[E90convert]

Hey all!

When I was at Mid-Ohio, I went through my DS2500 pads very quickly and noticed that the edges of the pad were curling out due to excessive heat. A fellow M2 owner and forum member suggested that I remove the brake disc shields to allow more airflow. Before doing so, I wanted to understand the trade off. I found that these are helpful for directing water and mud away from the brake disc while also protecting the ball joints from the brake disc heat. The water and mud I am not so concerned with, but the heat I am.

I looked for examples of vehicles that did not have any brake disc shields or ones that were not fully covering the disc. A couple examples below:

Ferrari 458: No brake shields. No exposed rubber ball joints
Porsche GT3: Minimal brake shields. No exposed rubber ball joints
Dodge Viper: No brake shield. Exposed rubber ball joints, and complaints of them failing or even catching fire. Aftermarket shield kits are available.

The most interesting of all is the Camaro 1LE vehicles that have only brake shields that cover the closest ball joint (tie rod end). The 6th gen Camaro suspension is similar to the F8x chassis with two lower ball joints on the steering knuckle. See the thread here. https://www.camaro6.com/forums/showthread.php?t=602552

The 2022 standard SS comes with a brake shield that covers both lower ball joints. The track prep manual requires the operator to swap to the lower coverage shields per the Owners manual. Links Below. So I think the best case solution for the M2 is to keep the ball joints covered (or just one). Some good shots of the GM suspension in this video

From this picture of the M2 suspension, compared to the Camaro6 forum post, it looks like the M2 mounting position is directly on the tie rod end. Where the Camaro one is inboard, so it is unlikely the bolt holes will align or be close. The M2 looks like it has a closer tie rod end ball joint as well which is going to be subject to more heat just like the Camaro

Has anyone ever tried to retrofit the GM parts or trim the stock shield so it only covers the tie rod end ball joint? It looks like the GM parts might come close to fitting, and they are low cost enough to try. This would work well with the Porsche control arm air deflectors because it covers the exposed ball joint while allowing air flow from the deflector attached to the control arm.

https://parts.chevrolet.com/product/...=432&year=2018

https://parts.chevrolet.com/product/...023&bac=218363

https://www.chevrolet.com/content/da...ackPREP-R3.pdf Top of page 2

https://cdn.dealereprocess.org/cdn/s...023-camaro.pdf Page 180

[ThreeStripes]

The problem isn’t the dust shields, it’s the pads you’re using. So, the solution is to get a proper track pad like a PFC08/PFC11/DS3.12 etc etc

The DS2500 just isn’t up to the task. Start there and once you’re beyond what a proper track fluid and pad can handle then move on to cooling upgrades.

[E90convert]

Yeah, I certainly need track pads at some point. I’m gonna stick with the DS2500s for now though for a few different reasons.

Heat causes a lot of things to break down faster. Track pads have greater friction at high temps, and it’s gonna generate more heat. I’d like to get some cooling upgrades first. This will help the durability of all the surrounding components whether you have track pads or not!

[ThreeStripes]

Engineers gonna engineer. Good luck.

[TargaM2]

Originally Posted by E90convert

Yeah, I certainly need track pads at some point. I’m gonna stick with the DS2500s for now though for a few different reasons.

Heat causes a lot of things to break down faster. Track pads have greater friction at high temps, and it’s gonna generate more heat. I’d like to get some cooling upgrades first. This will help the durability of all the surrounding components whether you have track pads or not!

I think your heading in the right direction, those of us running track pad compounds + improved fluid & lines will still suffer from heat build up in certain conditions.
There are bolt on ducted shield kits available such as from Speed Eng. A simple replacement/modified shield (such as those you listed) while obviously not as effective as a ducted/piped kit would still be somewhat beneficial without the need for intrusive piping/ducts etc, keep us informed on your progress.

[E90convert]

One of my buddies has a ZL1 1LE and he upgraded the control arm air deflector to the CT5-V version. I’m gonna borrow is original ones and see if they look like I can make them fit. If so, might order this kit from Amazon. This mounts on the upper control arm, where the Porsche ones mount on the lower control arm. You can see 5th gen Camaro owners doing the retrofit here https://www.camaro5.com/forums/showt...=505806&page=3

ACDelco GM Genuine Parts 84433357 Front Brake Cooling Deflector https://a.co/d/ijW9rWi

The Camaro has a brake duct funneling air into this cavity, but I think we can redirect the air from the heat exchanger with this larger duct while also scooping from the air passing under the car.

[E90convert]

Borrowed the stock ZL1 1LE control arm air deflectors from my friend. He upgraded to the Cadillac V deflectors (see below). I got these as a test fit to get an idea if the larger "track" air deflectors that Chevy offers would fit. The conclusions I have is that the Porsche ones would be acceptable, but certainly not optimized. In the Porsche, these GT3 deflectors mount on the lower control arm and can scoop much more air into the brake. Our control arm layout is different than the Porsche and we just won't get as much benefit from using these. Fortunately, the Camaro control arm layout is very similar to the F8x chassis and it is likely we can use their air deflectors. I ordered the "track" kit off Amazon, see link above. It's low cost enough to try it out and drill some holes. I'm going to attempt to return the Porsche ones from Suncoast.

Next up in a couple weeks: Fit the Camaro track air deflectors and attempt to fit the tie rod end heat shield (or cut up my factory brake shields).

[E90convert]

Example of the CT5-V Blackwing upgrades. Once I get the front brakes figured out, I'll try for the rear brake cooling ducts (part numbers listed in video description

[David.m]

Originally Posted by E90convert

Has anyone ever tried to retrofit the GM parts or trim the stock shield so it only covers the tie rod end ball joint? It looks like the GM parts might come close to fitting, and they are low cost enough to try. This would work well with the Porsche control arm air deflectors because it covers the exposed ball joint while allowing air flow from the deflector attached to the control arm.

