Discussion
Hi gents
i would like some advice on front brakes please i am not really happy with the brakes on my 280i it passed the mot but the brakes seem quite poor to me compared to a modern car there doesn't seem to be a lot of bite to me i have rebuilt the front calipers as they were sticking when i got the car due to lack of use and all of the old brake fluid in the whole system has been replaced and there seems to be no air in the system . The MOT guy told me that the front brakes were only just within the tolerances for balance i was considering fitting grooved disks and maybe mintex or greenstuff pads to see if that improves things a bit without spending megabucks on fourpot calipers and vented disk sets as the car is only used on the road another question is are the disks the same as a cortina disks, as there are sets being sold with grooved disks and mintex pads at a reasonable price. I just wonder if anybody has tried this any advice would be appreciated
cheers Rob
i would like some advice on front brakes please i am not really happy with the brakes on my 280i it passed the mot but the brakes seem quite poor to me compared to a modern car there doesn't seem to be a lot of bite to me i have rebuilt the front calipers as they were sticking when i got the car due to lack of use and all of the old brake fluid in the whole system has been replaced and there seems to be no air in the system . The MOT guy told me that the front brakes were only just within the tolerances for balance i was considering fitting grooved disks and maybe mintex or greenstuff pads to see if that improves things a bit without spending megabucks on fourpot calipers and vented disk sets as the car is only used on the road another question is are the disks the same as a cortina disks, as there are sets being sold with grooved disks and mintex pads at a reasonable price. I just wonder if anybody has tried this any advice would be appreciated
cheers Rob
Robert ody said:
Hi gents
i would like some advice on front brakes please i am not really happy with the brakes on my 280i it passed the mot but the brakes seem quite poor to me compared to a modern car there doesn't seem to be a lot of bite to me i have rebuilt the front calipers as they were sticking when i got the car due to lack of use and all of the old brake fluid in the whole system has been replaced and there seems to be no air in the system . The MOT guy told me that the front brakes were only just within the tolerances for balance i was considering fitting grooved disks and maybe mintex or greenstuff pads to see if that improves things a bit without spending megabucks on fourpot calipers and vented disk sets as the car is only used on the road another question is are the disks the same as a cortina disks, as there are sets being sold with grooved disks and mintex pads at a reasonable price. I just wonder if anybody has tried this any advice would be appreciated
cheers Rob
Hi Rob, on my 350i I did swap pads for Mintex 1144's and they were excellent with great bite and using standard discs. Only issue with the Mintex units is that you do need plenty of copperslip on the back of them to stop them squealing. I'd try these first and see how you get on.i would like some advice on front brakes please i am not really happy with the brakes on my 280i it passed the mot but the brakes seem quite poor to me compared to a modern car there doesn't seem to be a lot of bite to me i have rebuilt the front calipers as they were sticking when i got the car due to lack of use and all of the old brake fluid in the whole system has been replaced and there seems to be no air in the system . The MOT guy told me that the front brakes were only just within the tolerances for balance i was considering fitting grooved disks and maybe mintex or greenstuff pads to see if that improves things a bit without spending megabucks on fourpot calipers and vented disk sets as the car is only used on the road another question is are the disks the same as a cortina disks, as there are sets being sold with grooved disks and mintex pads at a reasonable price. I just wonder if anybody has tried this any advice would be appreciated
cheers Rob
The next step I took was a full HiSpec brake upgrade - not cheap but the kit certainly brings the Wedge up to modern day standards with constant brake pressure and no fade whatsoever on mine, no matter how hard and long I try braking.
Not being clever, but in what way are they 'no good' ?
Assuming your brakes are OK (e.g not partly seized), it should stop pretty quick when you stamp on the pedal. Those same calipers
were used on Cortinas, Granadas, Triumph 2000/2500, TR6, and so on.
I know that having front calipers reconditioned can make a BIG difference to pedal feel, much better response.
Done that on a few cars.
Perhaps it just needs a good brake refurb ??
or.....
If you want less pedal effort (most modern cars are set up for much less foot pressure), then you may need to change things to get that. Remember it's a classic car now, I personally find many modern cars to be much too light for their brakes, so it's personal choice. I'm old and 'vintage' now too.
There's no free lunch, but you can get lighter pedal with smaller diameter master cylinder, but you get more pedal movement.
You may be able to get a booster with more 'push' That kind of thing.
You can get different calipers too, but I'm not sure what they feel like. Princess 4 pots give more stopping power, and fit,
and I'm sure aftermarkets available too, but I don't know more... anyone else ?
Assuming your brakes are OK (e.g not partly seized), it should stop pretty quick when you stamp on the pedal. Those same calipers
were used on Cortinas, Granadas, Triumph 2000/2500, TR6, and so on.
I know that having front calipers reconditioned can make a BIG difference to pedal feel, much better response.
Done that on a few cars.
Perhaps it just needs a good brake refurb ??
or.....
If you want less pedal effort (most modern cars are set up for much less foot pressure), then you may need to change things to get that. Remember it's a classic car now, I personally find many modern cars to be much too light for their brakes, so it's personal choice. I'm old and 'vintage' now too.
There's no free lunch, but you can get lighter pedal with smaller diameter master cylinder, but you get more pedal movement.
You may be able to get a booster with more 'push' That kind of thing.
You can get different calipers too, but I'm not sure what they feel like. Princess 4 pots give more stopping power, and fit,
and I'm sure aftermarkets available too, but I don't know more... anyone else ?
