I was wondering if it is nessacery to upgrade all the brakes on a car, besides the pads? I am talking about brake kits. They sell kits for the front separate from the rear. So should I just buy a bigger brake kit for the front or should I buy one for the back as well?
i.e. slotted rotors, lines, fluid, 4 piston calipers

Chip

 

Chip,

It depends what you're doing with the car. If you want a more 'balanced' all around feel on the car when you're braking, buy it for front and rear. I know people that are running with just an upgraded front brake setup, and some who are just running with rears. IMHO, if you aren't tracking the car, don't spend the money on a big brake kit, unless you can get it stinkin cheap or you have alot of money and nothing to do with it

Upgrading your pads on a stock setup will do the most for you...period. Rotors, slotted, drilled, or neither, are a negligible upgrade. They don't do much on a stock setup, besides looks. Stainless steel lines will not neccessarily aid in your stopping distance, but it will help in your brake modulation. Upgraded brake fluid (DOT 4) will shorten your stopping distance while at the same time firm up the pedal feel and will be less prone to boiling. Brake master cylinder braces brag that they will give you 10-15% more stopping power, although I do not know if this is true, as I have not used one for myself.

The big reason to upgrade your calipers to bigger units is for heat dissipation. The stock units have a hard time getting rid of heat quick enough, therefore giving you 'brake fade.' Bigger units (such as 4 pistons) will give you better cold stopping times, but most of that is based on your pads, as noted above.

Hope this helped!
Smitty

 

Very informative, thanks Smitty! So what brake pads and fluid do you recommend that I buy? If this matters, I am running a stage 2 93 octane, so the car has some *****, so this is why I want to upgrade the brakes.
Also would it be worth it to maybe find someone on these boards with an Sti that has upgraded their car to a big break kit and they now have no use for their stock setup any more?

Thanks Again,
Chip

 

Chip,

You will probably not find anyone that has upgraded their Brembos on their STi to bigger units, the reason being is that the Brembos are a very good setup and most people don't need more than that. You'd have better luck looking for a wrecked STi that is being parted out. The ultimate break setup, at least in my opinion (and alot of other's), are the Stoptechs, but they are very pricey.

Pads are a very touchy subject. Everyone has their own favorite pads that work for them, and they would not buy any other pad than that. I'm currently running Axxis Ultimates, and while I love their grippiness with no squeaks whatsoever, they dust quite a bit. I would suggest checking out the Reviews section on i-club and you will find every users opinion on each pad.

As long as you are buying non-silicone based DOT 4 fluid, you should be fine. The only other thing I would look for is it's boiling temperature. Some have higher points than others. I'm currently running ATE Super Blue racing fluid. Some don't like how it stains the inside of your brake lines(who's gonna see?! It comes in a yellow colour too) so they opt for the Motul RBF-600, which is very comparable, but costs alittle bit more.

Smitty

 

I feel that it might be worth mentioning that a huge factor in stoping distance is also based around the tires you run. The more grip you have on the road, the faster you can stop without losing traction or ABS kicking in.

 

There are some technical pages on the subject of high-performance braking at StopTech's web site. All are well-written and easy to understand.

--
0==WW==0
"…axles of evil…" - george w. bush

 

I run on Toyo T1S in the summer time and just the factory rim and tire in the winter.

 

i would like to expand on this.

the size of your brakes has 0 bearing on how quickly your car slows down, it is 100% related to your tires (contact patch). the ONLY benfait you get from larger brake components is less brake fade. unless you track your car, you have no need for larger brake components.