THSCC Forums

I have a choice.

a) Wilwood 6 pot front, 4 pot rear brake kit
or
b) 17x8" wheels (instead of the current 7.5") that are 2 lbs more each, and new fresh stock size rotors all around

Option a will save me almost 10 lbs a corner, and provide better brake feel, while keeping the 7.5" wheels.

Option b will give me 0.5" wider wheels, the braking "distance" will be the same, with slightly less feel, but I will be 2lbs a corner heavier then I am now which is almost 12lbs heavier a corner then option A.

What to do?
-Tom

B.

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Has no responsibility whatsoever.

c: Stock size 2 piece rotors (alum hats to reduce weight) and the 17x8's.

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Tom Freeman
'98 M3/4/5 | '93 Spec3 325i | '12 TSX sport wagon | '03 Tahoe
Team Silver Bullets '91 240SX

Tom,

Take my comments with a big grain of salt, you're kind of getting over my head, but....I'd go with the wider wheels and more contact patch.

Eric

Wouldn't a) put you into another class?? Like SM or Prepared

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91 Jetta GLI STS/DSP 111
85 Porsche 944 ASP 11
http://www.blackforestindustries.com

So we have 2 for (b) so far

Tom F - (c) isn't an option as those would cost Tom $$ while option a and b doesn't cost Tom $$

Adam - STX brakes are freeeee

-Tom

Definitely go with wider wheels. I can't imagine that you can't make the stock brakes effective enough for autocross. The Celica brakes could take a filling out of tooth in stock form, and with more contact patch, you will definitely stop quicker. - AB

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'14 Toyota Sequoia Platinum 4WD
Super Westerfield Bros - '93 Integra - LeChump Du Jour
STX 93 - Scion FR-S

10 lb per corner? I'd say go for option A. If you're never tracking the car, can you go with something even smaller? Something 2-piston in Al with smaller rotors than stock would be perfect.

But why not both (a) and (b)? You're in a serious class, spend some serious money!

I also find it hard to believe you can't find lighter AND wider wheels. What wheels/weights/prices are you comparing?

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Mike Whitney
whit32@gmail.com, 919-454-5445
V10, V8, V8t, I6, I6, V6, F4t, I4, I4, I4, I4, I2, 1, 1

The stock brakes are NOWHERE near the level the the Celica brakes are. Scotts DS Celica almost scared me when he got on the brakes

So you woud definetly take the weight penalty for 0.5" wider?



Never tracking the car again. I also cannot go with anything smaller as the reason that I could get this set of brakes is because Wilwood is trying to push them for WRXs. I have to run the "exact setup as they could sell".

I definetly don't have the $550 in the autox budget that the set of 17x8 Rotas (17.5lbs) would cost. To find wider AND lighter wheels with a 45mm or greater offset, I have to go to SSR Competitions or Enkei RPF1. Enkeis (15.5lbs) are $1100 for the set and the SSRs are $1420 (14.5lbs).

edit: now that I think about it, if I didn't have a g/f I could have gotten the damn SSRs. Stupid birthday presents

-Tom

Since he is comparing free vs. free. His/our sponsor, Boxer4racing.com, has agreed to do one or the other but not both.

I'm tempted to say go with the brakes. Not because I think the braking distance is going to be improved but because losing 40 pounds of unsprung weight has got to be a good thing for the car ovarall. Losing that much weight will make the car brake, turn, and accelerate better.

As far as the wheels go, I'm not sure that .5" more wheel width will help that much? Especially considering that you are adding 2lbs at the very edge of the wheel. The weight we would add here might even hurt acceleration. Of course I could be wrong

I'm not sure what the cost for each upgrade would be if we had to pay for it ourselves and that may be a deciding factor. What I mean is if the brakes are $800 and the wheels are $800 then we pick the one we think is the best performance enhancer. If the brakes are $800 and the wheels are $400 then go with the brakes. If it works out the other way(wheels $800, brakes $400) then go with the wheels.

That way if we decide we want to add the other option as well it will cost us less to do it.

If we really want to do both we could always ask if we can get one free and a discount on the other

Shawn

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OK so I'm back in. Now which tire should I buy??

Tom,

I'm confused regarding what is "inadequate" about the stock WRX brakes for autocrossing . . . even on R tires, let alone if you are running ST class tires. Seems like you shouldn't have any fade problems for autocrossing (unless you brake/corner/accelerate at the same time for much of the course). "Response" or "coeficient of friction" issues should be able to be addressed by pad material. Just curious since I've never had an autocross car that couldn't lock the wheels easily with very whimpy stock brakes. Heck, I had to change from Hawk HP Plus on my FF to HPS to make the tiny brakes less aggressive.

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Dick Rasmussen

FS 50 2018 Mustang GT

Thats a lot of weight savings. Are the stock calipers cast iron? Ford only claimed a weight savings of 5 pounds per front wheel when going from cast iron single piston calipers to aluminum dual piston calipers on the Mustang GT.

Again, just curious.

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Dick Rasmussen

FS 50 2018 Mustang GT

As bad as the brakes are on that car, I think I'd try the brakes...

Scott

Its hard to explain. I honestly have gotten used to them, but everyone that gets in the car says "Damn these suck"



The stock calipers are cast iron and the stock rotors are anchors. I am going from a cast iron dual piston to aluminium 6 piston for a 5 lb weight savings and from a single cast iron rotor to an aluminium hat cross drilled to hell rotor, another 5 lbs there.



You see what I'm saying? Everyone says mean things about my brakes You should drive the car and tell me what you think....

-Tom

Never happen. My ego can't handle demonstrating that I'm not as fast as you young hot shoes anymore unless I'm in a much faster car.

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Dick Rasmussen

FS 50 2018 Mustang GT