Options for Brakes & Tyres on an XJR with Brembo's

[Bacon_VII]

Hi all,

I have an XJR (100) with the Brembo brake upgrade, but have noticed recently that I have a warped brake disc.

I just wondered if anyone has an opinion on replacement discs and pads. I'm happy to stick with genuine Brembos, but wondered if there are any better/cheaper alternatives ? Do any of you have any experience with the Rossini discs and pads, or other brands ?

Also, I'm in need of a full set of tyres, again any advice welcomed. I used to rate the Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3's on my old Mundano ST200, and an looking for something of similar performance for the Jag - I'm thinking Toyos - anyone tried these ?

Thanks in advance of any replies.

[NormanD]

Bacon_VII said:

Hi all,

I have an XJR (100) with the Brembo brake upgrade, but have noticed recently that I have a warped brake disc.

I just wondered if anyone has an opinion on replacement discs and pads. I'm happy to stick with genuine Brembos, but wondered if there are any better/cheaper alternatives ? Do any of you have any experience with the Rossini discs and pads, or other brands ?

Also, I'm in need of a full set of tyres, again any advice welcomed. I used to rate the Goodyear Eagle F1 GSD3's on my old Mundano ST200, and an looking for something of similar performance for the Jag - I'm thinking Toyos - anyone tried these ?

Thanks in advance of any replies.

I have an XKR with Brembo's although I do have another front disk, not sure what but my machanic will know
Give him a ring, Tom at TLJaguar on 0118-973-7779 Just allong the M3 come off at J5
Have not had any problems. I do run on Ferrodo DS2500 pads as I am heavy on the brakes

Regarding Tyres, I use Toyo T1-Rs great tyres, they keep me on the BLACK stuf so can't be bad

Edited by NormanD on Wednesday 2nd September 11:57

[Bacon_VII]

NormanD,

Many thanks for the info - it seems that your mechanic is just down the road from me - I'll give him a ring.

Thanks.

[G_T]

Would you not consider simply giving the brake disc a good rub with wet and dry before you right it off and pay for expensive brembo discs?

I'm don't think it's actually possible to actually "warp" a disc. I'm of the opinion it's just an excuse made by unintelligble mechanics to try and make you buy a new one.

Read this link before you commit to spending your money;

http://www.stoptech.com/tech_info/wp_warped_braked...

I'm also fairly certain you can also get the discs skimmed in a machine shop to save a few bob.

ETA:

For a balanced budget/performance tyre my preference is Avon ZZ3s. Very good grip both wet and dry and harder wearing than the T1Rs. Certainly good value in my opinion. Massive improvement over the P6000's as well!

Edited by G_T on Wednesday 2nd September 14:15

[varsas]

I had vibration under braking on my 328 after a few sessions at a trackday at donnington. I too had heard that warped brakes discs were a misconception but, try as I might I could not 'clean' the discs. The problem only ever got worse. In the end I changed the discs/pads and all has been well since. When I took the old discs off they appeared smooth and uniformly surfaced. They also weighed about half as much as the (supposedly standard, OEM) discs I replaced them with.

If they were not warped, and just 'dirty' I couldn't clean them. Also I would suggest that while it might not be possible to warp good quality discs; maybe, just maybe, the ones on my car were badly made and did in fact warp.

To be honest if you are having problems with the discs on your car giving vibration under braking something is wrong. My track day was runined (that's 5 hours driving plus £200 for the day + petrol + a day off work) by the old brakes. For what it cost to change them (less then £200) I'd rather swap them then clean them.

I'm quite interested in peoples opinions of tyres for the XJR. I'm not hugely impressed with the pirelli's on my XJR, despite being very happy with the P7's on the 328 and the p6000's on my old XJ-S.

Edited by varsas on Wednesday 2nd September 19:49

[G_T]

Varsas,

Not sure what your exact problem with the tyres is but if it's a handling/tramlining issue have you tried off setting the tread width?

I'm running 235s front, 255 rear and it's made a massive difference (saved over a hundred quid as well!). The tramlining has all but dissapeared and the front end feels far more responsive under hard corning but to be honest the latter could be because the old tyres were ste!

[varsas]

Tramlining is not too much of an issue, I dropped the pressures to the lowest limit Jaguar recommend and it's pretty good now, although I still wouldn't mind a bit more comfort I can live with it as the dry weather grip is very good. Turn in etc is also acceptable, given the size/weight of the car.

It's wet weather/bumpy road performance that concerns me, it's an utter handful. I've been quite sideways in the wet at fairly modest speeds, with the traction control on.... also there's a NSL B road near work I enjoy throwing the 328 down but am actually scared of in the XJR, I gave up trying to drive it quickly in that car when I saw the traction control light come on at 60+mph exiting a not-very-tight corner.....

of course it is possible the car is just to powerful for those conditions...or i'm driving it poorly. Also my tyres are fairly worn which won't help.

[G_T]

Sounds like you're just needing new tyres to me.

It's a big heavy car so it's going to understeer like a mother if the front tyres are goosed and putting 370 bhp though shagged rears is never good either so you there's your oversteer and TC light.

If your tread is fine what about having a look at the DOT code for the age of them? They could be aged and ready for the bin. P6000s are ste but I would have thought circa 2 ton of metal would have meant they keep their grip better than you describe despite squidgey sidewalls.

Consider off setting them if you replace them though! It's what Jaguar do nowadays and I won't be going back to 255's all around. Lane 1 of the M6 was an utter nightmare for tramlining.

[varsas]

Thanks, I'll definitely consider it. Usually the first thing I do when I buy a car is swap the tyres out, I didn't do it this time as they are the correct Pirelli Pzero, and are okish on tread but maybe I should go ahead and do it anyway. Poor tyres can ruin a car. I don't know how the previous owner (it was 1 owner) of my BMW drove it with the fuel saver firestones it had on it when I brought it, it was horrible. What's the point of having a nicely balanced car with a lusty straight6 engine and then hobbling it like that....very odd.

My little brother recently brought a '95 Toyota Corolla with 13000 miles on it. According to the date code the tyres were the original ones that came with the car. After driving it to work to test it out I wouldn't let him drive it until they had been changed, never has 80bhp been so scary! The worst part was the very odd noises they made when negotiating roundabouts....

[G_T]

@ 14 year old tyres. Fantastic. Effectively carved out of wood then?

I guess it's very easy to see tyres as another expensive consumable but in reality no one get's the most out of any performance car without a decent set.

On balance though, decent 255/40/18Rs are bloody expensive. However I do think budget tyres on anything with decent power, particularly RWD is bad place to to try and save a few bob. Even if you're not interested in driving it "properly".

I'm personally happy with my compromise driving Avon ZZ3s. The car handles well enough, the wear rate is low and the initial purchase price is reasonable. Infact I got my front 235s for £50 a corner, although that was an exceptional bargain. But I suspect my running budget is probably considerably less than most XJR owners.

I must confess to having 4 ditch finders on the shopping car though...

[pzero64]

I was told that the choice on the 19 inch tyres was fairly restricted, so went for Pirelli Pzero’s (as they were offered). Don’t know if this info about restricted choice is true, but would be interested in anyone else’s input.

Also, Jag main dealer noted that my disks where wearing (and would soon need changing), but independent said they had a few more miles in them! Still okay now after a few more miles. I have noted on here that some of the cheaper options out there were not as good as the original Brembo replacements.

Re: tram lining - as I enter the A14 east off the A140, I may as well kiss goodbye to control of the car for a few seconds as the ruts caused by the HGV’s is catastrophic. How do you beat this?