Big Brake Kits

[Euro-Tuner]

I was hoping we could have an intelligent discussion about the BBK's that are available for our cars. I was reading the S4 thread and it was just one big fight after page 1. So, anyone with experience with any of these kits please chime in. This should help in the future, I searched and didn't find anything very definite for a thread (link me if I missed something).

Euro-Spec
AP Racing (034)
Brembo
Wilwood Can be found here or all brake stuff here.
Stoptech |332mm| 332mm also at MJM and 355mm at MJM
Porsche
A8 upgrade (TT Carriers)
Alcon [13" kit] [14" Kit]
Moveit
WP Pro (not much info on these)
OEM BBK
Upgrade for Rear Brakes (034) [B7 S4 Brakes]

<edited to include links to Wilwood kits - onemoremile>
[Updated/Fixed Dead Links 2/12/10 - Euro-Tuner]
[Added Euro-Spec 2/23/10 - Euro-Tuner]

[Militant-Grunt]

OEM S4 Brakes:

I will be doing an entire write up on the install (for the second time on my new car)

OEM B7 300mm Rears. (also will do a write up)

[Euro-Tuner]

awesome, so when doing the S4 kit you need to replace the entire upright correct? are all s4 uprights aluminum?

[djwimbo]

Personally I'm happy with my A8/TT setup up front. For track use I NEED better pads, AutoX and daily driving, they're great though.
I haven't upgraded the rears at this point, I would like to do the B7 S4 rears and the Boxster 4 piston up front.

Fitment of the A8 rotors, TT carriers and stock Swing wheels

[goody6691]

rpi equipped has a wilwood setup for our cars

[317ssayzarc]

993TT's are sweet, I can vouch from a ton of experience with my Dads car

[Poopie]

OEM S4 Brakes:

I will be doing an entire write up on the install (for the second time on my new car)

OEM B7 300mm Rears. (also will do a write up)

hhmmm nice...i like using oem parts.

[blmlozz]

hhmmm nice...i like using oem parts.

the problem is that as a bbk option they are not cost effective unless the parts are free or extremely cheap since s4 brakes really are not that great.

[Euro-Tuner]

rpi equipped has a wilwood setup for our cars

link? I couldnt find it.

[ShawFM]

link? I couldnt find it.

Can be found here or all brake stuff here. Good company I have been dealing with them for about 8 years.

[Squarrl]

I have Boxster Front with D2 A8 rotors 312x25mm and B5 S4 rears I find it works very well.

[317ssayzarc]

I have Boxster Front with D2 A8 rotors 312x25mm and B5 S4 rears I find it works very well.

I hated my boxster fronts, they didnt feel like a bbk should feel, I would expect that level of performance out of a factory car

[Squarrl]

No they do feel like the A4 brakes should have felt from the factory

[JumboBlack1.8]

Great thread, as I was researching the same stuff not 2 weeks ago......and about the S4 forum, it really is amazing how ANY discussion over there turns into an argument....Anyway


I think for your power output, if you wanted to piece together a relatively affordable setup (that is, if u don't wanna fork over the cash for Alcons, Brembo GTs, etc), then you could go with another Porsche option.....the 996 calipers, which apparently have much greater stopping force than the Boxsters and utitlizes the thicker S4 rotor (can't remember the exact sizes...). To balance the system out, do the S4 rear brake upgrade, and I believe you've got a relatively well balanced DIY Homebrew'd BBK for a fraction of the price of the big name stuff.......I believe Bira.org is the only company that makes a carrier for the 996 caliper and the B5 A4 platform, so contact them about. I personally went with the boxsters because they were affordable and still provided the amount of extra stopping power that I needed for my power goals (280whp).

[bassed]

For a great Racing History, price and Pad/Rotor/Caliper combo check the AP Racing via 034. 320mm with Brembo Blanks and Fedodo 3000 Pads (sp?).

[A4Rob]

porsche boxster calipers off ebay. S4 oem brakes are not a BBK

[DND]

How do you calculate the bias when you mix and match parts yourself so that you know you've got a good balance for optimal stopping?

[Kyle H]

Be sure to read up in this thread: http://www.audizine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=217458 There was a lot of talking about front/rear balance that you should look into.

I don't have any experience with BBK's but from everything I've read, my dream setup would be the 13" Alcon front setup from stasis with the S4 rear's from 034.

[Squarrl]

I am sure that the AP racing are much better and a great price. would probably want to run the 034 300mm rear upgrade with those too though.

[hoganalley]

I don't know the exact formula to figure out bias and stuff because there's way too much involved in figuring it out. Due to piston size, number of pistons, the Hydrualic Pump setup...all those things matter.

All I did for mine, was figured out how much the increase was from stock front rotor size to the upgrade and applied that factor to the rears. I actually ended up with full A8 brakes. 312 up front and 269 out back. The 269mm rotors fit under the S4 rear calipers with A8 carrier brackets. From what I can tell it is a very balanced stopping method. You can go bigger if you want, but you have to remember that if you go huge you really should look into changing the master cylinder and maybe even the hydraulic pump.

Incedentally, if you ETKA the parts, the only thing that's different between the A8 and the A4 is the master cylinder. All other system parts are the same....everything bolts up with the right carriers!

[DND]

Be sure to read up in this thread: http://www.audizine.com/forum/showthread.php?t=217458 There was a lot of talking about front/rear balance that you should look into.

Very interesting thread...
After reading it I concluded that 1) there are a lot of variables involved and 2) lowering your car and/or stiffening your suspension would be amongst those variables...

