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Thread: Front brake upgrade options

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    Front brake upgrade options

    Hi, after much searching I’ve not been able to find a definite answer in terms of brake upgrades. I’ve read that M3 discs fit or possibly Merc ML discs but don’t want to guess and order the wrong ones..
    Front brakes are standard and am looking to either fit larger discs and make spacers for standard calipers. OR I have brembo calipers at work from an Alfa 147 GTA 330mm and am wondering if these are the same as 350z, evo... surely brembos are brembos?
    If someone can point me in the right direction of what parts I need I wiould be very grateful. Thanks J

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    350z and R33GTR Front calipers are the same size, Evo 5-9 are bigger. You need adaptors to run 315mm/330mm discs and standard calipers.

    I went balls out with the best 4 Pot "OEM" setup but it isn't cheap. I have Evo 5-9 front calipers, 350mm Evo X discs, EBC Yellowstuff pads and Alpha Omega billet adaptors. You will need a BM57 brake master cylinder if you upgrade the front brakes though.

    Shameless plug....I have a 330mm front disc conversion (brackets and discs) for sale, also an unused 345mm evo caliper adapter kit but not sure where the fixings are at this time so it's just the discs, brackets and I think braided lines

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    Guest stoofer's Avatar
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    350Z Brembo front calipers require drilling out the mounting holes on the knuckle, and braided lines, but are otherwise a straight fit, use 350Z discs, and they're readily available. Using a bracket, modified pads and odd discs is too much faff for me, so I swapped out recently for 350Z brembos.

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    The cheaper option for Evo size brembos is Megane 3 RS calipers and custom adapters.
    Refurbished/new calipers are quite cheap example
    plus Megane 3 rs disks again dirt cheap example and straight fit.
    Plenty of pads options.

    There was someone here selling adapters for these calipers, cant find the thread, tho...

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    Thanks for the replies guys, what size are the 350z discs and Megane discs?

    I also found a guide online yesterday someone fitting subara STI calipers with EVO discs, they are 320mm. Seems to be common a bolt on evo discs with any similar Caliper

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    Wasn't there a Brembo caliper from an Alfa that was also similar sized to the Evo ones?
    Pretty sure I remember someone saying the pads were identical.

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    Quote Originally Posted by R3K1355 View Post
    Wasn't there a Brembo caliper from an Alfa that was also similar sized to the Evo ones?
    Pretty sure I remember someone saying the pads were identical.
    That’s what I’m thinking, I saw brake pads listed for a brembo Caliper and one was for an Alfa, but not sure if the pads are the same but possibly the casting of the Caliper is slightly different for fitment. This would save me buying a set as we have used calipers on the shelf here, just need to know for sure!

    Failing that the Megane setup looks the best bang for buck, 340mm!! Do the discs definitely bolt straight on? I don’t mind making some Caliper brackets up. Also will I need to upgrade the master cylinder? Sorry for all the questions ��

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    The Alfa should be the 166 TI as it's quite a heavy boat

    The Megane discs are 5x114.3 with center bore of 66.1mm, so the same size as the Nissan s14/skyline etc.. hub. Probably the offset will be different than 350z or Evo discs. Knowing what range of ET rims fit to these Meganes I would assume the offset of the brake disks will be bigger than the one of RWD cars.
    As for BMC, I would definitely go with bm50 or bm58, although the rear brakes should be upgraded too (to two piston), as the brake bias will be way off.

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    Graphics Guru Davus200's Avatar
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    The best setup I've had was Merc ML500 345mm discs with Carbone Lorraine RC5+ pads on the standard calipers.... The spacers were from a DB Power kit from back in the day, but would be easy enough to make.

    https://www.bremboparts.com/europe/e...75/000016150-1

    I'm now running a Tarox 6 pot setup, I need to upgrade my master cylinder I think to get the best out of them.
    Last edited by Davus200; 14-02-2020 at 12:19.

