best bang for your buck brakes under $200

[SochBAT]

Junkyard Q45's, rebuild em, some blanks, stainless steel lines, and a Sentra BMC to up the braking ratio.

I think it was the Sentra BMC. Correct me if i'm wrong on that one Russ.

[Enjin]

Originally Posted by cdlong

i can't believe we've gotten this far without asking the OP what he does with the car and how much power he has. and OptionZero and ProjectRDM already hit on this, if your tires suck, upgrade those first.

the car is being built to be tracked.

it doesn't matter how much power I have, though.

basically, the car has been sitting on jackstands for the last 6 months while I work and go to school, and while breaking down the suspension to replace everything, I realized that my brakes look like they are completely through. never really driven THIS car.

judd- you have the equipment to redrill the q45 brakes? I lost your number when I got this new phone... hit me up.

[SochBAT]

How about you drive it first, and seehow it feels?

I think a TON of people just buy parts just to look cool when never really using what they've got in the first place.

Again, test out the brakes you have now, and if needed, upgrade. Otherwise, you're just burning money that could be better spent on new tires.

[Enjin]

I've been around and driven enough setups to know how things feel. these brakes are obviously shot, so I can't use just the stock ones... never used an upgrade, so looking for something to do.

[cdlong]

Originally Posted by Enjin

the car is being built to be tracked.

it doesn't matter how much power I have, though.

since when? if you're tracking the car, the only thing that matters is power.

if you accelerate down a straight, the amount of power you put in dirrectly correlates to the amount of energy you have to dissipate with the brakes at the end. i.e. heavy car w/300hp will be going 110, lighter car with 300hp will be going 140. basically the same momentum

on the street, the weight of the car is what matters because you're going a set speed no matter what.

this is all in relation to heat management, which is what big brakes are for anyway. i'm assuming you're going to use some real tires.

so let me get this straight. you're planning on tracking this car, but considering using the stock brakes? if you're seriously tracking the car, z32 brakes should be the minimum. put some cheap pads on the car so you can drive it and keep saving for some real brakes.

[ZenkiGTS]

Originally Posted by nixad

take your 200, go to the casino and come back with some real money

HOP ON A ROULETTE TABLE DOUBLE YUP.... and CASH THE F... OUT

[vvtisupra]

Just because the front does most of the braking work, it doesn't mean you can put a bigger set of calipers in the front and expect the brakes to work better. This is a common misconception.

Running bigger brakes increases rotational mass and unsprung weight. Infact you may even stop in a longer distance. Also, it throws off the pedal ratio changing the amount of fluid your master has to displace. This is why people upgrade to 300zx masters when they convert to 300zx brakes to compensate for the different volume required to displace the brake fluid. Also running larger rotors and calipers with larger pistons in the front can throw off your brake bias. Of course there are a lot of variables that can influence this such as tires, tire sizes, weight, weight transfered etc. But generally running larger brake components in the front will increase front bias.

The benefit to running larger brake components is brake torque and heat dissapation(however if your stock brakes create enough torque to lock the wheels then its not an increased advantage).

Anyways if you only have 200 dollars to spend I recommend
running stock rotors, with a high performance pad. Depending on how hard the car is driven will determine the compound you would want to use. It is a lot of trial and error. I recommend starting pretty mild and if you feel the need to increase your heat range, then purhcase pads that are designed for higher heat.

Some pads that i have come across that work well for dual purpase (sport and street) would be axxis ultimates, hawk HP+, Porterfield RS4, and project mu NS. There are a lot more variaties but these are the pads that I have tried myself and found decent and can be purchased for around 200 dollars. Your rotors may still be good. Places like kragen, midas and autozone and resurface your rotors for a good price.

Also remember to always use fresh brake fluid DOT3 &4 and non silicone based DOT 5 will all do the job. Make sure to do a good job bleeding the brakes and breaking and bedding in the pads properly. I go to www.Stoptech.com and use the break in procedures described in their white papers, and have always came out with good results. Remember it is very important to break and bed in the brakes properly. The burninsh and bedding of the pads is what outgasses the pads and also creates a friction material layer for your pads to do work.

