Brakes: How to buy brake upgrades?

[f1anatic]

ARRANGED BY DRY BOILING POINT:

 

DRY:401F -- WET:284F --- DOT3 MINIMUM (GLYCOL BASE)

DRY:446F -- WET:311F --- DOT4 MINIMUM (GLYCOL BASE)

DRY:500F -- WET:356F --- DOT5 MINIMUM (SILICONE BASE)

DRY:500F -- WET:356F --- DOT5.1 MINIMUM (GLYCOL BASE)

DRY:527F -- WET:302F --- AP RACING 551 ($12.95/0.5L OR 16.9 OZ)

DRY:527F -- WET:347F --- VALVOLINE SYNPOWER DOT3 & DOT4

DRY:536F -- WET:392F --- ATE SUPERBLUE/TYP200 ($9.95/1L)

DRY:550F -- WET:284F --- FORD HEAVY DUTY DOT 3 ($4/12 OZ)

DRY:570F -- WET:284F --- WILWOOD 570 ($5.65/12 OZ)

DRY:570F -- WET:284F --- PERFORMANCE Friction Z rated ($6.27/16 OZ)

DRY:590F -- WET:410F --- AP RACING 600 ($16.95/0.5L OR 16.9 OZ)

DRY:590F -- WET:518F --- CASTROL SRF ($69.00/1L 0R 33.8 OZ)

DRY:593F -- WET:420F --- MOTUL RBF600 ($12.95/0.5L OR 16.9 OZ)

DRY:601F -- WET:399F --- BREMBO LCF 600 PLUS ($26.75/0.5L OR 16.9 OZ)

DRY:610F -- WET:421F --- NEO SYNTH. SUPER DOT 610 ($11.95/12 OZ)

DRY:610F -- WET:421F --- PROSPEED GS610 ($39.95/16 OZ)

DRY:626F -- WET:417F --- WILWOOD EXP 600 ($16.95/0.5L 16.9 OZ)

 

ARRANGED BY WET BOILING POINT:

 

DRY:401F -- WET:284F --- DOT3 MINIMUM

DRY:570F -- WET:284F --- WILWOOD 570

DRY:570F -- WET:284F --- PERFORMANCE Friction Z rated

DRY:550F -- WET:284F --- FORD HEAVY DUTY DOT 3

DRY:527F -- WET:302F --- AP RACING 551

DRY:446F -- WET:311F --- DOT4 MINIMUM

DRY:527F -- WET:347F --- VALVOLINE SYNPOWER DOT3 & DOT4

DRY:500F -- WET:356F --- DOT5.1 MINIMUM (GLYCOL BASE)

DRY:500F -- WET:356F --- DOT5 MINIMUM (SILICONE BASE)

DRY:536F -- WET:392F --- ATE SUPERBLUE/TYP200

DRY:601F -- WET:399F --- BREMBO LCF 600 PLUS

DRY:590F -- WET:410F --- AP RACING 600

DRY:626F -- WET:417F --- WILWOOD EXP 600

DRY:593F -- WET:420F --- MOTUL RBF600

DRY:610F -- WET:421F --- NEO SYNTHETICS SUPER DOT 610

DRY:610F -- WET:421F --- PROSPEED GS610

DRY:590F -- WET:518F --- CASTROL SRF

[praedet]

The Prospeed can be bought for the same price as the Motul RBF600

[magnetic1]

The Prospeed can be bought for the same price as the Motul RBF600

 

Unfortunately those days are gone. Though not as expenssive as it once was, Prospeed is now $20. Still a great value and fluid considering it wont soften up your pedal like Motul will.

[RockyMTNLegacy]

would any one tell me if a slotted rotor swap from stop help braking, i know that it will held keep temp down. if so-what would a good rotor be?

[praedet]

nope, it won't

[NewScooby]

Keefe,

 

I just had my first track day last weekend and now I have a few brake questions.

 

1. Except for one instance braking from 125-50mph, I had a firm pedal feel all weekend. Plenty of brake fade, but my pedal would stay firm. After then my pedal feel was fine. I have 2 week old ATE fluid, is it time for a flush?

