What is a good big brake kit for a 1995 FD? I am interested in buying one this winter and I need ideas

 

If your needs are not too extreme, you can go with the Mandeville Big brake kit.

For about $1000, Roger Mandeville modifies your stock calipers to accept larger rotors. See: http://www.rx7turboturbo.com/robrobinette/bigbrake.htm

 

for this reply. I've heard of this kit, but haven't read much about it. It sounds like a great bargain for $1000. I NOW have a perfectly rational excuse to go ahead with buying the SSR Comps next season! The Mandeville brake kit REQUIRES 17-inch diameter wheels. This means I'll need 2 sets of SSR Comp wheels--a set for road racing and and another for the street (...ARDT2, are you reading?), since both of my current wheel sets are 16-inch diameters (Street--SSR Integral A2s--16x8 and Road Racing--Kosei K1--16x8.5)!

 

The M2 wilwood kit is a great setup and fits under the stock wheels. Cant really go wrong with any M2's or Nick's brake kits.

 

The Wilwood calipers have no dust seals so it needs a rebuild once a year or so. It's a great value though. The NTech, M2, etc.. big brake kits are good and light. The large Mov'It Porsche brakes are great but heavier than stock.

M2 has those new f/r kit. Wait for them to complete the e-brake option and it'll be an awesome streetable package.

 

The Wilwoods have to be rebuilt every year?! How do you know when to rebuilt them? I've had mine for 2 1/2 years with no issues - they feel like new. Maybe for guys that track their cars every weekend ?!

 

- Fried is about to blow big mula into a BBK for a FD, what are the best to get and how hard ( custom fabricatio ) .... prices and such would be nice too.

 

in your neck of the woods check out [b]KVR Performance in Ottawa[b] They have their own stuff and brand name kits (Brembo, AP Racing, etc...).

Most 13" rotor - 4piston bbk run USD$2900. May need 17"+ wheels to clear caliper. 6-piston runs more, need even bigger wheels, and prolly a larger master cylinder

 

Wicked ...... done & done

 

off to big brakes section

 

www.ultimategarage.com

 

Ultimate Garage = Mov'It = modified Porsche brakes. Very nice but higher unsprung weight than the others. Pricing is similar.

UNLESS.....they release a version of the new 996 Turbo ceramic matrix rotors.

 

I've ordered '99 Type RS FD calipers and rotors for Fr/Rr, but did not order '99 Type RS FD backing plates. Do the old '93-'95 FD backing plates fit the new '99 Type RS FD rotors?

What are the Type RS FD rotor dimensions? I heard they were 12.4 inches in diameter and 1.25 inches thick Fr/Rr? I presume both calipers and rotors are larger, as the Type RS brakes REQUIRE 17-inch diameter wheels for adequate clearance?

Thanks in advance.

 

Manny,
No answers to your questions, just some of my own
Did you go through Mazda Comp? If so, how much were they total? Just curious since it seems like a nice upgrade, but how does it compare to the aftermarket brake systems in terms of price.

Tim Benton

 

The '99 FD Type RS brakes are $1474.20 for Fr/Rr calipers and rotors, and 4 front caliper pins from Mazda Comp. I also ordered new stainless steel DOT lines for $60.

I just found the dimensions--12.4 inches Fr/Rr rotor diameters, 1.25 inches thick for the fronts, and 0.79 inches thick for the rears (no real change in thickness for the rears).

I spoke with Sylvain Tremblay of Speed Source, and he says the current pads for the FD are compatible with the '99 FD Type RS calipers and rotors (woo hoo!).

 

Duane Krumwiede says his cooling ducts will work with the '99 Type RS brakes.

Just as well since Mazda Comp has no part numbers for replacing the backing plates...either the US model car backing plates work with the J-spec '99 FD RS, or people are just removing the backing plates and installing the '99 RS brake calipers and rotors?

I'll find out when I have to get into it...

 

So the swept area on the rotor is the same, thus allowing you to use the same pads..correct? So you have more mass, allowing the rotor to absorb more heat, also the caliper/pad is further out, giving it a better ....hell its late and I can't think of the term for it.I think Mandeville had something like this where he used the stock caliper but a larger rotor, but since the rotor was larger, making the caliper be further from the center or something like that, same term as above that I can't think of. Either way its an upgrade that seems reasonable in price.
As far as the CWC brake ducts, I don't see how they could work, or work as well as they do on the stock rotors. If the rotor surface itself is further away from the hub, then the ducts opening where it allows air onto the rotor would NOT be in the same spot on the new 99 rotors, it would be more toward the middle of the rotor on the larger rotor, thus not really cooling the entire surface, just the inner part of the rotor surface. Also, what about the unequal cooling of the surface, where the outter area isn't being cooled by the duct opening, but the inner section is, does the outer section get to hot but with the inner section being cool lead to any weird deformation of the rotor due to the expanding and contracting hot and cold surfaces, cracks, etc.?