A while back I removed most of my front shields & installed the GT3 scoops, gave noticeable improvement to fade resistance and reduced rotor cracking.
https://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...&postcount=212

[E90convert]

Originally Posted by David.m

A while back I removed most of my front shields & installed the GT3 scoops, gave noticeable improvement to fade resistance and reduced rotor cracking.
https://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...&postcount=212

Thanks for sharing your experience and glad to hear the Porsche ducts worked. This is almost exactly what I was thinking if the GM brake shield can’t be modified to fit. I would cut out everything except the tie rod end ball joint cover, same as GM does.

I was playing with the Porsche ones today and learned they are almost a direct fit for the rear. I’ll post pics this evening.

[F87source]

IMO this is a better kit:

https://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1895176


It is designed specifically for the F8X chassis so it fits perfectly, and it ducts air directly into the rotor hat via the brake shield - so there is no chance of air getting on the rotor face to cause uneven heating.

[E90convert]

Originally Posted by F87source

IMO this is a better kit:

https://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh....php?t=1895176


It is designed specifically for the F8X chassis so it fits perfectly, and it ducts air directly into the rotor hat via the brake shield - so there is no chance of air getting on the rotor face to cause uneven heating.

What a great kit!

[E90convert]

I was hunting around the "DIY Brake Ducts" thread and found this gem. https://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...&postcount=163

It inspired me to try them on the rear of my M2 and, wow, it's pretty much a perfect fit! I think these will do nicely to stay on the rear with some minor trimming and zip ties. The rear brakes run far cooler on track than the front, so I am less inclined to trim brake shield at this point. I think just pumping some air into the cavity is going to be enough to keep things cooler and increase the service life of many components.

[F87source]

Originally Posted by E90convert

What a great kit!

Yup! And it's designed and sold by a fellow engineer and m2 owner Westersund

[F87source]

Originally Posted by E90convert

I was hunting around the "DIY Brake Ducts" thread and found this gem. https://f87.bimmerpost.com/forums/sh...&postcount=163

It inspired me to try them on the rear of my M2 and, wow, it's pretty much a perfect fit! I think these will do nicely to stay on the rear with some minor trimming and zip ties. The rear brakes run far cooler on track than the front, so I am less inclined to trim brake shield at this point. I think just pumping some air into the cavity is going to be enough to keep things cooler and increase the service life of many components.

Iirc westersund was working on a rear kit for us m2 owners, but it's a bit more difficult because the rear brakes house the parking brake assembly and ideally that shouldn't get to wet or be exposed to the elements.

[E90convert]

Parts came in! The first 5 pictures are with the suspension in full rebound, the rest are with the vehicle on the ground. At first, the scoop seems very close to the ground, however, it looks like this is normal. I am measuring 3 1/16" ground clearance on the M2. My friend has the CT5-V BW version on his ZL1 1LE and it is measuring 2.5" of ground clearance with no problems. Must be more cautious with daily driving, and I would not want to keep these on for any winter use. The tie rod end cover seems like it will fit with a new hole drilled to align with the M2 mounting locations.

These seem reasonably effective at channeling airflow to the brake cavity from the ground and the heat exchanger. The M2C car will have even more cooling because of the ducting going from the front grill into the wheel well, very similar to what is done on all the Camaros. Combined with a low-coverage brake shield, I am expecting improved brake cooling. I will be installing these (and the GT3 deflectors in the rear) in the next few weeks to prepare for a 3-day weekend with PCA at Grattan Raceway. The 130mph+ front straight into a 60 mph turn should be a decent proving ground to compare to my excessive pad wear at Mid-Ohio. I'll have new front pads for Grattan of the same compound.

I'll share installation photos.

[E90convert]

More pictures

[ThreeStripes]

Originally Posted by E90convert

The 130mph+ front straight into a 60 mph turn should be a decent proving ground to compare to my excessive pad wear at Mid-Ohio. I'll have new front pads for Grattan of the same compound.

I don’t expect the DS2500 to fair much better this go considering the increased entry speeds into brake zones but wish ya luck. Let us know what if any improvements this brings. If nothing else the rotors may see some extra life.

[TargaM2]

Interested to see your results.
The ‘speed engineering’ kit is by far the best I’ve seen, I like that it’s designed specifically for the OG M2 & is as close to an oem pnp install as possible.

[E90convert]

I like the speed engineering kit as well. Seems like a quick install, no ground clearance risks, and provides and effective cooling solution. I suspect it will be better than what the Camaro kit would do. I’m mindful of the 12x price difference. Im willing to trial to see if I can get this $40 Camaro kit to be effective before jumping into an actual dedicated kit like the two mentioned in this post.

[ZM2]

Running the DS2500 on track can be dangerous. I left them on as my street pad once when I was at WGI bc I thought it’d be fine in 35F weather and while there was snow on the track.

By the end of the session, a tire wide dry line formed going into the bus stop and that’s all that was needed to crack one of my front DS2500s causing loss of some breaking and chewing up one of the rotors.

Heck, I could fade those pads with hard backroad driving. Once you really start using the brakes, you’re going to have real issues. I just wouldn’t use the DS2500 on track, period.

As ThreeStripes said, PFC08/PFC11/DS3.12 is the way to go.

[Track/S]

Originally Posted by E90convert

I like the speed engineering kit as well. Seems like a quick install, no ground clearance risks, and provides and effective cooling solution. I suspect it will be better than what the Camaro kit would do. I’m mindful of the 12x price difference. Im willing to trial to see if I can get this $40 Camaro kit to be effective before jumping into an actual dedicated kit like the two mentioned in this post.

You can print them if you have a 3D printer like I did, it is very cheap.