2. Have you ever run more aggressive pads on the front and left the rear with an aggresive street pad like the Hawk HPS? Does this mess up the brake bias too much? (I am thinking of StopTech rotors and XP10's for the front as my next possible upgrade)

3. My rotors both front and rear are discolored around the outside and inside edges, I'm guessing this is normal. How is a good way to judge if you need new rotors? Have you turned any stock LGT rotors with success or just replaced them?

 

BTW, I went with the RT615's after chatting with you in another thread and these are such a great tire for the money IMO, far more grip than my old Kumho MX's. One guy at the track told me that after a few heat cycles the 615's get hard, does that sound about right?

[Xenonk]

Keefe,

 

I just had my first track day last weekend and now I have a few brake questions.

 

1. Except for one instance braking from 125-50mph, I had a firm pedal feel all weekend. Plenty of brake fade, but my pedal would stay firm. After then my pedal feel was fine. I have 2 week old ATE fluid, is it time for a flush?

 

2. Have you ever run more aggressive pads on the front and left the rear with an aggresive street pad like the Hawk HPS? Does this mess up the brake bias too much? (I am thinking of StopTech rotors and XP10's for the front as my next possible upgrade)

 

3. My rotors both front and rear are discolored around the outside and inside edges, I'm guessing this is normal. How is a good way to judge if you need new rotors? Have you turned any stock LGT rotors with success or just replaced them?

 

4. I went with the RT615's after chatting with you in another thread and these are such a great tire for the money IMO, far more grip than my old Kumho MX's. One guy at the track told me that after a few heat cycles the 615's get hard, does that sound about right?

 

 

1. Sounds like you may have boiled out the ATE fluid. Eventhough it's just 2 weeks old, that doesnt mean that the fluid can't boil out and fade on you. With the weight of our cars on a hot day, the brakes can easily glow in broad day light if you drive them hard enough and get them that hot. I've boiled my fluid pretty often when I ran on ATE and I would change out my fluid about every track weekend because the ATE was cheap enough to replace. With the Motul and Prospeed, I change it a lot less.. But if you are getting brake fade but still firm pedal feel, most likely your brake pads are glazing and overheating on you.

 

2. Yes, I have ran staggered pads (Carbotech XP12s up front, XP8s in the rear). That is way one of the better setups that balances out the brake wear. I plan to use more of XP16s in the front and XP10s in the rear since the rear doesnt get hot enough to where I need XP12s or matching XP16s. Also if you changed your suspension, that can also play a little bit of influence as to which set of the brakes get warmer or faster operating temps. Overall, the difference of running higher temp pads in the front combined with high-frictional brakes in the rear is very minor in the brake balance (some of the drift cars that uses the e-brake caliper system would use high frictional rear pads to make sure the pads would bite, but under normal braking, the brake bias on the setup of the car is way more important than the actual compound since the front brakes will do a lot more work than the rear.. unless you drive a Rear Engine car like a Porsche which I have yet to understand their brake bias setups).

 

3. That bit of discoloration could be an indication of you glazing your brake pads (my guess is that you are turning your rotors blue). As long as the rotors have a usable thickness and they are not warped, you should be ok just for practice use. Normally I just end up buying new rotors instead since stock ones are cheap enough as back-ups to get me home. I've been using DBA4000 rotors which I put them through hell and these have come back from it (considering that I've got these rotors past 1250C and they are doing ok.. they are showing significant wear since I did put over 2,000+ track miles on them, but they havent really cracked through yet, just a lot of surface spider cracks that's common to high heat exposure). I think Subaru did a good job designing the GT to be a very streetable car, but when it comes to track use, I think it they should have used a bigger, thicker rotor OR lighten up the car by a good 300 lbs at least. If you are getting your rotors and pads that hot, I'd suggest going with a higher temperature pad (like Carbotech XP12s at least, or run the Carbotech XP16s like I do and run XP10s in the rear). I currently use r-compound tires and the rest of my car is on stock power, so really my brakes are fine. But if the ambient temps get up past 90F, I would be more conservative with the braking and I'm starting to look into brake ducting as well as running a two-piece rotor to disperse the heat a tad faster. The rotor will still go through hell, but at least overall, the brakes should perform more consistently at higher temp ranges. Normally I dont turn rotors, I normally just throw them out and get new ones. Of the high speed braking I do using fairly hard brake pads, I'm basically turning my own rotors while I'm driving. Consistent threshold braking will definitely get rid of any pad deposits that you have anyways so long as you are operating the brakes at a targeted level that the pads are designed to do.