Later as money permits, i'd look into stainless brake lines, better tires and or a complete upgrade.

[noshow]

i spent 200$ on my z32 front calipers.
heres the breakdown
spend 100$ on the seats while in the junkyard, put the calipers in the toolbox
and spent 100$ on rotors from heavythrottle back in the day.
just be careful never to go there again or theyll want your thumbs.

[Enjin]

Originally Posted by cdlong

since when? if you're tracking the car, the only thing that matters is power.

if you accelerate down a straight, the amount of power you put in dirrectly correlates to the amount of energy you have to dissipate with the brakes at the end. i.e. heavy car w/300hp will be going 110, lighter car with 300hp will be going 140. basically the same momentum

on the street, the weight of the car is what matters because you're going a set speed no matter what.

this is all in relation to heat management, which is what big brakes are for anyway. i'm assuming you're going to use some real tires.

so let me get this straight. you're planning on tracking this car, but considering using the stock brakes? if you're seriously tracking the car, z32 brakes should be the minimum. put some cheap pads on the car so you can drive it and keep saving for some real brakes.

good point, however, speed obviously directly correlates to the force required to stop the car, so what you are saying is that a car that is going faster (achieved by higher levels of power) will need more force to stop. DEFINITELY SO, SIR!

the question that I have is, given that, does the rate at which you achieve such a high speed affect the optimum velocity for a corner? If I put everything together correctly, the optimum cornering velocity is brake and suspension rate limited, rather than speed.

HOWEVER, I can see your point about having a car that will be going much faster at a given point along the track needing stronger brakes at that point than a weaker accelerating car, but would not that weaker accelerating car be able to brake LATER, considering the relative LOSS in linear velocity due to the lack of power?

the big question I am trying to present here is: theory and concept aside, since I have only driven 240's with stock brakes, and then again with upgraded pads, I am wondering the real EFFICACY of dropping big money on your brakes. can you actually tell a SUBSTANTIAL DIFFERENCE or is it just money that I could allot to other things, like this big ass comfy oversized chair I am buying tonight... mmmmmmm sooo comfy. I'm serious.

[Enjin]

Originally Posted by noshow

i spent 200$ on my z32 front calipers.
heres the breakdown
spend 100$ on the seats while in the junkyard, put the calipers in the toolbox
and spent 100$ on rotors from heavythrottle back in the day.
just be careful never to go there again or theyll want your thumbs.

hahahaha GENIUS!!

[Enjin]

Originally Posted by vvtisupra

Just because the front does most of the braking work, it doesn't mean you can put a bigger set of calipers in the front and expect the brakes to work better. This is a common misconception.

Running bigger brakes increases rotational mass and unsprung weight. Infact you may even stop in a longer distance. Also, it throws off the pedal ratio changing the amount of fluid your master has to displace. This is why people upgrade to 300zx masters when they convert to 300zx brakes to compensate for the different volume required to displace the brake fluid. Also running larger rotors and calipers with larger pistons in the front can throw off your brake bias. Of course there are a lot of variables that can influence this such as tires, tire sizes, weight, weight transfered etc. But generally running larger brake components in the front will increase front bias.

The benefit to running larger brake components is brake torque and heat dissapation(however if your stock brakes create enough torque to lock the wheels then its not an increased advantage).

Anyways if you only have 200 dollars to spend I recommend
running stock rotors, with a high performance pad. Depending on how hard the car is driven will determine the compound you would want to use. It is a lot of trial and error. I recommend starting pretty mild and if you feel the need to increase your heat range, then purhcase pads that are designed for higher heat.

Some pads that i have come across that work well for dual purpase (sport and street) would be axxis ultimates, hawk HP+, Porterfield RS4, and project mu NS. There are a lot more variaties but these are the pads that I have tried myself and found decent and can be purchased for around 200 dollars. Your rotors may still be good. Places like kragen, midas and autozone and resurface your rotors for a good price.

Also remember to always use fresh brake fluid DOT3 &4 and non silicone based DOT 5 will all do the job. Make sure to do a good job bleeding the brakes and breaking and bedding in the pads properly. I go to www.Stoptech.com and use the break in procedures described in their white papers, and have always came out with good results. Remember it is very important to break and bed in the brakes properly. The burninsh and bedding of the pads is what outgasses the pads and also creates a friction material layer for your pads to do work.

