Toyota GR86, 86, FR-S and Subaru BRZ Forum & Owners Community - FT86CLUB - StopTech Big Brake Kit 328x28 Weights and Pics :)

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Jow does it compare to the AP Endurance kit?

I'm uniquely qualified to answer this question...I was the sales mgr. at StopTech from 2003-2008, and I now work for Essex (the importer and distributor for the components used in the AP kits). Here's the breakdown as I see it.

Calipers

Anti-knockback springs
AP Racing has them, StopTech doesn't. People severely underestimate how valuable these springs are. After going through S turns, you'll have a much lower pucker factor in the next brake zone with the springs installed.

Piston type
StopTech= cast aluminum
AP= machined stainless steel
Stainless is far superior at keeping heat out of your brake fluid

Weight
ST-40 weighs 7.6 lbs. without pads
AP Racing CP8350 weighs 4.8 lbs. without pads...almost 3 lbs. lighter per side.

Dust Boots
StopTech is a street caliper, and as such uses dust boots. CP8350 has none. If you've ever run dust boots on the track, you'll find that they burn up and cause a big mess almost instantly. Their only value is if you're driving on winter or debris/dirty roads. As soon as they go on track they essentially lose all value.

Seals
Both calipers have quality, high temp seals.

Hydraulic protection
ST-40 has none, while the CP8350 has it for both bleed screw and crossover tube. This feature protects the hydraulics from track debris, and when you're swapping wheels.

High quality forged aluminum
The caliper bodies on the ST-40 and CP8350 are both high quality forged aluminum parts.

Pad choice/cost/size
Both calipers have tons of pad options. The pad surface area on the ST-40 is slightly larger, but they are a few mm thinner than the pads used in the CP8350. Overall pad mass is very comparable, but the nod goes to the thicker pads in terms of wear rate. On average, pads for the AP caliper are $100 less per set for the same compound.

Stainless Steel hardware
Both calipers have good stainless steel hardware.

Footprint/size
In addition to weighing much less, the CP8350 has a substantially smaller footprint and offers superior wheel fitment.

Finish
StopTech= painted. Look pretty, but will not look as good after hard use. Paint and powdercoat tends to change color dramatically at track temps. If you're driving through road salt, they will be better protected than anodized.
AP Racing= anodized. Look 'racier' (like what you see on full-blown race cars like C6R) and do not color shift nearly as much.

Bracket
Essex Endurance Kit has a super trick built in provision for brake ducting...nothing of this sort on the StopTech setup.
http://www.essexparts.com/media/cata...racket05_2.jpg

Rebuild Service
Essex offers a lifetime professional reconditioning service. For a $125/caliper you can send your calipers to Essex and have them rebuilt by the same techs who service NASCAR and ALMS teams. StopTech can rebuild, but I'm not sure how formalized their procedures, policies, and prices are at this time.

Discs

Design
Discs from both manufacturers are quality castings that are crack resistant and will last a long time under heavy track use. That said, the AP Racing discs are a heavy duty 70 vane internal construction, and patented J hook face slot are the #1 choice at the elite level of motorsports (NASCAR, ALMS, DTM, Super GT, etc.). The StopTech's are only a 48 vane disc with a conventional slot pattern.

Price
The AP's offer more features at a lower price. Replacement iron prices per disc are as follows:

$159 Essex/AP Racing Sprint Kit (299x32mm)
$249 Essex/AP Racing Endurance Kit (325x32mm)
$305 for the StopTech's.

Disc hats
Both have a quality design and are made from aircraft grade aluminum. Both are optimized for weight and airflow.

Weight
Essex/AP Racing Sprint hat/disc= 12.2 lbs.
Essex/AP Racing Endurance hat/disc=17.2 lbs.
StopTech hat/disc= 14.6 lbs.

Even though the Endurance discs are heavier than the StopTech discs, the calipers in the Endurance kit are substantially lighter, offsetting the disc weight. Therefore you get the higher thermal mass and cooling of the 32mm wide AP Racing disc, with it's 70 vanes, but you don't suffer a weight penalty on the kit overall.

Wheel Fitment
I believe our Essex Comp kits sit inboard of the StopTech setup by about 5-7mm if I remember correctly, offering more wheel clearance.

Brake Lines
Both systems came with a high quality set of brake lines.

Summary
When we put our Essex Competition Kits together, we tried to look at every piece of the StopTech system and produce something that eclipsed its performance, all while keeping the costs down. My past employment there put me in a perfect position to accomplish this task, and I believe we have succeeded...more technology, higher specification, lower running costs, better fitment, etc. :thumbsup:

A final note on pricing...even though our Endurance Kit is a bit more $ than the StopTech kit, the running costs equal out very quickly. You'll save at least $100 per pad change on the Essex kit (and the pads on the Endurance or Sprint kit are 3-4mm thicker vs. the ST kit). You'll save another $50 per iron disc replacement vs. ST. I also firmly believe that the pads and discs in the Essex kits will last longer due to all of the heat reduction features listed above. The Endurance kit also has the brake duct provision, so that's one less thing to buy if you're going that route.

In terms of the Sprint Kit vs. the StopTech's...the replacement discs are $159 vs. $300. So when you need spare ST discs you're looking at about $600 vs. $300 for the Sprint Kit. That's more the initial price difference between the two kits, and doesn't take into account the laundry list of additional features you get with the AP kits.