 

4. The RT-615s will take in a quite of bit of heat cycling before they harden. If you started driving the RT-615s at full tread, then most likely by the time you put in about 20 to 30 sessions/cycles, expect them to feel harder and possibly not as grippy or more 'greasy' feeling. Some people shave their tires to make it more of a full slick prior to driving on them so that they can make the best use out of the tire.. the Azenis benefits from this since the tire wear on the Azenis is pretty good if the alignment isnt too aggressive on the toe-in or toe-out. Best thing to do for the Azenis to make them last is to not to over heat them. A tire pyrometer is handy at this point to make sure your tire temps arent going over 180F all across the tread (160F is ideal for just practice and good tire wear). Tire rubber starts to melt around the 270F range, so if you are heating your tires around 210F to 230F, you may want to back off some on your driving if you want your tire to sustain longer driving periods. It's definitely not hard to get your tire temps to spike to 260F during a corner (hence you see sticky black tire marks under the braking zones and corners at the track, the tires are literally melting away and trying to convert all that energy going into one direction into another by the form of heat and friction). Even many autocrossers who only drive .5 miles or 1 mile per run would use water sprayers for the tires after their runs (I know I do). Keeping the tire in the optimum temperature range will ensure you of a more consistent grip. You'll know when you over drive a street tire as a few things happen (so long as you are being consistent as a driver which is the key to driving fast):

 

1) tires start to squeal earlier in the sessions even though you are not entering faster through the turn

2) braking zones start to get longer and the steering wheel starts to feel loose at turn-in than the previous corner

3) turn-ins and track-out points are not matching up to your inputs as the previous lap.. when you find yourself making adjustments to make the car repeat the same line, that's when you are experiencing the changes in the car's status.

4) you find yourself tracking-out earlier, but you didnt change the turn-in radius or the timing of unwinding the wheel earlier

5) the suspension of the car is responding just fine during weight transfer (vertical movement), but the car is not laterally (horizontally) moving where it needs to be. You will have to understand the difference between "yaw" and "roll" of your car. Yaw is more of a sliding function while roll is more of the tipping/leaning aspect of the car.

[Xenonk]

would any one tell me if a slotted rotor swap from stop help braking, i know that it will held keep temp down. if so-what would a good rotor be?

 

slots are more of a way to prevent a brake pad from glazing the surface, it's basically trying to find a way to shim off the layer of the brake pad to keep the brake pad surface fresh.. of course you can still overheat a brake pad with or without slots.. it's all depending on the conditions you put your brakes through. The slots are only there to buy you time to keep your brakes from fading out on you, but if you continue to drive hard, it really doesnt matter as you will eventually glaze the pads.

[NewScooby]

Thanks Keefe, The combo of XP12's/XP8's and DBA rotors sound good to me. I will not be back to Road America until this time next year and any other tracks that I attend before then will be at least 15-20 mph slower, so I'm sure I will be good with the XP12's.

 

Just curious, Are XP16's on RT615's to aggressive of a pad? I plan to stick with street tires for at least the next two years before stepping up to R compounds.

[Xenonk]

never know, some tracks like Mid-Ohio is pretty fast too.

 

There's nothing wrong running with XP16s and XP10s as well with street tires, it's just that you'll really have more room to lock up the tires quicker and the temperature ranges are a bit higher which allows you to pounce on the brakes more so. I wouldnt say it's too aggressive since I've used XP16/10 combo with Azenis in the rain and it's easy enough to modulate.

