Upgrading Brakes.... Best Setup

[Fearon 1]

Right

 

Getting into my head, what i need, on paper to make my project go ahead......

 

 

Whats the best setup brake wise for the 205 GTi...

 

Im 99% Certain of going down the GTi-6 engine... With a 309 GTi rear beam, and wishbones etc etc....

 

 

 

Would i be better going for

 

306 GTi 6 brakes

206 GTi 180 brakes

406 V6 brembos

 

 

Ill be running 1.9 Speedlines...

 

All help appreciated

 

Thanks

[Rom 0]

Standard calipers are more then enough, with some decent pads in.

Though a lot of people, myself include, seem to change for the sake of it

 

Im running 307 Hdi upfront. Im planning on changing to decent pads though, instead of OE type Ferrodo ones.

 

One thing to remember, is your adding to the unsprung weight by using heavier brakes.

[RossD 43]

I think it is down to personal preference. There is no definitive "Best" brake setup. Some people may prefer one setup, others may not. Usually the bigger the brakes, the heavier they become which can have a detrimental effect on the handling of the car.

As said above, standard calipers with uprated pads take a lot of beating!!

Edited April 22, 2009 by RossD

[Fearon 1]

Im shocked at what both of you are saying, i really am....

 

but,

 

 

££££'s in the pocket with your advice...! ;-)

[welshpug 1,626]

as above have recently had a ride in a 1.6 Rally car, standard brake setup with a bias valve, race brake fluid and yellowstuff pads, when my mate leans on the brake pedal you certainly know about it!

[Baz 421]

I run std's with decent pads and fluid, brilliant, and only slightly better is a friend's car that i drive often with a 285 disc setup and DS2500 pads and SRF fluid, not surprisingly std 1.9 calipers still though.

[Stu 18]

Well, just to add my two-penneth, i think the '6 setup i run on mine to be brilliant; not overly braked and awesome stopping power. Ive run standard pads for ages now (admittedly OE spec Bendix ones) and ive yet to fade them significantly, and they are cheap to replace.

 

I run the stock 1900 servo, the usual 406 non-abs M/C, GTI-6 disks/pads/calipers, stock rear calipers with the compensators removed. Standard lines, and DOT 5.1 fluid.

[shalmaneser 26]

Well, just to add my two-penneth, i think the '6 setup i run on mine to be brilliant; not overly braked and awesome stopping power. Ive run standard pads for ages now (admittedly OE spec Bendix ones) and ive yet to fade them significantly, and they are cheap to replace.

 

I run the stock 1900 servo, the usual 406 non-abs M/C, GTI-6 disks/pads/calipers, stock rear calipers with the compensators removed. Standard lines, and DOT 5.1 fluid.

 

do you have a bias valve? or just run the rears 'straight' as it were?

[skeggyrik 3]

do you have a bias valve? or just run the rears 'straight' as it were?

 

My old black Mi16 had the Gti6 set up at the front and straight lines to the rears with the compensators removed.

There used to be a calculator knocking about that said this was fine and the fronts would lock first, which they did on the flat.

At both Cadwell and Curborough i was told I was locking a single rear as the camber changed and one wheel went light.

 

It is "safe" but the bias is closer than with the standard set up.

[James_R 3]

Techincally if you want the "best" set up then you're looking at AP Pro5000 calipers on 308mm rotors and bells with DS3000 pads, or similar compound. but after your £1500+VAT you could have bought about 3 205s

 

For road big brakes with std compound pads is a good idea, they stop well form cold and will survive most spirited driving. 266 brakes also seem to keep up the abuse and are lighter

 

Also the over all weight of the car is another factor, I can still get away with std calipers and discs with DS2500 pads in the front and ferrodo prem's in the back, full braided from the MC lines and a bias valve to work the back harder and have no issues. plus it's lighter.

[Tom Fenton 1,526]

For a road car then as others have said the standard stuff with good pads is more than up to the job. I personally found though that with hard track use they would start to suffer, and an upgrade to the 283mm discs is a useful one giving really confidence inspiring brakes for track use. Another thing that really helps and a lot of people seem to overlook is getting some air ducted to the front brakes, I've done this and again it made a big difference, I can now run less track biased pad materials as they run that bit cooler.

[James_R 3]

My old black Mi16 had the Gti6 set up at the front and straight lines to the rears with the compensators removed.

There used to be a calculator knocking about that said this was fine and the fronts would lock first, which they did on the flat.

At both Cadwell and Curborough i was told I was locking a single rear as the camber changed and one wheel went light.

 

It is "safe" but the bias is closer than with the standard set up.

 

I ran Gti-6 brakes front no compenasator on my s16 and it was well balanced in braking even in the wet.

[Stu 18]

Agreed. I dont run a bias valve, and find the balance to be spot on

[Rom 0]

To elaborate, i run 307 266mm setup up front, with complete braided lines for the whole car, 406 MC, rear compensators removed.

 

As i said, a lot of brake 'upgrades' are purely for show, and the abilty to say i have xxxmm discs. As has been proven on here, upgrades often lower the overall effectiveness of the system.

But, im guilty of it too

[Miles 331 1 Cars]

Cheapest option is either std or GTi6, The pads for the 307 Callipers are expensive as who use's them on there 307 HDI, I would guess no one, The differance is a good £40.00 on Mintex 1144/55's

[Craigb 2]

For a road set up , i never felt the need to go beyond std, with a reasonable set of pads.

but for competition i love my front 206 gti set up , yes they are heavy , they may upset the handling , but after 200 miles of road rallying , they never let you down .

 

press the pedal , you stop , what more could you ask for .

 

All of the above is all affected by what rubber you are running . no point having brakes that are far better than your tyres , otherwise it overkill.

[Fearon 1]

So, the just of it is...

 

STD crap.. but with 266 or 285 and DS2500 pads...

 

What make are the DS2500 ?

 

is the 1.6 and 1.9 fronts the same?

 

Thanks

[Rom 0]

DS2500 are Ferrodo

[daveyboyblack 1]

I'm running std calipers with Brembo discs and DS2500 pads, and some decent fluid. Didn't have any trouble at Bedford even after long stints. From other car's i've been in though it seems that for a fast road car, then bigger discs/calipers provide a nicer "feel" but if you're on track then the pads/fluid make a bigger difference.

 

I'm planning on putting some proper brake ducts in soon, just to be sure.... never can quite stop upgrading!