maxcooper

I have the 13" AP 4-piston kit, and I weighed it out as 22.5 lbs per side, including caliper, bracket, pads, rotor, hat, and all the hardware.

-Max

Howard Coleman

iTrader: (6)

there is a point of overkill as to brakes. i run the M2 AP fronts with EBC pads. prior to installing them i ran a number of track days at Brainerd (Mn) road racing track which features a 6000 foot straight that you enter onto at around 65 mph. the end of the straight is a daytona type 90 degree wide radiused banked turn that you don't have to lift for. (fun). my friend frank bennett probably set the top speed record spin for an rx7 (over 165 mph) in turn 1. after scrubbing off 20 mph in turn 1 and a short straight a flat wide 90 degree turn rushes at your front windshield. turn 2 is a turn that you better not underestimate lest you find yourself in north dakota upsidedown after a trip thru the forest. i remember a fairly full race turbo porch-a taking that trip. turn 2 is a white knuckle 135 in my fd. then you build up speed before getting to the twisty backside of the track. that's where brakes enter the picture. turn 3 is a huge pulldown from 150 or so to 55 mph. turn 3 is followed by 5 other 2nd gear maximum braking turns. whether you have enough brakes depends on how hard you drive. i will always remember my first track outing at Blackhawk Farms with my gt3 scca car. i thought my brakes were fantastic. (they were crap. i just wasn't going fast enough to know). i have participated in 7 track days at brainerd and have yet to be beaten. until i swapped my front brakes to the AP setup i had to be careful with them and give up some time. i was planning to build some trick thru the center of the backside of the rotor air ducts etc. once i hit the track w the APs i forgot about ducting. actually i forgot about brakes. i use them as hard as i want.. no fade. so do i need more than a 13X1.25 inch rotor? nope, it is just more rotating unsprung weight. and thanks to the aluminum hat the entire assembly weighs less than stock!! when i get the time i will junk the abs and install a tilton brake proportioning setup. going fast at the track w a front engine rear drive car is all about being able to use more rear brakes. BTW, for those on a budget wanting a no compromise brake setup i recommend Roger Mandeville's front brake upgrade. it is correctly premised on the conclusion that the only thing wrong w the fd brakes is that the front rotor is too small. roger adds a 13X1.25 Coleman rotor and spaces out the excellent fd 4 piston caliper. a really smart setup. add some EBC pads and spend your money on something else.
howard coleman

alberto_mg

howard - thanks for the info. where can one find Roger Mandeville's setup and how much is it? Is it just the rotor and a caliper bracket? Does it work with stock rims?

-Alberto

rynberg

Roger widens the calipers. It requires 17" wheels. Crispy has a nice write-up (scroll down):

http://reganrotaryracing.tripod.com/gcmande.htm

Howard Coleman

iTrader: (6)

roger and nancy mandeville mandeville auto tech spartanburg s c 972 831 8111 i have yet to meet 2 finer people. roger, along w jim downing, amos johnson and racing beat out west, put mazda on the racing map in the usa . i don't think roger has a website.
as far as the setup: the kit includes a really super 13X1.25 inch rotor, aluminum hat, a caliper mounting bracket since you'll need to locate your mazda caliper further outboard to fit the larger rotor. roger then widens your stock calipers to fit the significantly thicker rotor. that's kind of tricky as there are short brake lines envolved. i suggest you run a set of EBC green brakepads on the street and for mild track sessions. when you want to really rip switch to EBC yellow pads. if you talk to either roger or nancy please say hello.
howard coleman

GoodfellaFD3S

iTrader: (213)

Great info, thanks Howard .

alberto_mg

thanks for the info rynberg and howard. out of my price range, but interesting nonetheless.

i don't want to think how much it costs to replace the rotor when it wears out...

BATMAN

Damian, more people should follow your lead in crisp pictures with good details from various angles and fonts with pointers.

I commend you.

Have a good Gobble gobble day.

Flybye

Yeah, the Porsche kit is a bit bigger than the stockers.....

dclin

iTrader: (4)

Just FYI, the total bill for all four corners for the RZ/RS spec brake kit GB with custom 2 piece rotors (2 piece rotors, front OE RZ/RS spec aluminum calipers with differential bore pistons, rear calipers with parking brake - same specs as US model) came out to around $2000 total, depending on options chosen. Not a bad deal in the grand scheme of things.

The buy allowed for one to chose if they wanted just the front parts, rear parts, or just individual rotors (if one had RZ/RS calipers already. Thanks for the pics damian!

Flybye - jeezus, what size rotors go with them calipers?!

damian

iTrader: (2)

thanks :-)

damian

iTrader: (2)

dclin, the same rotors in the pics that i started this thread with you goof LOL...... the 'biggest' ones ones obviously

OC94Rx7

Nice side by side photo's and information guys

Look forward to your write up damian

//Oliver

damian

iTrader: (2)

thanks oliver, as soon as the calipers come in ill do a 'install' post with pics

dclin

iTrader: (4)

DOH! Demote me to newb, please.

damian

iTrader: (2)

:-) he he