 

I dont know your suspension setup well enough to know if you are overheating the front rotors or not. On my set of the DBA4000 rotors, I managed to turn all 3 color strips to their respective color which means I maxed out even their highest temperature indicator of 1150C (which is 2100F degrees). I went out and got some help from my sponsors and got some 1250C temperature brake paint and i still changed that color as well.. at this point, 1250C+ is well over 2280F+ degrees..

 

Iron's melting point is around 1500C or around 2850F.. so at this point, my brakes are starting to glow in broad day light and the brake pads start to fade after running qualifying-lap pace for 25 minutes.. The XP16s dont normally sense fade that quickly, they just get used up way quicker.. I may get some early notion of brake fade and I would start stretching the brake zones by coasting into them than going all out. This buys me time to allow the brakes to slowly come down and get back into grip and into a more reasonable operating temperatures. i don't have specs for the Carbotech pads specifically, but generally speaking that I've seen for track pads, the highest operating temperature range I've seen is around 2100F, but most fall around the 1800F range. I believe some other metallic type track pads like Performance Frictions are way higher in metal content and probably have an operating temp range possibly in the 2200F range or higher.

[PartShippers]

Keefe,

 

anyway you can confirm any of this for the 08' 2.5i limited? I'm looking to purchase the front calipers/rotors/pads off a gentleman for the front of my 08' limited(he has an 07' spec B). anyway to know for certain if i can get away with a new rear caliper bracket and rotors from a GT/Spec B.

 

Also...there isn't any differences between the GT and Spec b brakes are there?

 

thank you very much in advance. Use of the vehicle is everyday(safety) and i may autox it at some point here and there so i'll upgrade pads and fluid. I have plenty of motul at home so i'll just use that.

 

 

ah thank you unclemat.

 

I had a total brain fart, at my office I have my 2005 Legacy brochure that's just sitting here.

 

there's also a difference in the 2.5i and 2.5i limited.

 

the 2.5i is 10.8" front vented/10.6 rear solid

the 2.5i limited is 11.5 front vented/10.6 rear solid

the 2.5GTs (both non and limited) are 12.3 front vented/11.3 rear vented.

 

the only part that I don't know for sure is the rear drum hub for both cars.. if they are the same, then the only thing you need in the rear would be the caliper bracket. I believe both the GT and the 2.5i use the same brake pad (which also uses the same pads as the 2002 WRXs I think, but call up Eric at Brakeswap.com for that answer since I dont have my brake pad chart handy.

[Xenonk]

Keefe,

 

anyway you can confirm any of this for the 08' 2.5i limited? I'm looking to purchase the front calipers/rotors/pads off a gentleman for the front of my 08' limited(he has an 07' spec B). anyway to know for certain if i can get away with a new rear caliper bracket and rotors from a GT/Spec B.

 

Also...there isn't any differences between the GT and Spec b brakes are there?

 

thank you very much in advance. Use of the vehicle is everyday(safety) and i may autox it at some point here and there so i'll upgrade pads and fluid. I have plenty of motul at home so i'll just use that.

 

 

nah, you need the caliper brackets as well.. when you go with larger rotors, you need to get the corresponding caliper bracket since you are forced to relocate the caliper location in respect to the new larger diameter rotor.

[PartShippers]

nah, you need the caliper brackets as well.. when you go with larger rotors, you need to get the corresponding caliper bracket since you are forced to relocate the caliper location in respect to the new larger diameter rotor.

 

anyway to know for certain if i can get away with a new rear caliper bracket and rotors from a GT/Spec B.

 

 

right. thats what i was asking. I'll be purchasing the front rotors/calipers with brackets/pads...and was asking if i needed the rear caliper bracket and rotors from the GT/Spec B and still be able to use my stock 2.5i rear caliper.

 

thank you kindly. I think the stock GT stuff is sufficient...just need to upgrade pads and fluid

 

Jeff

[Xenonk]

right. thats what i was asking. I'll be purchasing the front rotors/calipers with brackets/pads...and was asking if i needed the rear caliper bracket and rotors from the GT/Spec B and still be able to use my stock 2.5i rear caliper.

