Custom front and rear big brake kit

Denver_whiteST185

New member
well, i would want the hats to work with these (or something with the same specs - 297x32)

http://www.racingbrake.com/LEXUS_FRONT_ ... 01-351.htm

if they bolted on to the hat, and could be centered correctly, st205 front calipers would be a bolt on application. the only thing really needed for the rear 205 brakes would be a custom ring to adjust the bore, which would be easy to machine, and you can get rear st205 rotors for $100/rotor through www.japanparts.com
 

Luni

New member
John, tell your buddy to get off his ass and make these kits for people.

He could make a bit of money for this.

There are quite a few swapped 5th gen celicas and alltracs running around.
 

Denver_whiteST185

New member
gt4rcdude":2i38maxk said:
Denver_whiteST185":2i38maxk said:
well, i would want the hats to work with these (or something with the same specs - 297x32)

http://www.racingbrake.com/LEXUS_FRONT_ ... 01-351.htm

These rotors are $100 a pair more than the Wilwoods', FYI.

thats why i said something with the same specs would work too :)

that size rotors will let the ST205 calipers bolt on, provided they are centered and everything. i have measurements somewhere of the stock st205 front rotors if needed, and the guy who has my old set now could probably take new measurements of the rotors and the calipers if you need to know specific specs.

i really doubt i would be in the market anytime soon, but there are people who want better brakes who would be buyers on those hats. it would make it easy to let anyone can make a cheap big brake kit especially if they use the stock calipers kinda like the powerslot kits. if you asked, you could probably get some old stock rotors donated to start a "core" program or something.
 

gt4rcdude

New member
Gotcha.

I learned the hat is the key. Had we made a custom unit, we could have stayed on the same "plain" as the original rotor. A small advantage of moving the rotor back .200" was giving extra clearance for the caliper. In moving the rotor back we had to stick with the 25mm thickness. Too many clearance issues in all directions to try a 32mm.

With the price and availability of 205 calipers I went with the Wilwoods. The weight reduction was a huge bonus. We just didn't have the time or will to make custom hats. I originally wanted to use 205 calipers. They're drop dead beautiful. Wilwood had blueprint type drawings online. I didn't have a set of 205's to measure and I sure wasn't going to buy a set not knowing they'd work. With the dollar worth as much as a peso overseas it was just too cost prohibitive.
 

Denver_whiteST185

New member
gt4rcdude":3damklvb said:
Gotcha.

I learned the hat is the key. Had we made a custom unit, we could have stayed on the same "plain" as the original rotor. A small advantage of moving the rotor back .200" was giving extra clearance for the caliper. In moving the rotor back we had to stick with the 25mm thickness. Too many clearance issues in all directions to try a 32mm.

With the price and availability of 205 calipers I went with the Wilwoods. The weight reduction was a huge bonus. We just didn't have the time or will to make custom hats. I originally wanted to use 205 calipers. They're drop dead beautiful. Wilwood had blueprint type drawings online. I didn't have a set of 205's to measure and I sure wasn't going to buy a set not knowing they'd work. With the dollar worth as much as a peso overseas it was just too cost prohibitive.

well, the beauty of having custom made hats is that if someone wants to do something compleatly different, like STI or EVO brembos, porsche monoblocks, wilwoods, whatever. this way they'll just need a rotor ring that suits that application, make a bracket for their calipers if nessissary, and wala, they can upgrade their brakes, and if they want to make it fit under 15" wheels, 16" wheels, or they HAVE to have the biggest kit money can buy, they can get some huge 10 piston custom calipers. it would really open up options and make it easier for a DIYer since there aren't that many options for our cars.
 

gt4rcdude

New member
Fronts are done!


frontdone3.jpg

frontdone4.jpg


The last of the rear stuff is arriving tomorrow. With any kind of luck I'll be testing this weekend.
 

88st165

New member
wow :shock: amazing work!

what kind of driving are you doing that would require brakes of this magnitude?

is 17" the minimum dia wheel you can use?
 

gt4rcdude

New member
It's a wrap! Stick a fork in it! Done. Finished.

