after reading through this thread, I still cannot get a good grasp of the pads I should eventually change mine to. i intend my driving to be aggresive street driving with very light track duty. i also plan to pick up the RA 2 piece rotors.

do i need anything other than the stock pads?

I like those RA 2 piecers myself, but $1700 is steep and I prolly wont get enough track use to justify them...

As for the pads, I've seen Proj. Mu getting props...

Has anyone used StopTech Green / Yellow / Red / Blue - Stuffs??

I'm surprised at how little EBC pads are spoken of here since they are very well regarded. Has anyone run the Redstuff/Yellowstuff pads on a Z? I had Redstuff pads on my last car and along with some high temp fluid, those brakes would not give up and just got better the harder you used them.

I'm running the RA 2 floating rotors for both street and track; however, I do not use the same pads for both. The OEM or the Hawk HPS for street are good (I really believe the OEM pad is better). Carbotech XP10/XP8 are great for light to medium track but are not advisable for street (dust, noise and performance). The RA rotors perform as well as Scott Bush says they will and are usable on the the daily driver if you don't mind the sound of tin cans being pulled behind you car. My son said the brakes (rotor/pad) on the track are awsome and not to screw with them. He suggested a couple of suspension tweaks. He is an instructor as well as SCCA and NASA certified. The question of the price of the RA floating rotors becomes a question of what you want. The RA's allow you to use your Akebono calipers without issues in my opinon, and they perform very well. I cannot address the situation of "racing" like RCZ, Mike, Spearfish and others as I will not be going there.

Just some random information on the stock pads: Motor Fan Illustrated, a very nice Japanese car magazine, had an indepth article comparing the Z33 and Z34. One of the items discussed where the brakes. According to the magazine the stock pads on the Z34 in Europe are of a more aggressive compound then those used in Japan and here in the US. So we get the less dusty, cruising oriented pads, Europe gets the dusty but more
Racy pads. I might have to buy a set of pads in Europe next time I go there to try this out...

Is that noise coming from both front and rear sets, or just the rear?

regarding carbotech bobcats I can confirm they squeal quite significantly - they were ok when I first got them but after a couple of track days they're extremely noisy especially at slower speeds. You can also get them to fade with consecutive hot laps

Will be swapping to endless Mx72's next month

Interesting -- do you have a part number? Don't see why we couldn't order the Euro pads in the US if we wanted to.

The front and rear rotors are of the same design, so they all make noise.
I would think all two piece floating rotors will rattle. I got use to this and now it's just background noise.

For dedicated racing brakes, yes, they will rattle. For 2-piece rotors that also get used on the street, there are several techniques that could (and should) be used to eliminate 90-100% of the rattle. There is no reason to put up with clanking rotors for street driving, even if you like to enjoy the occasional track day.

What techniques? Do tell.

Buy the AP two piece rotors instead?? :happydance:

J/K! also interested in what can be done to minimize the noise.

Float springs have been around for quite some time, just like those found on the R35 GT-R. A better approach for decoupled rotor assemblies is AP Racing's patented strap drive system, if it can be justified. This system provides all the benefits of a floating system without the problems of rattling, debris on the bobbins, etc. There are no moving parts in a strap drive assembly, so no issues with brake dust or any other gunk. No, these are not available for the 370Z at this time, but with enough serious interest a solution could be looked at...

Strap Drive Disc Assembly

http://stillen.com/images/upload/strap_drives_1200.jpg

The reality is that 2-piece floating rotors are not advantageous for 99.9% (or more) of drivers that use their cars on the street. Let's just say if you trailer your car to the track, you MAY be a candidate for a full-floating setup. For most part, 2-piece bolted disc assemblies (non-floating) will have most of the advantages people are looking for with less of the drawbacks.

Chris,
I was hoping for an all inclusive solution for the noisy floating rotor genre. The purchase of another (when available?) rotor set as a solution becomes a bit pricey.

Not sure what you are asking here. If you already have a set of full floating rotors, I would need to see details to understand if they were capable of being modified to accept one of the anti-rattle solutions. There is no generic fix as the parts must all work together properly.