Tim Benton

 

Now Duane more than likely can make a custom set for the 99 rotor if he has the dimensions, and if so, then that would be great, but I don't see how the ones made for the stock FD would work all that well on the 99 rotor for the reasons I posted above.

Tim Benton

 

Tim,

Correct, swept area is the same, but more rotor material to heat sink the friction energy and decrease brake fade (exactly all I'm looking for!).

The '99 Type RS brakes effectively render the Mandeville "upgrade" obsolete, as you can get 4 larger rotors and calipers for just about 1.5 times more money, OR just the front '99 Type RS brakes for $843.20! AND, you can keep your original brakes parts as spares!

The CWC brake ducts are supposed to suck air into the "eye" of the rotor, and vent the heat OUT of the rotor fins, based on the posts I've read here on the forum (no direct experience with them myself)

The problems I see with Duane's ducts are lack of air movement in the front wheel wells and durability. Duane's duct design will work very well for open-wheel formula cars but won't do much for closed fender cars, I'm afraid. The composite material Duane's using probably won't hold up as well as the stock stainless steel backing plates will.

My sponsor looked at Duane's ducts online...he says he can fabricate better ducts by modifying my stock front backing plates and welding duct piping and attaching ducting hose from the piping to my R1's front air damn brake ducts. I'll have to modify the backing plates anyway to fit the larger thicker front rotors from the '99 Type RS brakes, so, why not try this project??!! With better front brake cooling, I can use softer compound brake pads, like EBC greens all around, WITHOUT having to swap brake pads at the track!

BTW, the EBC Greens are low dust, low rotor wear, Carbon Kevlar compound streetable pads, and are good up to 1000 F--100 F higher than HP Plus and 100 F lower than Hawk Black...(my current track pads). No brainer product for "lazy" track enthusasts like me

We're doing the brake ducts as an Autosport Outfitters project, and may offer them to other Mazda FD owners, once we get the prototypes done on my car

 

I still dream of having the Mitch Piper brake duct vents and ducting (looked alot like Downings ducting on the 4 rotor race car) he did for Jim O'Briens' old car. What is he driving nowadays? Do you know?
As far as the durability of Duane's ducts, mine seem to be holding up very well, although thats with no hard track time, just some moderate mountain driving. The constuction of them was nicely done, although I had to notch out one of the rivets on the "backing plate" where the ducts is riveted into it. It was rubbing on my rotor and annoying the hell out of me.

Let us know how the brakes work out.

Tim Benton

 

Manny, that sounds like a very nice setup, and an outstanding bargain. I think I might get the rears to help balance out my big front kit that is on the way. I look forward to hearing about your installation experiences.

It seems like the swept area will be larger since the rotor is has a larger diameter. Remember the swept area is the rotor area swept by the pads, not just the pad area itself.

-Max

 

Max,

Thanks for clarifying "swept area". I always thought it was just the pad area

We'll see how the Type 99 FD RS brake install goes...FWIW, I won't be doing the work...just supervising and being a PITA for PaulyDee, who WILL BE DOING THE WORK

 

Let us know if its a DIY type job. I still have a hard time imagining what Max said since the pads surface area, whether its on the stock rotor or the 99 rotor, will still be the same. The rotor might be larger, but I think the area that is swept by the pad will still be the same, from the hub/hat area to the edge of the rotor will be the same, just that that area will be further from the hub. For example, the stock rotor have 2.625 inches from the hat ending area to the edge of the rotor, but the hat ending area is 3.25 inches from the center of the hub, for a total of rotor diameter of 11.75inches. The new rotor has the same 2.625 area as above but, the hat area is increased to 3.5xx inch radius, thus making the rotor dia the 12.4 Manny listed above. If thats that case and I believe it is since the same size stock pads from a 93-95 are being used in the 99 caliper, then the swept area is the same. Am I misreading what Max wrote or am I off in another locked paddock with a rotary with not cats running, thereby be clouding my reasoning

Tim Benton

 

Tim,

I did the geometry to calculate swept areas for both US and '99 RS rotors, using the rotor diameters, and the front pad contact width of 2 inches.

The swept area for the stock US spec front rotors is 33.3 square inches, the swept area for the '99 FD Type RS is 35.8 sqaure inches... Max is correct...although someone should check my "math"

ML

 

Damn, I see my mistake now so I guess I was locked in an enclosed paddock with an untuned 3rd gen with no cats. From my senario above, I am correct but as you pointed out with your post just now, the pad size didn't change but the rotor being bigger means theres a little more rotor surface that has to be swept compared to stock.

Thanks for the clarification and opening the paddock door for me.

Tim Benton