Good god that was hard work and a lot of headache. But boy was it worth it. It's ridiculous the braking power. The car stops HARD!!!

Here's the rear bracket:
rearbracket3.jpg

rearbracket2.jpg

rearbracket1.jpg


Here's the back of the rear brakes safety wired up with my feet in the background :) :
rearbrakewired.jpg


And here's the finished product!!!!!!

Fronts:

frontdone6.jpg

frontdone5.jpg

frontdone7.jpg


Rears:

reardone2.jpg

reardone3.jpg

reardone1.jpg


And of course the whole car:

wholecar.jpg


I'd like to thank my friends Randy and Lisa. I couldn't have asked for better friends. Randy is an amazing machinist who's level of precision astounds me. I'm owe him big time.
 

gt4rcdude

New member
88st165":310w97sr said:
wow :shock: amazing work!

what kind of driving are you doing that would require brakes of this magnitude?

is 17" the minimum dia wheel you can use?

Oops, posted the pics before I answered. Yep. 17's work fine. It might work with 16's but you'd need a wheel with big caliper clearance. Heck I coulda used a 335mm rotor! I tried my old 17 inch wheels and they foul the front caliper.
 

lumbercis

Moderator
I'm confused.

Isn't there a bolt on wilwood kit that fits without all the fabbing? What do you get out of doing it this way (besides stock e-brake functioning)?

J.
 

gt4rcdude

New member
lumpbercis":300daunk said:
I'm confused.

Isn't there a bolt on wilwood kit that fits without all the fabbing? What do you get out of doing it this way (besides stock e-brake functioning)?

J.


Is there a bolt on kit? Yes, for the better kit, front and rear it's $3500.00. I did it for half. But for those that sell the systems, I can understand why they charge what they charge. It's a huge amount of work.

What do you get out of this? I picked a huge front caliper with a large, strong structure without concerns for clearing lots of different wheels. I picked a piston size closer to stock. Moving the caliper out already gives you a mechanical advantage. I think going with a bigger piston is not worth the extra pedal travel. I chose a rear caliper that is a closer to the stock size, eliminating brake bias headaches. I can go directly to the source for replacement parts. I have the OEM parking brake. Plus, it was kinda fun in a sick way!

I bedded in the system yesterday and the power is ridiculous. Easy to modulate, rock hard pedal and no bias issues. It seems to get better every time I apply the brakes. I have around 1-2" of pedal throw and I feel like I'm pushing on concrete. I'm sure the stickier/wider tires play a part. Fade is non-existent. I have no doubt it will continue to improve the next 50 miles or so.
 

fhalperformance

New member
I have the wilwood front and rear superlite big brake kit and they arent quite bolt on. The seperate caliper for the e-brake was a pain but I love the look of it. The only pictures I can find of them right now is at a horrible angle so Im going to look for some better ones.

How much did this end up costing you total?
 

gt4rcdude

New member
New OEM/Brembo front rotors: $80
New OEM/Toyota rear rotors: $160
First order from Wilwood: $450. (4 discs)
Second order from Wilwood: $700. (2 discs, minus 2 returned,4 calipers, pads.)
Brake lines and fittings: $130.
Hardware, A-N or Grade 8 :$80
Shipping of hubs/parts to NJ and back: $200

Pain and suffering: incalculable
Help from my friend/machinist: priceless
Resultant performance and appearance value: $1,000,000

Not a direct cost but,

Wheels with large caliper clearance: $1250 (4 plus 1 for a spare)
New tires: $700 (4 plus spare)

More for appearance:

H&R spacer $125
Professional fender rolling $200 (money well spent)

I flew twice to NJ to help (although I fly for free) and rental car once.

I can't begin to tell you how good this setup works. Bias is spot on. I've got essentially stock brake pedal throw but with solid feel at the bottom, tremendous power with zero fade, easily replaceable components and what I think is a killer looking package. It was even more than I'd hoped for.
 
Top