[slayerrule]

Great thread, as I was researching the same stuff not 2 weeks ago......and about the S4 forum, it really is amazing how ANY discussion over there turns into an argument....Anyway


I think for your power output, if you wanted to piece together a relatively affordable setup (that is, if u don't wanna fork over the cash for Alcons, Brembo GTs, etc), then you could go with another Porsche option.....the 996 calipers, which apparently have much greater stopping force than the Boxsters and utitlizes the thicker S4 rotor (can't remember the exact sizes...). To balance the system out, do the S4 rear brake upgrade, and I believe you've got a relatively well balanced DIY Homebrew'd BBK for a fraction of the price of the big name stuff.......I believe Bira.org is the only company that makes a carrier for the 996 caliper and the B5 A4 platform, so contact them about. I personally went with the boxsters because they were affordable and still provided the amount of extra stopping power that I needed for my power goals (280whp).

yup those 996 calipers are a bit bigger than boxster calipers and go pretty well with b5 s4 rotors. pretty easy to mount them on b5 a4. ive got an extra set if anybodys interested. if you diy you will save a lot.

[fred2ka4]

Well I did the B6 S4 brakes on my rear so if you need any help in the measurement department I can help with that although 034 does offer a kit now for the same application. I have the B6 S4 bbk from ECS Tuning on the rears and it looks and works great.

The fronts are a custom set up that I put together as well but the parts are a little harder to source so to duplicate it would probably not be cost effective.

[onemoremile]

I'd go with the 034 AP Racing fronts and B7 S4 rears. If balance is an issue it can be helped with careful pad selection.

Long term economical considerations say to find a system that uses a common rotor size. That opens up the number or sources and improves both pricing and availability. You also get a lot more options. If, for example, you went with Boxster S calipers over S4 rotors you could run the DBA5000 or cheaper than stock blanks or anything in between.

When pricing a big brake system look at the cost of the system plus two rotor and three pad replacements. The cost of ownership can be a surprising test. At the very least I look at what it would cost for a second set of rotors and pads for the track. That second set can be anywhere from under 200 to over a grand.

[onemoremile]

I'm going to move this over to the projects forum and see what happens. It has a good title and links to some great threads. The discussion is still wide open but try to limit douchebaggery, name calling, and other things a kindergarten teacher would make you sit in the corner for. There is enough of that crap in the other threads.

[onemoremile]

16" Swings over Boxster calipers and A8 rotors.


16" Swings over stock calipers, tt carriers, and A8 rotors.

[dougyfresh]

For a great Racing History, price and Pad/Rotor/Caliper combo check the AP Racing via 034. 320mm with Brembo Blanks and Fedodo 3000 Pads (sp?).

Who else is running AP racing? I'm thinking of trying them on my B6.

[bassed]

Who else is running AP racing? I'm thinking of trying them on my B6.

034 Is running them I believe on just about all the B5 Chasis cars.

[pipe7284]

ECStuning BBK
Stg2 V.2
18x8.5 BSA Mercedez wheels

[Sigma 3]

the problem is that as a bbk option they are not cost effective unless the parts are free or extremely cheap since s4 brakes really are not that great.

Just out of curiosity why do you think they are not that great. If my memory serves me correctly the stock breaks had the second best stopping distance in the european car s4 shoot out.

[onemoremile]

The S4 guys love to bitch about their brakes. Then the B6 guys install them and love them. I've never had a problem with them.

[t1demont1]

Everyone just needs something to complain about lol

[$teady$upreme]

So for B7 S4 rears (300mm??), what parts are needed? I assume b7 s4 calipers, carriers and rotors?

[Squarrl]

b5 s4 calipers + carriers and 034 adapters which are $75

[docurley]

I run the bigger B5 RS4 brakes up front and they are brilliant with stock pads and I'm soon going to instal the RS4 rears to complete the setup and to keep cost down because the pads cost only $50 a set making it a cost effective upgrade.

B5 RS4 setups apear on RS246.com all the time for quite cheap money to top it all off due to the fact they all upgrade to B7 RS4 brakes.

[$teady$upreme]

ok thx very much for all the information, they are very useful.

I already have my A8 front, now i just bought some parts for the rear. And here is my setup, is my bias going to be fine?

Front:
A8 plain rotors
TT carriers
A4 stock calipers

Rear:
B5 S4 calipers
B5 S4 carriers
B5 S4 rotor (for now)

Did i get the right parts for the rear? I am thinking down the road, I will get 034 adapters and put 300mm rotors at the back, what do you guys think?

I also have Goodridge stainless lines and PBR ultimate ceramics pads for both front and rear. I am currently using ATE super blue fluid, but it makes your clutch squeal, so i am thinking of changing it, what should i go with?

[JumboBlack1.8]

I don't think you even need the S4 rears on that setup. You stopping distances don't decrease THAT much with an A8/TT front rotor setup, and the clamping power is relatively the same (from my experiences). So, the S4 rears might be overkill, unless you go with an upgrade caliper up front (like a Boxster BBK)

[black99.5a4]

i've read and read and get conflicting answers... what does it involve to run the Porsche calipers up front?

[onemoremile]

i've read and read and get conflicting answers... what does it involve to run the Porsche calipers up front?

Boxster calipers, specific carriers, A8 or A6 3.0 rotors.
-or-
Boxster S calipers, specific carriers, S4 rotors.
-or-
Bigger Porsche calipers with whatever carriers and rotors come with the kit.

[$teady$upreme]

As of now, then i will just stick with B5 S4 rotors for my rear. If i upgrade my front to bbk then i will do the B7 S4 rear.

But for running this rear set up, are these the parts i need? B5 S4 calipers, carriers, rotors for my B5 A4?

And S4 rear pads are same as A4 rear pads right?

I don't think you even need the S4 rears on that setup. You stopping distances don't decrease THAT much with an A8/TT front rotor setup, and the clamping power is relatively the same (from my experiences). So, the S4 rears might be overkill, unless you go with an upgrade caliper up front (like a Boxster BBK)