B-b-ber BREMBOS!
Discussion
Interesting point about the Fezza Mazzanello Dave.....got me wondering whether they would be suitable for track days?
Not that I have Brembo callipers - my brakes are Bremsport, whoever they are, and my Hawk pads are the best part of £100 a set.
Got me thinking.....
Do your proper Brembos slot in from the back, or are they a calliper unbolt job to change?
Not that I have Brembo callipers - my brakes are Bremsport, whoever they are, and my Hawk pads are the best part of £100 a set.
Got me thinking.....
Do your proper Brembos slot in from the back, or are they a calliper unbolt job to change?
My E38 Brembo calipers are the the classic Brembo pin and cross spring arrangement.
Please be aware the Brembo pads I'm buying are not track day pads, they're just a really good quality road compound.
So many people fit track day pads to their standard cast iron mono block Ford calipers to try and get them performing a bit better, this is the wrong approach in my opinion as what they often end up with is poor braking from cold, sequel and excessive dust.
There is no such thing as a perfect pad compound, from road pads to track day pads I'm afraid to say they all come with some form of compromise, this is an unavoidable fact as there's no magic compound in all the world (and at any cost) that's going to give you the advantages of a good road compound yet instantly turn your existing brakes into stoppers that perform better.
If there was such a miracle compound we'd know about it and the OEMs would definitely already be using it!
Don't get me wrong, there are definitely compounds out there that will give you better stopping power and will tolerate more heat, but they will always always come with at least one compromise like shorter disc life, sequel, poor from cold performance and lots of dust... and to be quite honest often you'll suffer all of them.
My approach was simply to fit way better and significantly more powerful brakes in the first place, then just use quality road pads that work from cold, don't cover my wheels in dust and are nice and quiet. This way I enjoy truly better brakes without all the compromises of a track day pad.
Works for me
Please be aware the Brembo pads I'm buying are not track day pads, they're just a really good quality road compound.
So many people fit track day pads to their standard cast iron mono block Ford calipers to try and get them performing a bit better, this is the wrong approach in my opinion as what they often end up with is poor braking from cold, sequel and excessive dust.
There is no such thing as a perfect pad compound, from road pads to track day pads I'm afraid to say they all come with some form of compromise, this is an unavoidable fact as there's no magic compound in all the world (and at any cost) that's going to give you the advantages of a good road compound yet instantly turn your existing brakes into stoppers that perform better.
If there was such a miracle compound we'd know about it and the OEMs would definitely already be using it!
Don't get me wrong, there are definitely compounds out there that will give you better stopping power and will tolerate more heat, but they will always always come with at least one compromise like shorter disc life, sequel, poor from cold performance and lots of dust... and to be quite honest often you'll suffer all of them.
My approach was simply to fit way better and significantly more powerful brakes in the first place, then just use quality road pads that work from cold, don't cover my wheels in dust and are nice and quiet. This way I enjoy truly better brakes without all the compromises of a track day pad.
Works for me
Really glad you have resurrected this topic Dave ......................NOT
............ I still have to locate a pair of 16" Imola's my current 16's have material in the wrong place to accommodate my Brembo conversion that I've had for years already , not that my Granny Cos brakes are wanting but I do like a worthwhile upgrade (plus they look trick) 
and I want to keep the outside looking stock hence why the wheels are to stay and these are going 
............ I still have to locate a pair of 16" Imola's my current 16's have material in the wrong place to accommodate my Brembo conversion that I've had for years already , not that my Granny Cos brakes are wanting but I do like a worthwhile upgrade (plus they look trick) and I want to keep the outside looking stock hence why the wheels are to stay and these are going indigochim said:
Are there any upgrades for the rears that match these? I've done my fronts and now ascetically the rears look poor.
I fitted the Reyland 300mm disc conversion, uses the standard calipers, but moves them out further, so gaining on leverage.I’ve been running front Brembos for 6 years and the Reyland rears for 3 years with no issues on brake balance
All my pads are DS2500
Threads like these really impact my self control and I just want to do everything now now now.
This set seems like a reasonable price for refurbished callipers with the brackets - https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2...
Of course I am also watching the Blistein Tuscan S suspension talked about in other threads.
I have 16 inch Imola’s all round, so this brake upgrade is hugely tempting.
This is supposed to be a gradual, incremental project car, not a BUY IT ALL NOW HAHAHAHA.
I have problems!
This set seems like a reasonable price for refurbished callipers with the brackets - https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2...
Of course I am also watching the Blistein Tuscan S suspension talked about in other threads.
I have 16 inch Imola’s all round, so this brake upgrade is hugely tempting.
This is supposed to be a gradual, incremental project car, not a BUY IT ALL NOW HAHAHAHA.
I have problems!
Monsterlime said:
Threads like these really impact my self control and I just want to do everything now now now.
This set seems like a reasonable price for refurbished callipers with the brackets - https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2...
Of course I am also watching the Blistein Tuscan S suspension talked about in other threads.
