Best Brake Upgrade for Looks

[joshuaho96]

1 hour ago, soviet_merlin said:

Is there any downside to running bigger brakes when done right? Or is it that people cut corners when it's just for looks and it compromises on a major safety component?

Genuine question as I'm not sure where the hate comes from. Big brakes certainly look amazing.

I think it's more a practicality issue. Done wrong it can definitely be problematic, I see a lot of BBKs that are clearly track-only because they want you to remove/cut away most of the dust shield, have no dust boots on the pistons/generally a full race kind of caliper, require you to grind away significantly at what is arguably a fairly weak suspension knuckle as-is, etc. Pad knockback and wheel bearing issues on track are not unusual to hear about with these cars. Kind of questionable to spend all that money and have it be worse on the street than when you started if it's not a dedicated track toy. 

[Predator1]

imho, aftermarket brakes to me dictate that the car has alot of power(Not all the time). I used to get heaps of guys who look twice at my brake setup at the lights, and then ask what sort of power im running.

OP - Check out Brakes Direct. I run their full kit on my car and the brakes are fkn amazing.. plus, I get no squeal at all.

[waggat]

37 minutes ago, joshuaho96 said:

I think it's more a practicality issue. Done wrong it can definitely be problematic, I see a lot of BBKs that are clearly track-only because they want you to remove/cut away most of the dust shield, have no dust boots on the pistons/generally a full race kind of caliper, require you to grind away significantly at what is arguably a fairly weak suspension knuckle as-is, etc. Pad knockback and wheel bearing issues on track are not unusual to hear about with these cars. Kind of questionable to spend all that money and have it be worse on the street than when you started if it's not a dedicated track toy. 

Hi. Thanks for the informative post. I don't want to end up with any of the issues you mentioned and would like to avoid cutting etc. That is why I wanted to get peoples opinions who have made upgrades.

[GTSBoy]

Well, you cannot avoid cutting or removing the dust shields if you're going to go as large as you're talking about.

And you should not even ever just once consider grinding anything off of the upright or any other part of the front suspension/steering, even for a track car. Doing it on a road car should be punishable by death (and it could happen).

[robbo_rb180]

1 hour ago, Predator1 said:

imho, aftermarket brakes to me dictate that the car has alot of power(Not all the time). I used to get heaps of guys who look twice at my brake setup at the lights, and then ask what sort of power im running.

OP - Check out Brakes Direct. I run their full kit on my car and the brakes are fkn amazing.. plus, I get no squeal at all.

AVOID BRAKES DIRECT

Have stuffed around so many mates in the past 18months and hearing more stories of bad customer service. 

[GTSBoy]

2 minutes ago, robbo_rb180 said:

AVOID BRAKES DIRECT
 

For an interesting hour or so of reading....

https://performanceforums.com/forums/forum/general/general-discussions/7452637-greg-latham-brakes-direct-anyone-in-contact-asap

[Predator1]

1 hour ago, robbo_rb180 said:

AVOID BRAKES DIRECT

Have stuffed around so many mates in the past 18months and hearing more stories of bad customer service. 

I WAS one of the horror stories. I had fitment issues for the front adapters. Rear was ok, just needed the dust shield to be trimmed as needed. I exchanged lengthy emails and even spoke to George and Greg over the phone. They paid for some of the work required to make my adapters fit. I also stuck bigger brake lines in the back as I'm a picky SOB, but once the brakes were fitted it worked like a charm. Didnt get time to push the brakes.. Only did a semi track day in the rain but had no issues pulling up from around 200.

[niZmO_Man]

ATTKD/K-Sport, or R34/V35 Brembos

For everything else, sell more drugs, save up and go R35

A decade ago there was a joint in England doing Alcon kits for £3,500, good times.

[funkymonkey]

Have you tried double calipers?

https://au.gktech.com/products/2-pot-nissan-dual-caliper-brackets-pair

[PLYNX]

Wow ! It seems everything new is old ! I remember seeing on a early Holden Commadore that was running in the ( I think ) Repco / Redex rally with a set of front dual callipers !

Then I threw a couple of rocks at the Tyrannosaurus rex that was looking funny at me and hid in the back of my cave until it wandered off !

Edited May 31, 2023 by PLYNX

[GTSBoy]

Yes, but on the Dunnydoor it was for a genuine brake upgrade (albeit not necessarily a good one, given the rotors were the same, I think). This GKTech stuff is for flatbrims to put a hydo handbrake on for derp sideways action.

[Dose Pipe Sutututu]

Just get GT-R Brembos all round, convert the rears to drum hand brake too.

A true car enthusiast will appreciate the OEM+ approach, spend the left over money on a Nismo GT-Pro LSD. Enjoy life, then sell the car, profit and buy a M2 Comp.

[PLYNX]

And on the Commadore I think I remember seeing that they welded the extra calliper mounts to the stub axels !

Balls of brass that ! Hoping that there will be no cracks in the cast iron, then taking it on a rally trial !

[TurboTapin]

350z track edition Brembo's and disks can be had new for peanuts. That's what I run. 

[Murray_Calavera]

29 minutes ago, TurboTapin said:

350z track edition Brembo's and disks can be had new for peanuts. That's what I run. 

Genuine or reproduction? 

Looks like used genuine is still going for 2k+ 

[TurboTapin]

25 minutes ago, Murray_Calavera said:

Genuine or reproduction? 

Looks like used genuine is still going for 2k+ 

I got my genuine Brembo stamped 350z track edition calipers for 265$ a pop off Amazon. Both calipers, StopTech disks and a set of Hawk HPS pads came in around 1000$. I have heard though that when ordering from Cardone it's a mix of remanufactured Brembo's and new clones. 

Cardone 19-3858 Remanufactured Import Friction Ready (Unloaded) Brake Caliper, Tools & Equipment - Amazon Canada

[GTSBoy]

18 minutes ago, TurboTapin said:

I got my genuine Brembo stamped 350z track edition calipers for 265$ a pop off Amazon

I highlight two words that have a tenuous and troubled relationship with each other.

[TurboTapin]

13 minutes ago, GTSBoy said:

I highlight two words that have a tenuous and troubled relationship with each other.

They're from Cardone, a very large reputable parts manufacturer/remanufacturer in the US/Canada. I have zero concerns.  

[GTSBoy]

19 minutes ago, TurboTapin said:

They're from Cardone, a very large reputable parts manufacturer/remanufacturer in the US/Canada. I have zero concerns.  

Do they have no idea how much they could have sold them for?

[Murray_Calavera]

Are we just going to pretend this is Brembo OEM quality?