best Disc Brake conversion kits

There's a fairly big gap between the price at the low end and the high end in disc brake kits. That's the bad news.

 

The good news is that this is one of the very few places in this hobby where the low end stuff is completely adequate. A 4-lug (which is what you've got) EMPI disc brake kit is darned reasonable, and while the rotors are solid (not vented), they are perfectly adequate to stop a sub 2000 lb car in short order.

 

If you go to 4 wheel disc brakes, get the bigger master cylinder as well.

 

If you want to go nuts, CSP makes a vented rotor kit and Air-Kewld makes a kit with Wilwood calipers.

If you have tight clearances between tires and the body, you need to ask if the "KIT" you choose will increase the wheel offset from the car's centerline....   Just  a thought...

I did a quick search on empi disc brake kit and some youtube stuff came up and they said the kit was junk. The caliper flexes thus making the piston/pad put uneven pressure on the rotor. I'd like to hear more on the topic if anyone has info, other options etc.

Thanks so far.  I am going to put on different bolting discs.  I want to go to 5x4.5 bolting as I am going with new wheels as well.  I am aware of the additional width offset of some brakes and once I choose a brake kit, I will lay out the dimensions verses the wheel well to see what my wheel options might be.  Good to hear there is feedback about poor calipers/discs.  I've had a lot of experience with warped rotors in the past and want to avoid that. Also just heard about changing the master cylinder with discs, GOOD point.  What I want to do is avoid paying more for the brakes than I did for the car

 

craig

+1 on the bigger master.  I have the AC Industries Discs on all 4 corners.  Had the smaller MC on it when car was delivered and quickly realized it wasnt enough.  the bigger MC was a huge difference.

Craig-here's a source:

http://airkewld.com/what-is-th...ng-system-for-my-vw/

Craig--I have been completely satisfied with the C. B. Performance disc brake conversion.  Fine components, clear directions and they work perfectly.

 

They told me that the only thing that was super important was that torque specs where provided must be observed.

 

Reasonable price too.

Are you starting with drum brakes?  If so, you needed to decide if you want lowered spindles (which usually adds 1/2 to track each side in front).  There are add on plates that allow calipers to be mounted to stock drum rotors (cheaper - but suspect the caliper isn't as secure). Stock height/Ghia spindles won't increase front stance.  Stock calipers are ATE or VERA from my experience.  I like ones that have provision for a back splash shield - some spindles aren't drilled for it.  You will need longer rubber brake lines if going from drum to disc.  I recommend quality stainless steel covered lines with teflon coated cores.

 

The back is a more expensive conversion with more offset variables. Some rear conversion kits don't have provisions for emergency/parking brakes - and may not pass state vehicle safety inspections.  

 

Remember 70-80% of braking is done by the front brakes (so braking is hindered by lack of weight there in our Speedsters).  A large battery, spare wheel, tools and larger full gas tank adds to grip of those front tires.  CIP1 lists all the rotor bolt options as well as cross drilled ones for fade resistance.

Can anyone provide a phone number for AC Industries, please? I got into the website but cannot pull down a number. thanks...

A little off topic, but, is going to the 4 corners really worth it?  Car stops good now with disc in front.  Guess what I am really asking is it worth the money or is there something better to spend that money on, like a road trip in the car.

 

Stephen

Badspd- 2 VS speedster one with front disc and rear drum and my new one has front and rear disc.  I honestly cant remember how my first speedster stopped but idont remember it being and better or worse...if I am being honest, i dont see the difference other than to say I am happy i have disc all around

I had rear discs installed in my Beck this winter.  I will pick it up next Thursday and will be able to give you a report.  Fall before last, I drove Jack Crosby's Vintage and the stopping power was much better than my car with rear drums.  I had a couple of close calls due to other drivers and decided I wanted the piece of mind of 4-wheel discs.  In addition, the parking brake didn't work very well.  I modified the cables by cutting the springs down on the cable ends to allow for more travel.  This helped, but it is still not all that great.  Looking forward to better park brake function, as well.

Stephen:

For the way I drive my car, a 2110 with good low end and a beefed transmission, etc. mostly used for cruising, not heavy duty performance, I am happy with my disc front drum rear configuration. That said, I haven't driven an all disc similar setup so that might change my mind. But, so far, so good, and I feel safe with it as is.

Doesn't make me right, but I'm OK.

I've had both (at the same time) and it does make a noticeable difference.

With the Airkeld kit you're paying for fancy rotors, which, in my opinion, you don't need.

