and doesn't degrade performance. I have a friend who used them recently on his Benz and he's very happy with them. He's very particular about clean cars, so this was a great thing for him. I just bought a set of Akebonos for my front brakes, because the Textars I have on there now have turned my silver wheels to reddish brown... it's crazy. Granted, I'm not particular about keeping the car clean, but these are crazy dirty. What's more, the dust has also spread down the side of the car... I almost have a two-tone paint job on the car now. It's crazy. Note, on my 987.2, the front pads fit, but the sensors won't and the normally specced hardware doesn't fit. This thread details the search for 987.2: https://www.planet-9.com/threads/ceramic-front-pads-for-987-2.194953/page-2#post-1834105 but it also has great info for 987.1... I think there you can just get the kit off the shelf without any tricks. EDIT: Here's a second post by that same user with some pics - the Akebonos were very good... https://www.planet-9.com/threads/ceramic-front-pads-for-987-2.194953/page-2#post-1839601

Greg, not sure if they would fit. They have 6 pistons in the front and s different master cylinder . A lot of the 911 crowd take the carbon disks off and use steel ones for the street as replacements disks are very expensive.

The ceramic disks are horribly expensive - but according to a friendly Porsche mechanic - you can't wear them out. They can be damaged from impacts (like someone dropping a wheel on the edge of one during a tire change), but they don't seem to noticeably wear. He's seen ones with well over 100k on them that still measure new spec.. What's the thinking behind the people swapping them out? And the ones I'd love to try are the new surface-coated ones - but they haven't released retrofit ones for the 987 series. We could always hope though..

PCCBs can last for 100K miles easily when not tracked. Maybe a lot more depending on use. These are on my 2006 Cayman S with 105K kms and measurements show that they are probably at around 50%. We haven't weighted them though which is the right way to assess carbon ceramics. Being super ocd with the car's condition and as an amateur detailer, it always amazes me how clean the wheels remain and in what great overall condition after 19 years.

How do I get a set of 4 with the rotor , pads, caliper and master cylinder ? At least you can visually see that these calipers and rotors are PCCB 's. Other PCCB owners agree with the poster comments above (Stefan147).

Unfortunately it's not just that. My understanding is that also compatible wheel hubs are needed. If I'm not mistaken these hubs come from 996GT3/997TT.

I guess I just need to deal with Ceramic brake pads and call it a day. Thank you Stefan as those hubs maybe hard to source. That extra piston on each side of the caliper certainly makes a visual difference through the wheel. My next door neighbor said he paid $20k extra for the mag wheels with white barrels and PCCB ;s on his 2021 turbo. Almost no dust on those wheels. Not sure I like the white barrels though. Stefan, you should take a few pictures of your car in action on a country road in a corner to showcase the wheels and brake calipers. We have those new guys that want to post their recent buy's as a showcase, Your's would really be special as we need to buy the car not the PCCB parts.

I installed the new Sebro rotors and Ferodo pads (FRP3051H) and ran into only one snag: one brake pad shim on the front left could not be freed from the caliper pistons. Brakes work fine, but there is a bit of squeaking which seems to be predominantly from the front left. I plan to remove both front calipers and replace the shims. For the shim that is stuck, I suspect this will require removing the pistons, as penetrating lubricants were not sufficient to get it free before. At that point, replacing the seals seems wise. What pitfalls are there in doing this?

For those interested, I finally got the non-app-specific Akebonos installed on the front of my 987.2 (2010). Check out my thread and pictures here: https://www.planet-9.com/threads/ak...-non-s-2010-front-wheels-and-or-a-pictorial-on-how-to-just-replace-pads.255829/