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    Quote Originally Posted by jay200sxx View Post
    Thanks for the replies guys, what size are the 350z discs and Megane discs?

    I also found a guide online yesterday someone fitting subara STI calipers with EVO discs, they are 320mm. Seems to be common a bolt on evo discs with any similar Caliper
    324 for 350Z Brembos, 340 for Megane.

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    Quote Originally Posted by m17ch View Post
    The Alfa should be the 166 TI as it's quite a heavy boat

    The Megane discs are 5x114.3 with center bore of 66.1mm, so the same size as the Nissan s14/skyline etc.. hub. Probably the offset will be different than 350z or Evo discs. Knowing what range of ET rims fit to these Meganes I would assume the offset of the brake disks will be bigger than the one of RWD cars.
    As for BMC, I would definitely go with bm50 or bm58, although the rear brakes should be upgraded too (to two piston), as the brake bias will be way off.

    Theres quite a few Alfa models that have brembos- 166 3.2, GTV has 305mm smaller brembo then the 156/147 GTA have 330mm brembos with an adapter bracket. So am unsure which one would possibly be compatible to make fit a 200sx

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    Loved my k sport front and z32 rear setup when i had my 200. You could stand on those brakes all day no fade ignoring brake boards. But thats a whole different budget proposition I suppose.

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    Quote Originally Posted by stoofer View Post
    350Z Brembo front calipers require drilling out the mounting holes on the knuckle, and braided lines, but are otherwise a straight fit, use 350Z discs, and they're readily available. Using a bracket, modified pads and odd discs is too much faff for me, so I swapped out recently for 350Z brembos.
    Drilling the hubs out is an afternoons work and definitly worth the hassle for the 350z set up. Then when pads and discs require replacing its a straight swap.

    I did use the db power kit to run the ML discs, but i found it to be a lot of hassle for not a lot of gain. And when the dics/pads require replacing you need to drill out the center bore on the disc and get pads from an aston martin and even then they dont fit 100% perfect.

    Just my 2 pence

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    Folks, I'm bumping this thread because I'm seeking similar advice. I think one of my front calipers is goosed, so I've started to think about an upgrade rather than a rebuild.

    I'm after a fairly simple bolt on upgrade and I know that the established, tried and tested route is Z32 front and rear calipers (plus handbrake assemblies). However, trying to source a full set of calipers is a bit difficult, which is not surprising given how long in the tooth the Z32 is.

    Therefore my options appear to be for the front:

    - Z33 Brembo calipers and discs, then drill the mounting holes to 14 mm, as outlined earlier in the thread;

    Though alternative options for the rear seem a bit thinner on the ground. Can anyone advise if

    - are Subaru Impreza STi Brembos a bolt on option, with Z32 discs (as inferred by some overseas forums)?

    Cheers

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    I <3 BBS LM Actual_Ben_Taylor's Avatar
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    Direct bolt-on rear upgrade options are only really Z32, R33 and R34 (early GTR models only).

    I've not seen the Impreza calipers fitted on an S14 before.

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    Stock Impreza callipers IIRC might be the same as S14, which might help answer that.

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    Guest cess's Avatar
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    Thanks guys, useful info. There's a full R33 GTR set up on eBay at the moment. But it's not the kick on the ass off the price of a new off the shelf big brake kit!

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    K Sports are a bolt on upgrade and better value.

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    Holy christ. They're not. When I bought mine they were £800. Now I can't spec the same set for less than £1300.

    What happened?

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    I fitted r33 gtr brembo fronts with z32 rears with a bm57 bmc and I’m really really happy with them. Far better than my 345mm willwoods and other upgrade kits I had before.

    Got mine last year and the full set of front and rear brembos came nowhere close to the prices mentioned above.
    1998 Nissan 200sx s14a , 2000 std 5 speed with nismo supercoppermix clutch bn6 Sapphire Blue

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