I have the Airkeld front disc kit and if I were to do it again I'd go with caliper brackets from here  http://www.thesamba.com/vw/cla...etail.php?id=1437671

Then, I'd source some Wilwood four piston calipers from someone like Jegs  http://www.jegs.com/v/Wilwood/950

I'd then look for a quality set of Ghia rotors (made in the US only) and aftermarket brake lines.

the arkweld kit is very good, and much lighter than the empi&cb & others, the empi kit has stamped brackets witch is what fleses because there not straight(well my kit had 1 straight& 1 not straight, they just need to be straightened so there square. the kit is china. the cb performance kits,(they also have many kits to choose from ) have even heaver rear roters in the roto hub kit but it alsio had cast brackets, much better than the empi ones.I have the ebrake ones and they caliper pind need pulling & greesed&antiseezed befor usage, each one of mine had 1 dry pin that of corse sizzed. a lighter brake system is beater but the heavy ones do the job too at about 1/3 the price or less. you will need to fab some lines&cable brackets/giudes in most cases, or just let the cable eat at the shock or something else. I will probably go with willwood on my 356.you can also use some porsche stuff too,not sure witch ones work, there are some on the samba for sale(used). and yes the rears do a lot of the braking.a lot of race cars&performance cars use 2 piston calipers in the front&4 piston calipers in the rear up to about 2800lbs then some go to biger in the front&6 in the rear. tires&type of driving also come into play.Im not happy with the empi/cb rort hub with ebrake, it's a single piston caliper and dosent have a lot of breaking force.(if I need to stop real fast& just pull the ebrake handle for the extra and it makes a big diff.

A bonus, if you go with Wilwood, is the huge choice of brake pads.

I've had bad luck with aftermarket caliper brackets.  I pulled a helicoil out on my Airkeld kit and my big brake kit on my old track Miata (and yes, I used a torque wrench and set it to the lb/ft in the instructions). 

Ron O, I like your approach to the disc brake setup. Those bracket lads are just over in Hogtown. Is there a particular year of Ghia rotors necessary to put the package together ? Would there be other than four piston calipers that would fit?  I don't drive hard...mostly highway cruising or around town.  I know very little about brakes other than knowing I need something before this season starts. thanks.

David, I have two piston Wilwoods.  Four piston is probably overkill, but then-again, I've never heard anyone complain about having brakes that were too good.

I'd contact him and ask advice about what Wilwood caliper to purchase.  Also ask him about what year Ghia rotor the brackets work with. 

I bought my rear kafer bar from him and the quality was excellent. 

I used C.B. Roto-Hub kit on the rear of my flared speedster. The change in offset was less than 1/4" outward towards the fender lip. I can't recall who I bought the kit for the fronts but I would probably get them from C.B. as well now.

Craig-

 

Is your car swing, or IRS? If it's IRS, rear discs might be a bit trickier than normal-- you'll need to watch your wheel offset pretty closely. On my JPS (IRS pan based, built in 2002) with standard EMPI 4-lug rear discs and Mangle wheels, the hubs got pushed out enough that I needed to run either re-centered 5-1/2"s or live with standard offset 4-1/2"s

 

Regardless, lots of us spend tons of money getting away from a 4-lug set-up and into wide-5s. I've come to the realization (pretty late in the game) that the smart money is on converting the 4-lug to later Porsche drilling 5-lug hubs, and going with Fuchs (or Fuch replacements). The brake kits are a lot less expensive, and the set-up looks fantastic.

 

FWIW, the stuff Ron O recommends is pricier than CB's (and certainly than EMPI's) but again, the smart money is on that set-up. Wilwood calipers are 10x nicer (and a good deal lighter) than anything else out there. The weight makes a lot of difference in handling, as it's all un-sprung.

Stan, funny you should mention the Porsche bolt pattern, which I have.  If I had it to do again I'd consider going with a 4x100 bolt pattern rotor.  There is a huge selection of light, inexpensive wheels in that bolt pattern.  The only downside is it's a four bolt pattern.  Most replica owners prefer the five bolt pattern (small or large).

My setup is unique, in that I need a huge amount of offset in the rear to clear the fenders.  And to make matters worse, my fender clearance is not the same on both sides.  I've dialed in a lot of wheel camber to allow my 185/65-15s to clear the fender-especially on one side.  Even with serious camber the clearance is paper thin.

More than anything, it's probably only me getting bored with my replica Fuchs wheels. 

David.

AC Industries is owned by SoCal Imports and is located at their Long Beach location.  So Cal Imports also owns Tri-Mill and Engle Cams.  (562) 633-4979.  Tell them Troy sent you... but don't be surprised when they just look at you funny!