I have been thinking about brakes and braking (granted, I am not exaclty a thinker....lol). First, I head that 3rd gen f-body brakes are not that good. Now, why does it matter how much braking power u have if you can lock yer wheels? Second, a lot of people like to upgrade thier brakes. as far as I can tell, the 2 most common methods are 1. putting bigger and/or cross drilled and/or slotted rotors on (the fornt). This appears to be a effective upgrade, no? And 2. Converting to a disc brake rear. This appears NOT to be very effective as the vast majority of braking accures we the FRONT wheels. Thats just kinda my thoughts, but my question is 2 fold. First, why do brake upgrades mater if you can lock yer wheels? Second, a lot of people say put 1LE discs on yer front. Well, is that really the best (most effective, and most economical) upgrade? What, in 'your' opinions would be the most effective, and economical upgrade?
Please respond in anyway you feel appropriet. Thanx in advance!
(yeah, kinda long I guess...)

 

For most thirdgenners, we cannot lock our brakes, and, after hard use, stepping on the pedal is almost as effective as opening the door and dragging your foot..... That is why most of us are interested in upgrading. The 1LE brakes used larger rotors, and two piston calipers, making them both more effective, and, less prone to fade. Both are good things....

There are multiple options for upgrading brakes, baer is one of the most common, but, they are a little pricey. There are a bunch
of folks that offer kits for the 1LE front brake upgrade, and prices vary widely. I am waiting for Steve Spohn to come out with his kits which will run right around 700 bucks, or at least, somewhere in that neighborhood. That will be the most cost effective upgrade out there at this time.

You can go to a junkyard, and try and find the 1LE peices, but, good luck. These are rare, and when they do show up, they don't last long....

 

First, fade is when you have to press harder and harder on the pedal right?
Umm, so $700 is a good price fer a 1LE brake upgrade kit???

yeah, is there any cheaper alternatives? (besides junkyard). Also, I have pretty trashy pads on righ now, if I got a nice st of high performance how much would that (about...) help? (and how expessive or high performance brake pads??)
Yes, I have thought about it, but I am just starting to research it....

 

Buck,
Fade is when the brakes get too hot and they stop working effectively. If you've ever hot lapped your car around a track or even thru a nice twisty canyon road you'll know what I mean. Your car starts to feel like a runaway train going into turns.

The stock brakes give up way too soon. Bigger rotors give you more braking surface and don't overheat like the small standard rotors. Also, cross-drilled rotors DO NOTHING to improve braking. Don't belive the hype that most aftermarket companies say about them.

A cross-drilled rotor cannot withstand the same amount of heat as a solid rotor. The only benefits to cross-drilling are less rotating mass (ie: lighter wieght) and they look cool. That's it.

 

I see. but wouldnt cross drilling also help to expell brake dust and such, or is that really negatible?

 

yeah, cross drilling is a waste of money IMO. Fade does suck, but you can definately improve everything by running a quality pad. Hawk brakes makes killer pads, so does performance friction.

I have no problem with my brakes, they lock easily but i do have factory 4 wheel discs. I also redid my whole system. I even have sort of cheap murray's pads!

For the street, I think our brakes are just fine. Just pay attention to them, bleed them and you shouldn't have a problem. For the track, they do suck, no doubt.

Race pads can be too aggressive for the street, they usually take a while to heat up before they work and they tear up rotors quickly because they have so much metal in them.

 

By the way Buck, I see you're from Troy. I live in Clarkston when I'm not away at school. I know a bunch of folks from Troy High School. You go to the woodward cruise?

 

I was there a little last year, hopefully more this year!