 

thank you kindly. I think the stock GT stuff is sufficient...just need to upgrade pads and fluid

 

Jeff

 

 

That I dont know for sure, but to be safe, if you are going through the trouble to get the rotors and the caliper bracket, you might as well get the new caliper that goes with the rotor and caliper bracket. Subaru sells the caliper as an entire kit that comes with the caliper bracket. I dont know for sure if the 2.5i and the GT rear calipers use the same brake pad part. But if you're going to upgrade all of this, you might as well make it more uniform. This will be easier for you to buy replacement parts later when you know that all of your brake parts are now GT parts rather some parts being GT and others are 2.5i and so forth.

 

I think the GT brake setup is good enough for the commute to and from work.. but when you look from a performance standpoint when driven hard or spiritedly, this is where it starts to lack and limit, starting with the brake pads.

 

The car is just simply heavy overall for the size of the pads and calipers and even rotors that it's equipped with once you start to carry more momenutm and speed. I've really pushed hard on the stock size rotors to where the brakes were really taking a beating here and there. The concern is that it can't take that kind of beating for longer periods without some kind of heat capacity help or some kind of better cooling effect on the heat disapation (sp?).

 

In general for a stock powered GT and me running on 245 wide r-compound tires, the car really needs something like 15" rotors and brake ducts to survive qualifying-pace laps for 25-minute long sessions in 90F. Right now with the stock brake setup with just better rotors, pads and fluids, I can only run about 5 or 6 laps before I experience the beginning signs of brake fade in the 90F. It's a really bad sign when my rotor temperatures are reaching 2200+F. The brake pads I have are designed to operate in the range of 1200F to 1800F. That 400F of extra heat is where I'm getting my brake fade. I need to tone down my entry and transitions into the brake zones to brake safely.. if I continue to barrel down the brake zone at the very last split second before I jam on the brakes, the car will surely see the grass or sand trap at the end of the straight within the next few following laps.

 

Normally I end up taking 2 cool down laps and end my sessions shorter now because of the amount of heat my brakes generate and it takes a lot longer for the brakes to cool down than it is to heat up..

 

Now only if I can get my hands on some Alcon-water-cooled brakes that the WRX WRC car has.. then I can left foot brake all day long and have my throttle fully pegged to the floor through the entire course.

[PartShippers]

That I dont know for sure, but to be safe, if you are going through the trouble to get the rotors and the caliper bracket, you might as well get the new caliper that goes with the rotor and caliper bracket. Subaru sells the caliper as an entire kit that comes with the caliper bracket. I dont know for sure if the 2.5i and the GT rear calipers use the same brake pad part. But if you're going to upgrade all of this, you might as well make it more uniform. This will be easier for you to buy replacement parts later when you know that all of your brake parts are now GT parts rather some parts being GT and others are 2.5i and so forth.

 

I think the GT brake setup is good enough for the commute to and from work.. but when you look from a performance standpoint when driven hard or spiritedly, this is where it starts to lack and limit, starting with the brake pads.

 

The car is just simply heavy overall for the size of the pads and calipers and even rotors that it's equipped with once you start to carry more momenutm and speed. I've really pushed hard on the stock size rotors to where the brakes were really taking a beating here and there. The concern is that it can't take that kind of beating for longer periods without some kind of heat capacity help or some kind of better cooling effect on the heat disapation (sp?).

 

In general for a stock powered GT and me running on 245 wide r-compound tires, the car really needs something like 15" rotors and brake ducts to survive qualifying-pace laps for 25-minute long sessions in 90F. Right now with the stock brake setup with just better rotors, pads and fluids, I can only run about 5 or 6 laps before I experience the beginning signs of brake fade in the 90F. It's a really bad sign when my rotor temperatures are reaching 2200+F. The brake pads I have are designed to operate in the range of 1200F to 1800F. That 400F of extra heat is where I'm getting my brake fade. I need to tone down my entry and transitions into the brake zones to brake safely.. if I continue to barrel down the brake zone at the very last split second before I jam on the brakes, the car will surely see the grass or sand trap at the end of the straight within the next few following laps.

