It dawned on me this weekend that we did not have a braking related forum on the site. Why, I kept asking myself, why did I leave this out. Surely, there is a legitament reason. Then, like a sack of bricks, it hit me. It was simply overlooked. Overlooked?! How could something so vital to a car's performance be overlooked? I thought more about it and realized that I am not the only one who tends to overlook this. Alright, with this in mind, I entertained the idea of this forum more and more. I kept wondering if anyone would find it useful, if we would have knowledgeable discussions. If it would be beneficial, and I can say that yes, this forum should be regarded as a welcome addition to WRXatlanta discussions. Everyday we set out to push our cars (some more than others) and expect to be able to stop at the red light (or worse) when we need to. But what if, just what if, what we have now just is not enough? It's so simple, yet its always just overlooked. Owners spend big dollars on suspension, power, seats, wings, splitters, trick parts, all the interior STi parts, and even STi keys. Ask somone the next time what they think of their brakes. Odds are they're stock and that very someone has never once given the thought of upgrading them as they upgrading the cars other performance areas. Why though? It makes perfect sense that in order to have a balanced system not one area may be overlooked, yet here, right beneath our very eyes it is. So here it is, the general rule of thumb. For every dollar you spend on power, you should (at least consider) spend half that on brakes. If this is done right, you will be out of that area early, relative to your plans for 400whp. For those of us who are mostly on the street, the best insurance available would be to install braided lines, decent fluid (ATE SuperBlue, MOTUL RBF600), and some average pads. I said average, not $400 trackers, but settle for $100-200 for fronts and $70-100 for rears. At least this way, you have covered the basics. I've always viewed modifying a car somewhat like algebra; what you do to one side, you must to do the other. Add a bit of power, add a pinch of brakes. So, this is what I juggled around this afternoon, an oh so simple (and usually far too dependable) concept that is consistenly overlooked by so many owners. One more thing that I did not want to leave out. Tires make or break this system, but we already have a section for that now dont we With that, I would like to annouce the latest addition to the WRXatlanta discussions, the Braking forum. Cheers,
excellent idea... it really is very overlooked. thanks for being ever so thoughtful in your quest to evolve the site! cliff notes= if you're gonna add go, you gotta add whoa. no exceptions.
I remember a pretty large debate thread on Nasioc about braking. I'll try to go dig up one of the more on point posts in that thread and copy it over here. It will probably save people some time, money and confusion....
yay!!! I agree that brakes/braking systems are a very overlooked part of the car as a "whole" Viva La Brakes!!!!
I'll attempt to write up / find some good DIYs for a multitude of brake related projects and get them in here.
need to know my brakes are stock on my 03 wrx but i want upgrades what can i do without having to change everything over to sti parts, and where can i go to purchase such stuff ?
Hawk HP+ Pads and new fluid should help to start off with. Any of the vendors on ehre can help you out. Buy some beer and Pizza and I am sure someone will show up to help you install them.
Pad material I believe should be first and foremost once you start flirting with the 300hp mark or greater! If I ran wot in first then HAD to stop it was impossible until I got the carbotek XP 10's and almost as bad as stock on the Hawk HPS. HP + or better along with the fluid and lines and most will be good! I don't think (I KNOW) the # of pistons per caliper don't mean squat if you have shitty pads. ^^Newer WRX calipers...double the pistons BUT you need good pad material and fluid and lines or it will be a waste. Ironically I may have a set of said newer calipers available...
My front rotors needed to be changed so i recently swapped my old Wilwood rotors with some New EBC Zinc Plated, Slotted/Dimpled Rotors. I noticed a difference, not a good one either. Now it takes longer distance to stop and fade kind of feeling. I changed brake fluid with DOT4 Valvoline, i already SS brakelines. I am using Wilwood Pads all the way around. Any clue?
here's your brakes.... followed a thread to this vendor. who has some nice 'GTR' brembo brakes for 13,920$ (yes 5 digits) on sale .. regularly 14,450$ not sure why they are so expensive. at first i assumed they were ceramic, but no comments indicate that they are... http://www.flatironstuning.com/p-1169-brembo-wrx-sti-gtr-full-race-brake-kit.aspx things cost as much as a cosworth long block...
They aren't that shitty and i know neither are they hellgood. I am gonna fush my brake system again, and check pads for glaze. Anyone else can think of anything else?