Later as money permits, i'd look into stainless brake lines, better tires and or a complete upgrade.

baller, thanks

[SoguRacing]

it's 40 bucks from the junk yard for any set of calipers (2). dont be cheap.

[SochBAT]

Big brakes means decreasing brake fade. Its your enemy. Cooling fins directed to the brakes help, ducting helps a ton.

Big brakes do NOT mean stopping faster. its stopping more efficiently.

[ILoveMyRHS13]

I found Q45 calipers in a junkyard.

Q45 Calipers: $20
Black Caliper Paint: $4
Brand new rotors: $80
Brand new pads: $60

Do I win?

[SilviaSR20DET]

q45 caliper upgrade indeed is a great way to decrease brake fade! i remember the first time i put on the calipers and stopped really hard on the freeway (no ones around), it scared me cause i wasn't use to the amount of force it produced to stop. Mine costed me under 200 which included the caliper, rotor, and pads/hardware.

[Nikeboy355]

Just get new pads and change the fluid...

I personally track with stock calipers, Autozone rotors, and Carbotech XP10 race pads...

[cdlong]

Originally Posted by SilviaSR20DET

q45 caliper upgrade indeed is a great way to decrease brake fade! i remember the first time i put on the calipers and stopped really hard on the freeway (no ones around), it scared me cause i wasn't use to the amount of force it produced to stop. Mine costed me under 200 which included the caliper, rotor, and pads/hardware.

if you were getting brake fade in one stop before, you had other problems.

Originally Posted by Soooshi

Big brakes do NOT mean stopping faster. its stopping more efficiently.

exactly. good tires means stopping faster. well, not exactly. big brrakes means stoping repeatedly.

Originally Posted by Enjin

good point, however, speed obviously directly correlates to the force required to stop the car,

you're assuming two different cars with the same power but different weight can achieve the same speed on a straightaway. you have to take mass of the car into consideration too. i'll post up some calculations after dinner.

big brakes are about heat dissipation. heat, like momentum is just energy. your brakes transfer one to the other. your engine puts in a certain amount of energy along the straight away that has to be dissipated at the end.

[MrChow]

Originally Posted by Nikeboy355

Just get new pads and change the fluid...

I personally track with stock calipers, Autozone rotors, and Carbotech XP10 race pads...

^^ Ditto. I auto-x more then the track.
I stop faster then my friend that as a SR power S13 with Z32 brakes. He went cheap on his pads. I run stock brakes with blanks and portfields RS-4 with SS and clean fluid.

Brembo Frequently Asked Questions
Read up.

[zeroskater1028]

i went with 180sx calipers. About $100 and 1" bigger than stock. plus rotors and pads should be about 200 or so.

[wangan_cruiser]

can you still use your ss lines from stock caliper by swapping it with a q45 caliper?

[Tearlessj]

Originally Posted by Enjin

judd- you have the equipment to redrill the q45 brakes? I lost your number when I got this new phone... hit me up.

Yea, its just a 1/2" drill bit. I still have the brakes off my parts car if you want them for $10 or food. I'll PM you my number. (No homo)

[noshow]

with z32's size is a bitch lol, i ordered the wrong size rotors the first time around come to find out i had 26mm alum calipers, bastards sent me the same ones i sent them back, then finally shipped mine out, took me like 3 weeks.

[MrChow]

Originally Posted by wangan_cruiser

can you still use your ss lines from stock caliper by swapping it with a q45 caliper?

Yes. They use the same line.

[projectRDM]

Originally Posted by Tearlessj

Yea, its just a 1/2" drill bit. I still have the brakes off my parts car if you want them for $10 or food. I'll PM you my number. (No homo)

I always go up to a 9/16" to make sure, you have a little more room for error on the holes that way. Since the rotor is hubcentric you're not hurting it by going bigger on three of the holes and you're guaranteed correct alignment.

[SilviaSR20DET]

I had brake fad problems with my stock calipers but it mightve been a leak in the system.