Black Diamond Discs - Any Good?

[Guest MiamiBlueOli]

anybody had any experience of black diamond brake discs? I'm thinking of upgrading the front discs and I'm looking at the black diamond cross drilled/grooved combis. I like the look of them because they have a black coating on which theoretically stops the rest of the disc (that the pad doesn't touch) from rusting.

 

Anyone reccomend any other discs from experience as well?

[jonD6B 0]

I have these discs with DS2500 pads on my car and it stops pretty well on the road but I haven't tracked the car yet so can't give my opinion of how they perform under very heavy driving. I would be inclined to do a search to get other peoples opinions and also other options. Braided hoses are a must and by the time you've bought the discs, pads, hoses and fluid to cope with the heavy braking you are in the region of spending £350-£400. I would be inclined to go for DS3000 pads aswell if it's for track use.

[Ahl 4]

The main thing to upgrade for braking performance is the pads.

 

They probably are good discs, but you'll probably notice no difference between these and good quality standard discs.

A wee bit of rust on the rest of the disc isn't going to harm anything.

[nick 3]

For the same price as b/diamond discs and pads you could probably find some gti-6/307 discs and calipers.

 

Nick

[Alastairh 47]

Exactly nick. 307 brakes aren't exactly rare in most decent scrappies these days.

[Guest MiamiBlueOli]

do the 306 gti-6 or 307 brakes an calipers fit straight on with no modifications? i assumed you would have to modify something and that's what put me off that route.

[Ahl 4]

They both go straight on, the whole setup.

[Foltan 0]

They both go straight on, the whole setup.

...for under a ton!

[TVR Gary 0]

Just so i've got this right as i'm interested in this too....... The 306GTi 6 or 307 caliper / disc set up fits onto a 205 without modification? What is the best set up, which has the biggest discs?

What parts do I need to get my hands on or is it just the caliper itself and a set of discs / pads?

 

 

I too have just bought a set of black Diamond discs, will give a report on how they fair with DS3000's in a few weeks.

 

Gary

[Ahl 4]

The 306GTi 6 or 307 caliper / disc set up fits onto a 205 without modification? What is the best set up, which has the biggest discs

 

Thats right, though you want the 307 283mm setup from the 2L petrol or Diesel, some 1.6s also have this setup but the rest are 266mm.

The 306GTI setup has larger pistons than the 307, but the 307 setup has thicker discs.

 

Im under the impression that the thicker discs are more beneficial on track, plus the 307 setup can probably be had cheaper, so im going that route.

[TVR Gary 0]

Can you buy performance pads for the 307 set up? I dont see much about for that car yet.....

[Guest MiamiBlueOli]

not saying anyone is wrong here (as i'm not certain myself) but I thought that you would need some extra parts to make the larger brakes fit on the 205. I have just found this kit on ebay that makes me think I am right?

 

big brake conversion brackets

 

It also says that you need 16's to be able to fit the 283mm discs/calipers, anyone know if this is true or not?

Edited May 10, 2006 by MiamiBlueOli

[Ahl 4]

not saying anyone is wrong here (as i'm not certain myself) but I thought that you would need some extra parts to make the larger brakes fit on the 205. I have just found this kit on ebay that makes me think I am right?

 

big brake conversion brackets

 

It also says that you need 16's to be able to fit the 283mm discs/calipers, anyone know if this is true or not?

The 283mm setups fit under the 15" 1.9 alloys ok. Sometimes the caliper needs an edge filed slightly, but no biggy.

Those kits are for using big discs with the standard calipers and tbh its not the best way about it, especially as the discs can be very expensive if custom made.

The 306 GTI6 and 307 setups go straight on (on 1.9 and basemodel hubs) as said, then you've got cheaper discs and better calipers. The 206 GTI 180 is also pretty much the same as the 283mm 307 setup btw.

[Guest MiamiBlueOli]

The 283mm setups fit under the 15" 1.9 alloys ok. Sometimes the caliper needs an edge filed slightly, but no biggy.

Those kits are for using big discs with the standard calipers and tbh its not the best way about it, especially as the discs can be very expensive if custom made.

The 306 GTI6 and 307 setups go straight on (on 1.9 and basemodel hubs) as said, then you've got cheaper discs and better calipers. The 206 GTI 180 is also pretty much the same as the 283mm 307 setup btw.

 

Thanks Ahl, it all makes sense now! I think what I'm going to do is find some used standard 306 gti6/307 calipers and put them on with some aftermarket cross drilled/groved gti6/307 discs

[Ahl 4]

Yeah, thats a good plan. 307 calipers especially can be had cheap from scrapyards that don't know what they're selling.

I wouldn't bother with the fancy discs if I was you. They'll cost a packet and you'll notice no braking improvement over standard ones - its the pads that make the difference, though standard pads are probably more than good enough too.

[Guest andyfitz]

I have black diamond drilled and grooved on my 1.6 GTI, they seem to be exelent disks, stop very well, I dont know how much better they are to the standard disks as my GTI had them on when I bought it.

 

Oh and due to the coating they dont rust as you say! makes the car look so much cleaner through my wheels