Hi mate...The 280i and 350i calipers are the same..They were based around the Granada mk2..I had 4 pot AP calipers fitted to my 280i after an incident with a traffic island...The braking was improved considerably but i never needed to stop hard again...Don't forget that the setup is 30 years old..They are a million miles away from modern brakes..
My 350i calipers have been modified with a spacer and longer bolts to accommodate a vented disc which is taken from the Ford Granada 2.8i mk2 Estate rear.
With the right pads they are good to go...As said they stop a 2 ton Granny....So might be a cheaper option...Unless you plan to track the car?
Cheers...Ziga
My 350i calipers have been modified with a spacer and longer bolts to accommodate a vented disc which is taken from the Ford Granada 2.8i mk2 Estate rear.
With the right pads they are good to go...As said they stop a 2 ton Granny....So might be a cheaper option...Unless you plan to track the car?
Cheers...Ziga
KKson said:
Hi Rob, on my 350i I did swap pads for Mintex 1144's and they were excellent with great bite and using standard discs. Only issue with the Mintex units is that you do need plenty of copperslip on the back of them to stop them squealing. I'd try these first and see how you get on.
The next step I took was a full HiSpec brake upgrade - not cheap but the kit certainly brings the Wedge up to modern day standards with constant brake pressure and no fade whatsoever on mine, no matter how hard and long I try braking.
A quick one Keith do you have the order number on your grooved disks, assume they are standard Ford Granny ones? Trying to source some grooved ones for the GredgeThe next step I took was a full HiSpec brake upgrade - not cheap but the kit certainly brings the Wedge up to modern day standards with constant brake pressure and no fade whatsoever on mine, no matter how hard and long I try braking.
Hi Jack the discs came with the Hispec kit. If you go on their website you can check out the various disc options. If you search the upgrade kits for TVR 350i then a full parts list comes up and you can select the different disc options, plain, grooved, drilled or grooved and drilled. Cheers.
If the pads and disc's are very new it will take a small time for them to bed in, as you need to transfer pad material from the pads to the disc, braking is done mainly via material to material not material to metal.
This is why ideally you should clean the disc's of old material if you change compound type, going harder is less of an issue but you can have problems going softer.
This is why ideally you should clean the disc's of old material if you change compound type, going harder is less of an issue but you can have problems going softer.
Hi Gents
I rebuilt my front calipers myself with new pistons and seals and bled all the complete system the car has had new ferodo pads fitted I also adjusted the servo rod by one complete turn but the car still sometimes pulls to the drivers side if you slam your foot on the brakes But it doesn't always do it, the car has probably covered about 120 miles since this work was carried out, but I used to have a tuned Cortina based Spartan kit car with standard Cortina brakes that used to stop quicker than the TVR The kit car was probably a bit lighter than the TVR but maybe I need some more miles to bed the system in a bit
I rebuilt my front calipers myself with new pistons and seals and bled all the complete system the car has had new ferodo pads fitted I also adjusted the servo rod by one complete turn but the car still sometimes pulls to the drivers side if you slam your foot on the brakes But it doesn't always do it, the car has probably covered about 120 miles since this work was carried out, but I used to have a tuned Cortina based Spartan kit car with standard Cortina brakes that used to stop quicker than the TVR The kit car was probably a bit lighter than the TVR but maybe I need some more miles to bed the system in a bit
Its possible that the pulling to the right issue is not brakes, I once had a Cortina that pulled like a ba***** when the brakes were applied hard, it turned out to be worn wishbone bushes. Could possibly be uneven tyre pressures or uneven tread depth.
I have to admit though, when I upgraded to Princess four pots, I did stop having palpitations every time I tried to stop the 350!
I have to admit though, when I upgraded to Princess four pots, I did stop having palpitations every time I tried to stop the 350!
mrzigazaga said:
With the right pads they are good to go...As said they stop a 2 ton Granny....So might be a cheaper option...Unless you plan to track the car?
Cheers...Ziga
oi! 1600kg with a heavy 24v engine and me in I'll have you know Cheers...Ziga
Personally, I'd go with what has been said above. Especially if the tie rod bushes are standard Ford foam affair. Down right bloody dangerous making suspension bushes from that stuff.
What kind of state are the standard discs in as well OP?
mrzigazaga said:
Hi mate...Not sure about the 350SE but surely they would of had the same as the 390SE/420SE from the granny mk2 estate..I believe later 390SE/400SE had 4 pot with the larger rear Granada estate discs?....
The 400 / 450 brakes were a combination of AP (Princess) 4 piston calipers and vented rotors bolted to separate bells (i.e. not integral bells per the 350). I agree strongly with the comments about suspension bushes; I spent ages rebuilding and fettling my 350i brakes and they were still pants - then I sorted out my tie rod bushes and the braking was transformed; as was the steering and handling. I'm still on solid discs and two pot calipers but the brakes now inspire confidence, and the non PAS steering is now full of feel and much lighter for some reason.
I daresay vented discs are better for track driving but in my experience the solid discs are fine for the road - depending how you drive of course! I can't really see the point of four pot calipers, I can lock my brakes in the dry with two pot ones; although I run standard tyres.
I daresay vented discs are better for track driving but in my experience the solid discs are fine for the road - depending how you drive of course! I can't really see the point of four pot calipers, I can lock my brakes in the dry with two pot ones; although I run standard tyres.
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