I have 16 inch Imola’s all round, so this brake upgrade is hugely tempting.
This is supposed to be a gradual, incremental project car, not a BUY IT ALL NOW HAHAHAHA.
I have problems!
Fully refurbished,, best get them bought This set seems like a reasonable price for refurbished callipers with the brackets - https://rover.ebay.com/rover/0/0/0?mpre=https%3A%2...
Of course I am also watching the Blistein Tuscan S suspension talked about in other threads.
I have 16 inch Imola’s all round, so this brake upgrade is hugely tempting.
This is supposed to be a gradual, incremental project car, not a BUY IT ALL NOW HAHAHAHA.
I have problems!
I’m not helping am I
Great brakes and being designed for high mileage supercars
are a fit and forget item once you get them right. 
This is definitely a fantastic upgrade, anyone sitting on the fence needs to try a Chimaera with these Brembo brakes and they'll soon be pulling the trigger.
It's not like the standard brakes are bad, it's just better is... er,, better
There were a few key contributors who lead the way with this one, I just copied Andav469's & roseytvr's advice, so many thanks to these guys from me
It's not like the standard brakes are bad, it's just better is... er,, better
There were a few key contributors who lead the way with this one, I just copied Andav469's & roseytvr's advice, so many thanks to these guys from me
Actually read up about the E38 Brembo mod from the Cosworth Sierra brigade years back but always assumed they would not fit under 16's because most of those guys are on 17 & 18 alloys , like all big brake conversions progression is the key people always presume they are just going to lock the wheels with minimal pedal effort and f
k up their brake balance not so 
you have more chance of this issue running stock sized brakes and silly race compounds IME all or nothing stopping , something I would not advise for street use like mentioned already stock compound pads are king with the Brembo calipers look at the barge they was originally intended to stop 
k up their brake balance not so you have more chance of this issue running stock sized brakes and silly race compounds IME all or nothing stopping , something I would not advise for street use like mentioned already stock compound pads are king with the Brembo calipers look at the barge they was originally intended to stop Edited by Sardonicus on Saturday 3rd August 12:14
Just resurrecting this, looking to do this conversion shortly while doing the brake reservoir etc as well.
Other than the spacers, is this the right kit?
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ford-Focus-St-rs-5stud-...
Other than the spacers, is this the right kit?
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ford-Focus-St-rs-5stud-...
QBee said:
I stayed with 4 stud wheels and disks and used 324mm Focus RS disks. These fit under my 17 inch wheels, and I believe just fit under 16 inch too. The extra 12mm might make enough difference to stop the 336mm fitting - need more posts.
This ^^^^^ Mine using standard BREMBO road pads and 324mm Brembo Mk1 Ford Focus 4 stud discs.
Hard to say by photo’s but the connecting bracket looks bigger on the ones your showing for 336mm discs, pads look deeper too.
Caprisport sell connecting brackets for all these Ford hub conversions, maybe contact them but these look like the correct Calipers but bigger pads and brackets to suit the larger discs.
I got mine off “Oldphonebloke” on eBay, he usually sells these and these might well be by him. Try contacting seller and asking.
Edited by Classic Chim on Thursday 9th January 18:39
The best thing about these are the simple and quick to remove pad pins,the sort you’ve seen on thousands of O/E cars, they don’t stick, that and the fact they are designed with road use in mind.
Low maintenance item. It’s almost a fit and forget job if you do it right.
Some add spacers to centralise Calipers to disc but I’ve done away with my 1 mm ones so fit bracket direct to Caliper which means it sits 1mm or so closer to disc on one side which is simply neutralised once you’ve pumped brakes a few times.
As I say I did away with using shims, close up so looks extreme but brakes work really good and that offset is simply taken up with the pistons on that side. Really easy to bleed too so one of if not the best O/E quality mod I’ve ever done. For the money a total bargain.
I use 17 rims so I have no issues with wheel clearance so check your inner rim measurements before committing if your using 16’s etc
The quality of these Brembo brakes can not be questioned if they are in good order.
This very caliper and offshoots of its design have been on many a performance car including Porsche and Ferrari, and of course the 7 series Beemer which most of these have come from.
Your in safe hands as they say.
Low maintenance item. It’s almost a fit and forget job if you do it right.
Some add spacers to centralise Calipers to disc but I’ve done away with my 1 mm ones so fit bracket direct to Caliper which means it sits 1mm or so closer to disc on one side which is simply neutralised once you’ve pumped brakes a few times.
As I say I did away with using shims, close up so looks extreme but brakes work really good and that offset is simply taken up with the pistons on that side. Really easy to bleed too so one of if not the best O/E quality mod I’ve ever done. For the money a total bargain.
I use 17 rims so I have no issues with wheel clearance so check your inner rim measurements before committing if your using 16’s etc
The quality of these Brembo brakes can not be questioned if they are in good order.
This very caliper and offshoots of its design have been on many a performance car including Porsche and Ferrari, and of course the 7 series Beemer which most of these have come from.
Your in safe hands as they say.
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