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Brake upgrade advice

15K views 12 replies 6 participants last post by  JonCa 
#1 ·
Hi guys

I have a 1999 T4 coachbuilt.

Not impressed with my brakes & now that I've tuned it up I'd like to upgrade the front brakes to match.

Whats good? Black Diamond? Also, don't know what size discs to go for.

Is it worth doing braded hoses?


Cheers
 
#8 ·
As above, upgrading pads can improve the bite of the brakes - the initial response when your toe hits the pedal - and can improve heat tolerance, as they will take more heat before catching fire. You should make sure that your upgraded pads are road legal - I recently discovered that my personal favorite all-rounder pad, the Ferodo DS2500, is not road legal, because it is over 15% better than a standard pad.

If you have solid discs currently, then upgrading to vented discs (even of the same size) is a massive improvement, as you will not boil the brakes with repeated hard stops. Upgrading to drilled discs is largely pointless, upgrading to grooved pads may reduce pad glazing, but I doubt you will notice the difference. There is little point in upgrading solid discs to drilled or groved - vented would make a far bigger difference.

In summary, upgrade your pads, and if you have solid discs, fit vented ones.
 
#9 ·
................. is not road legal, because it is over 15% better than a standard pad..................
D-9, That sounds quite interesting.
- How do they measure better?
- How do I find out the figures for a "standard pad" ? (never seen it on a VW brake pad box :) )
- Where did you manage to find that out ?
- I'm guessing that there must be a lower limit as well ?

Any info gratefully received

Jon
 
#12 ·
Probably. There is a small chance that calipers *may* be shared between both vented and solid discs, but the carriers will be different.

Some T4s came with vented discs, so you could retrofit them, alternatively this thread may be relevant http://www.vwt4forum.co.uk/showthread.php?t=371943

I am planning on fitting some 288mm discs and calipers from a Galaxy, they were £20 from a scrapyard, with pads, discs, and hoses I should be looking at an upgrade for about £100. Bigger options are available, either 312mm or 330mm, but I want to minimize un-sprung weight and I dont actually have an issue with the amount of brake that I have, just the heat tolerance.
 
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