Just wondering if the mods to the brake system are mind blowing for those who have done it.
thx

 

Bart,

Yes, trust me on this one . We have a few C32's running around w/ front and rear Brembo kits, and they definitely notice the improvements in braking power and unsprung weight. Let's add this to our offline discussion..

Thanks,

Ben

 

definitly worth every penny of it. i don't think many people have gotten front + rear brembos except for me, but, you'll feel so much improvement in brake feel. im planning on going to willow spring in the near future.

Jerry

 

I've long considered adding a Stoptech 355 mm front brake kit to my car, but I haven't done so yet and with some luck I won't be forced into having it installed.

Remember that if you have sufficient brake torque to cause ABS activation of all four wheels adding more brake torque will not cause you to stop any faster, as your tires already would be exerting maximum braking friction upon the road. Where BBKs really help is in track type situations when you need to repeatedly get hard on the brakes and as a result the entire braking system heats up. BBKs are designed to be able to shed heat better and withstand greater amounts of heat, but you will still need to brake correctly to maximize thier effectiveness. Constantly riding the brakes will cause even a good BBK system to eventually over heat.

In my situation, I've installed stainless steel brake lines, changed the brake fluid to ATE Type 200 (same as SuperBlue, just stock color), and I now have new brake pads as well. I've tracked the C32 once and cause brake deposits to form on the stock rotors so now I also have new stock rotors. IMHO if I had put on track pads instead of having stock pads when I did the track run the brakes probably would have survived the 2-day DE. If my current set-up (plus high temperature pads for the track) survives my next track event I won't do any more upgrades to the brake system.

Of course, the full BBK would have given more margin, but the pads, fluid, and lines are so much cheaper. Note that BBK installation may also require new wheels and/or spacers to ensure the BBK hardware clears the current wheels. Unless you want the look of the BBK, or you know the BBK parts are lighter and you want to reduce unsprung weight, you may want to first try upgrading the lines, pads, and fluid and seeing whether that helps.

Incidentally my brakes feel much better now, however, that was the function of the brand new Axxis Deluxe pads that was recently installed. The lines were suppose to also improve brake feel, but neither myself nor my friend who had them installed in his E46 M3 noticed any difference from just the lines.

 

cscshow,

Where did you get your axxis pads? I am interested in getting some for my track events. Can you point me to someone. Thanks.

Prasith

 

Prasith32:

I sent you a PM regarding your question.

 

Unless you track the car more than 3 times a year or canyon carve on a weekly basis, I would say NO. Most peope that have these kits havent ever seen a track, and only want them for the WOW factor. Honestly I love the way they look, but I believe most get them for the looks rather than the need for improved performance.

Theres no doubt that you get improved fade resistance, and some weight savings with a BBK, but for most people, the stock setup is more than adequate.

If you have thousands to dump, go for it. But why not buy your parents a nice vacation instead?

 

Most people seem to think that Brembo kits are only for the track, and that the only major benefit is fade resistance. This is not the case! I, and anyone else who has had a Brembo GT kit on their car, can attest that they make a noticable difference in stopping power on the street. Heck, with my front and rear kit, I can make people nearly blackout when I hit the brakes. The fact that they look awesome and save weight is just icing on the cake.

 

Have you tested stopping distances for the BBk's Vs. the stock C32 setup? Id bet you wouldnt see much difference if any, definetly not worth $5,000 of a difference for a "street" mod.

 

Have you tested stopping distances for the BBk's Vs. the stock C32 setup? Id bet you wouldnt see much difference if any, definetly not worth $5,000 of a difference for a "street" mod.

 

Guilty your honor! The stopping power is almost as good as fred flinstones feet!

 

A couple feet could easily be the difference between a near-miss and an accident. How much of a difference is necessary to make it worthwhile?

It is a common misconception, probably developed by people focusing on one benefit of Brembo's, rather than all of the benefits, that they are only worthwhile if you track the car. I hardly track my car, yet after owning a set of Brembos I will put a Brembo kit on any car I ever own. In fact, they are so much better than stock, that any time I drive a non-Brembo equipped car, I find myself having to changing my braking habits to avoid not stopping in time.

I think anyone you will find with a Brembo 2-piece GT kit will tell you the same as I have. If you are ever in our area, feel free to come by and try them out for yourself.

Thanks,

Ben

 

It is interesting to note that most Mags, including European Car, that have reviewed BBK's vs. Stock brakes have noticed that the BBK kits on several occations required more feet in which to stop the vehicle rather than less feet during the first few test stops.

There is always the psychologigal miscalculation that what feels like better stopping power, must be shorter stopping distance and this is just not true. Most high peformance cars like the C32 or M3 will outbrake or brake within the same distance of a BBK on the first few stops. Only after repeated back to back testing do the BBK's show better results, not in reduced stopping distances, but repeatability: The fact that the car can stop at a certain foot number multiple times without fade or increased stopping distances.

Another fallacy with most tests is that the stock brake system almost always runs stock pads and the BBK's run upgrades pads. Install the same pads on the C32 (or a MINI or Golf) as the BBK and run the test again. The differential will be smaller in repeatability. How does one define "braking power, or stopping power"? You can slice the pie several ways. If we are not talking track/canyon/aggressive driving, but street driving, when you only need to brake hard once before the brakes cool down again, the benefits are useless in terms of "power". Unsprung weight is another thing and beneficial to the handling dynamics of the vehicle.

Did you read about the new ride that Brembo has developed in a joint venture with Legoland? You sit in a Lego race car and are accelerated to full speed as you approach an ominous Lego brick wall, and just when you think you are going to crash, the sixteen piston Brembos on the cars slam on the brakes and save you from the impending collision. The name of the ride is "Black Out".
Unfortunately, the ride recently closed down to numerous brain hematomas developing several hours after customers were removed from their cars in an unconscious state.

 

brake fade article using bbk vs stock vs stock + better pads on c/d 9/2002

u don't c the chart for the numbers...but on average... 40-0 street stopping is about the same... 70-0 u start to see a few feet here and there better than stock, with max difference about 10 ft... its really when u get high speeds 90-0 u see the difference in distance, up to 30 ft shorter with bbk's.... repeated stops from highspeeds are out of the question better with the bbk's..

 

For most people BBK are automotive jewelry and I think a good idea for people who have HRE wheels or such that expose the brakes like that. A very attractive alternative to the ugly stock Benz brakes.

Performance wise putting mega sticky tires on the car will make a bigger difference. If one wants to save a couple of feet on stopping distances then tires are the upgrade of choice. Of course, that sort of tire is often noisier.

Most controlled tests of BBK vs. stock brakes show that the benefit comes after many high speed stops. Fade creeps into the stock systems and the BBK systems just don't fade.

 

you cant compare a stock brake package to a quality upgraded kit,comparing a stock brake set-up that are equipped with a pad providing good initial bite is one thing, but use that pad for a period of hard driving and it will turn to **** along with the rotors,brembo or any quality upgraded kit will give the same quality of performance consistantly long after stock stuff has heated up and the pedal turned to mush, its not the performance on the first lap that counts, its the last lap or the long runs that makes the difference in a quality set-up