 

Normally I end up taking 2 cool down laps and end my sessions shorter now because of the amount of heat my brakes generate and it takes a lot longer for the brakes to cool down than it is to heat up..

 

Now only if I can get my hands on some Alcon-water-cooled brakes that the WRX WRC car has.. then I can left foot brake all day long and have my throttle fully pegged to the floor through the entire course.

 

2 of my friends(close) work for Stoptech. If there is anything you need me to look into i'll try. I don't ask them on my behalf though.

 

i've done hpde's at VIR before...i know turn one very well...thats alot of speed going into that ...as well other parts of the course. This is (been a long time) next to the concession area) and with those tires i had a hell of a time keeping it from rotating. inside rear was off the ground though.(i was trying different lines)

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid225/pbf02a093a1434acae245495d8b777dca/e82ffe5b.jpg

 

I've had many many many cars i've put on track...

 

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid225/p2586ae649f0f70384c672045fe3dd0d0/e82ffe4b.jpg

 

took 2nd place in a time trial event in my old prelude at Watkins Glenn

 

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid225/p6e066ad37c2be90ec419459ad6abd368/e82ffe4e.jpg

 

This is what i was know for nationally...who needs brakes doing this though?

 

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid225/pc21e8195254bc9b0172668852daad3c6/e82ff1eb.jpg

 

 

This is what i have now...and will eventually have alot of fun in after the motor swap

 

http://www.imagestation.com/picture/sraid225/p408109910107c96fb77faababcecc074/e82ffe55.jpg

 

 

thank you for your help.

 

Jeff

[Xenonk]

ah good, since you ran on VIR before, it makes it easier for me to say that it's not just turn 1 that I'm worried about, it's going into 14, 14A, and the hard stab (I'm not convinced that it's a good idea just to brush on the brakes in the GT) going into 16 that puts a lot more stress on the brakes since you're going in so much faster than 1, 3 and 4. 14 and 14A is at the top of the hill vs 1-3-4, so with that said, the brakes have to deal with the downhill braking zones which puts a toll on them a lot more than the 1-3-4 area where that's flat enough where the brakes won't get as hot. When I go into turn 16, I actually have to upshift first into 4th before I proceed into the turn whereas 1-3-4 is a typical downshift into 3rd (T4 is a 2nd gear corner for our cars, it bogs way too much in 3rd through). You're just carrying speed everywhere as much as possible.

 

So with a hot braking session starting from 14, it's anywhere from 20 to 30 seconds to get from turn 16 to turn 1.. your brakes are still hot at that point and we're about to do another hard braking zone.. simply put: the brakes havent cooled down enough for the next heavy braking zone.

 

The GT just doesnt have the heat capacity in stock form for me to go into T1 and T14 at full throttle and then getting on the brakes by the 3rd brake marker for both in a consistent fashion lap after lap. I know Im doing something near 120 mph every time going into 1 and 14, it's just that the car is too heavy for me to use the brakes that late.. eventually I'll end up in the grass by the 6th or 7th lap after warm-up in the 90F ambient temps...

[Bimmer]

To do the swap, you just need:

 

GT front calipers

GT front caliper brackets (usually included with the caliper from the dealer)

GT front rotors

GT front brake pads

Brake Fluid of your choice

 

Is anybody still watching this thread? I want to upgrade my new OB-XT's brakes to LGT-spec.

 

What's the difference between LGT and OB calipers? I know that the LGT calipers must mount further away from the hub (to clear the bigger rotors), but is the caliper different, or just the mounting bracket?

 

Those of us who own lesser Imprezas can easily upgrade our brakes to WRX-spec rotors by just replacing the mounting bracket, because the caliper is otherwise exactly the same.

 

Is the same true of the LGT and OB brakes? I checked part numbers at http://www.subarupartsforyou.com, and all the 2005+ Legacies and OBs seem to have the same front calipers: part #s 26292AG041 (right) and 26292AG041 (left). Am I wrong?

