What are the Pros and Cons of switching to a bigger set of Brakes?

[Flat Black VW]

Originally Posted by chulooz

Get 06-07 wrx brakes... look em up, I think its what you will want.

a friend of mine just got these for his 2006 impreza. They look great and its one of the options ive been thinking about since the calipers and rotors only cost him around $700 shipped. Hoping to see someone else do this first and give off some impressions.

[Black Tire]

Originally Posted by STi88

Does anyone have suggestion of a nice, cheap aesthetics upgrade for brakes? Or would it be wiser to stick with the stock look for the meantime?

I would stick with stock until next spring/summer. Many of the manufacturers either don't have a kit yet, are still in the prototype stage, or have only just come out with a "me too" package that will be supplemented by more offerings in the future. By next spring/summer things should be somewhat sorted out. In the meantime, you could do the caliper paint thing as another member suggested.

[rice_classic]

Think about brakes in these terms:

-Brakes don't stop the car, tires stop the car.
-Brakes convert kinetic energy into heat.

Upgrade brakes if your needs to convert kinetic energy into heat are greater than your braking system's ability to absorb and dissipate heat. If you are at this point, you a) racing or b) pretty hardcore and c) should also consider brake ducting.

Hope this helps!

[OrbitalEllipses]

To everybody being smart about weight: you get what you pay for. For instance, forged (and even cast) aftermarket wheels can be in the neighborhood of 5lbs lighter per corner than stock wheels despite being wider and sometimes larger in diameter. And on that note comes good competition brake systems like whatever AP Racing based kits Essex Parts will come out with, saving ~3lbs per corner.

So you can have your cake and eat it too, it just depends on how deep your wallet is. I love brakes that fill up the wheel, but as a cosmetic upgrade it's last on my list. I'll be doing pads/lines/fluid first.

Originally Posted by chulooz

Get 06-07 wrx brakes... look em up, I think its what you will want.

How many times do I have to say that's not an upgrade. Same rotor sizes, only increase in bling bling factor and perhaps pedal feel, that's all. Actually, probably an increase in weight because they're cast-iron just like the stockers.

[dirk_diggler]

Paint your calipers red.

On the serious side, do pads first (you will be surprised.) Go a step up from the friction rating of the factory pads. Say you got FF pads, get something with FG or GG friction rating.

Then do lines, but it's mostly for feel.

Don't touch the fluid, unless you flush it. Use whatever Subaru/Toyota recommends, and flush often (I recommend quick bleeder valves.)

In my 2009 Camry, I thought I will be smart, so I flushed the system with ATE DOT4 blue stuff (made in Germany.) The pedal was fine for the first 3 days, but by the end of the second week the pedal went to the floor - no, I did not get air in the system. I had to flush the system with the Toyota stuff to restore brake function. Lesson: DOT4 doesn't mean better than DOT3 (in fact, some DOT3 fluids can be better than some DOT4 fluids), AND just because the Toyota fluid meets DOT3 specs, it does not mean it just regular-o DOT3 fluid. The Toyota fluid is made specifically to behave and play nice with the seals in the Toyota brake systems.

In this case, it's a Subaru system (whoever makes it for them), so just follow the recommendations for their fluid and flush it often.

[coyote]

Originally Posted by dirk_diggler

Paint your calipers red.

On the serious side, do pads first (you will be surprised.) Go a step up from the friction rating of the factory pads. Say you got FF pads, get something with FG or GG friction rating.

Then do lines, but it's mostly for feel.

Don't touch the fluid, unless you flush it. Use whatever Subaru/Toyota recommends, and flush often (I recommend quick bleeder valves.)

In my 2009 Camry, I thought I will be smart, so I flushed the system with ATE DOT4 blue stuff (made in Germany.) The pedal was fine for the first 3 days, but by the end of the second week the pedal went to the floor - no, I did not get air in the system. I had to flush the system with the Toyota stuff to restore brake function. Lesson: DOT4 doesn't mean better than DOT3 (in fact, some DOT3 fluids can be better than some DOT4 fluids), AND just because the Toyota fluid meets DOT3 specs, it does not mean it just regular-o DOT3 fluid. The Toyota fluid is made specifically to behave and play nice with the seals in the Toyota brake systems.

In this case, it's a Subaru system (whoever makes it for them), so just follow the recommendations for their fluid and flush it often.

Sorry mate, but I can absolutely guarantee that was a user problem, not the fluid.

[dirk_diggler]

Originally Posted by coyote

Sorry mate, but I can absolutely guarantee that was a user problem, not the fluid.

What do you suppose hapenned?

[chulooz]

Originally Posted by OrbitalEllipses

How many times do I have to say that's not an upgrade. Same rotor sizes, only increase in bling bling factor and perhaps pedal feel, that's all. Actually, probably an increase in weight because they're cast-iron just like the stockers.

Sorry man, search these up on nasioc; you are wrong. These are an upgrade in weight, feel, consistancy, force, and fade.Im not making this up. Though a more worthwhile big brake upgrade would call for larger rotors that provide better heat distribution.

[OrbitalEllipses]

Originally Posted by chulooz

Sorry man, search these up on nasioc; you are wrong. These are an upgrade in weight, feel, consistancy, force, and fade.Im not making this up. Though a more worthwhile big brake upgrade would call for larger rotors that provide better heat distribution.

Bro. The WRX wears 294mm front vented discs, just like this car. The standard WRX wears solid rears in the same diameter as ours, but the 2006-2007 cars with the FHI 4 pots have the same vented disc as ours. YOU go look up the diameters and widths, they are the same. No increase in heat capacity, which is really what you're after in a brake upgrade. Cool, spend $700 on FHI calipers...for no heat capacity? That's just bling and for a more money you get a better package with any big brake kit.

I like you, don't make me argue with you all day.

[chulooz]

Its cool man:happy0180: hear me out

I know they have the same size rotor hence the "though", but the OP doesnt need the extra heat capacity or more importantly extra rotational/unsprung mass of larger rotors and calipers.

The 4pots wear better, have more force, better bias, all while being lighter and better looking, just what the OP wants. Throw on better pads and lines and hell certainly love it. Plus old JDM STi models had them; these can be picked up cheap, custom powder coated, and then rebuilt for much less than $700

[JRitt]

To the OP, please check out this brake upgrade overview I put together a while back. It talks about brake needs/requirements vs. wants, and also touches on aftermarket calipers, discs, and complete big brake kits.

[jamal]

Originally Posted by chulooz

Sorry man, search these up on nasioc; you are wrong. These are an upgrade in weight, feel, consistancy, force, and fade.Im not making this up.

Weight (barely) and feel yes. Force no. The 4-pots have smaller pistons which means less force on the pad for the same line pressure. No change in fade resistance because the rotors are the same size.

[chulooz]

Originally Posted by jamal

Weight (barely) and feel yes. Force no. The 4-pots have smaller pistons which means less force on the pad for the same line pressure. No change in fade resistance because the rotors are the same size.

4pots>2pots for force, much more even distribution too + less squishy pedal feel. Better fade due to the better bias it has over the wrx/brz setup.

[Racecomp Engineering]

^ More pistons doesn't mean clamping force, but more total piston area per side does (for a given rotor diameter).

The standard BRZ/FRS bias isn't bad.

- Andrew