My $600 Big Brake Kit

[eikond]

My BRZ's stock brakes were horrible.

An upgrade to some stoptech street pads were a small improvement as they offered a bit more initial bite than stock.

Somehow after an autox or something I managed to burn in some pad material on the rotor in a fixed location.. the result was a terrible squeeling noise and a bit of vibration.. so I had to do something about it.

I did some research on big brake kits and I just can't afford to pay out $2k or more. I looked into STI Brembos or WRX 4-pots.. but again, they get pretty expensive. When research the WRX calipers I realized they are almost identical to Nissan 300zx calipers, which I've used in the past on an S14. Some google-fu on this site and Nasioc confirmed that there are nearly identical except the mounting holes. I found out that Ken with KNS Brakes makes a bracket to allow the Z32 calipers to fit a WRX with bigger Legacy GT front rotors.. They just happen to fit perfectly onto a BRZ as well. Plus, you don't have to mess with switching out the bleeders. The Legacy GT rotors are 317mm.. which is almost as big as the STI Brembos.

So.. I decided to give it a try:
My write-up:

http://www.nicoclub.com/archives/nis...r-frs-brz.html

Here is installment #2:
http://www.nicoclub.com/archives/300...rz-part-2.html
In this second part I summarize what you can read in the next 4-5 pages of this thread. I wanted to capture the main points about the technical aspects of this build. It should answer questions about performance, cooling, weight, brake bias, etc..


These are big rotors, but they don't look so big behind these 18" wheels. They would look a lot bigger than stock behind OEM wheels. But those won't fit without a small spacer.

[CBR600RR]

Nice!

[eikond]

*reserved post for rear brakes info*

[eikond]

*reserved post for cosmetic upgrades.. ie.. shaving the Nissan logo and putting on Subaru decals and painting them*

[smellslikecurry]

That's awesome. It's funny how similar these cars are to 240s. I may have missed it but did you get a chance to weigh the difference in weight between the stock caliper/rotor and the 300zx setup??

[eikond]

Originally Posted by smellslikecurry

That's awesome. It's funny how similar these cars are to 240s. I may have missed it but did you get a chance to weigh the difference in weight between the stock caliper/rotor and the 300zx setup??

I've got a picture of the exact weight of the Z32 calipers in the write-up link.
It's 6.1 lbs. Stock caliper and bracket is 14.0 lbs. So it's like 16 lbs in weight savings.

The rotors for this setup are a good deal bigger than stock though, so you give some weight back. I think the stock BRZ rotors are 17lbs each and these 317mm Legacy GT rotors are probably more like 19lbs each.. I didn't weight them though.. oops

You could always go with lighter two-piece rotors to save some additional weight.. but that goes against the low-budget aspect of this project.

[jflogerzi]

Fantastic post! Will be following this closely

Sent from my SGH-T999 using Tapatalk

[semowashere]

This...... Fantastic

[mike the snake]

Agreed!

I found some 300zx's at a junkyard. Heading there tomorrow.

[Black Tire]

Wow! Really? Wow!

[Khánh]

great job!!! just curious, wrx 4 pistons aren't aluminum like these?

[Floggin Tires]

Nice write up.
, Nissan yeah soft spot in my heart.
I would leave the emblem on, but I understand for clearance.

Thanks Again.

[TjAlmeida]

Sorry if i missed it. But initial impression on braking feel and over power compared to your stock setup?

[JRitt]

What are the sizes of the pistons in the calipers you're using? I'll be able to tell you whether or not you're in the right ballpark in terms of brake torque output when mated to that 317mm disc. What you don't want is to massively over-amplify the front brake torque, and foul up the brake bias relative to the rear. In that situation you'd actually be hurting the car's braking performance (lengthening stopping distances, potentially interfering with proper ABS function, etc.). You'd have more of a heat sink and lower overall weight, but that doesn't do you much good if the car doesn't actually stop as well!

I'm not trying to discourage you or anyone else from doing this swap. I fully appreciate your financial situation and your ingenuity in working towards an alternative solution. But before everyone runs out and starts buying parts, they should make sure it's something that can be done safely and properly, not just something that can be done.

I checked on the Legacy GT disc you're using...it weighs 22 lbs., +5 lbs. over the OEM front FT86 discs. I actually owned a 2005 Legacy GT 2.5 Turbo wagon (5-spd), and even had a pair of these discs sitting in my garage.