 

I want to do this upgrade, but I don't want to have to pay for new calipers just like the ones I've already got when I really just need the mounting brackets and new rotors.

And it would be a lot easier to just swap out the brackets than to change the calipers, too...

 

Ben

[Xenonk]

I dont recall if the calipers themselves actually use the same brake pad part number. I also dont know if the bolt holes for the caliper bracket are located exactly in the same place. I dont think anyone doing that much short cutting to save a few bucks. The new calipers comes with caliper brackets.. you might as well use all new parts (after all these are brakes we are talking here). It'll just make your install easier as long as you have all the parts and do the comparison yourself. I personally havent done this because everytime I get a set of LGT brakes to put it on an older Subaru, I always just use the LGT bracket because of the different sizes..

[praedet]

The LGT Calipers are bigger w/ a different pad and piston size...

[Bimmer]

OK, I figured it out. The LGT rotors are not just bigger in diameter but also thicker, so my OB XT calipers won't work.

 

Good to know...

 

Ben

[NewScooby]

Can anyone tell me if this brake cooling kit will work with the Legacy front spindles?

http://quantummotorsports.com/02-06wrx_kits.htm#Plate%20Kit

[praedet]

It should, you will need to get rid of the dust shield though...

[Scooby2.5]

Keefe

what would you recommend for a good setup on a lowered outback XT for spirited street driving and maybe track in the future (but i doubt it)?

 

My outback has megan coilovers lowered 1.5 inches, pilot sport a/s tires on stock 17" wheels and soon to be stage 3 with 325 whp.

 

Its time to replace the brakes and I want to do an upgrade front and rear.

[Xenonk]

Keefe

what would you recommend for a good setup on a lowered outback XT for spirited street driving and maybe track in the future (but i doubt it)?

 

My outback has megan coilovers lowered 1.5 inches, pilot sport a/s tires on stock 17" wheels and soon to be stage 3 with 325 whp.

 

Its time to replace the brakes and I want to do an upgrade front and rear.

 

 

I hope you'll upgrade the tires as well, you'll probably overheat the tires too as well. If you are running on the stock wheels, you could do a GT conversion or get a 2-piece rotor OEM sized kit to expell the heat a little bit faster. Get some high-temp brake pads like Carbotech XP8s for street use and Carbotech XP16s if you plan to do track.. the rotor size is pretty good for what they are and considering the weight of the car if you dont want to upgrade the rims. But your tires are really lacking in braking power as well, so you may want to look into better tires for street summer ues and also for track use since you are putting down 125 whp more than me (which is a lot more speed and acceleration). Tires play a huge roll. While you can have the world's best brakes, it's pointless if you are still sliding to a stop due to the lack of grip in the tires. A good and ideal brake setup is the one that can be used aggressively without any fade in performance while locking up the wheels as fast and as best as possible. One thing that is overlooked is that suspension and wheels and tires play a part of the braking potential.

 

You may want to consider readjusting your suspension so that your rear end can do some braking (as we all know that weight transfer happens when you hit the brakes, sending the rear end going up in the air and rendering the rear brakes and tires useless for stopping), so if you want, you can change your suspension settings to give you more braking abilities and also stablize the car more so during braking transitions. Suspension isnt just about lateral movements

 

A tip to driving a car like that on the track is that you have to transitition smoother from accelerating down the straight, ease off the gas so the car doesnt accelerate anymore, allow the car to coast for half a second or 1 second and then apply the brakes progressively.. if you go straight from gas to brakes, your car not only has to deal with the normal braking g forces, but it has to fight the positve gs that you still have. This will make your brakes last longer during a track day. So until you have money for bigger brakes and bigger wheels and wider tires, I would suggest to change your driving style to fit the car's potential and capabilities as well.

[Scooby2.5]

I was thinking about buying a guys spec b 18 inch wheels. to keep the same tire diameter I would need to go 245/45/18.

 

think these would work on the megan lowered outback?