After a little planning and a few prototypes, they are finally on! Strangely I did run into the weird stepped hub dilemma. I know it's a reman hub, but so is the other one. That did stop me dead in my tracks, no wonder the big boys avoid it like the plague.

I have not had the chance to bed them in, but initial tests bring a huge smile to my face

Wow, very nice!

Is there any possible way you could give out some more details. How much did it cost? Was there very much fabrication? If it was cost effictive I'm sure plenty of members will be interested. Good work, looks awesome!!!!

Details? Sure!

I bought all new GM parts, that raises the price quite a bit. I am sure you can get the calipers, hardware and abutment (caliper cage) for peanuts from a GM board.. they want the C6 brakes now. In total I used 1.5 custom parts, the rest can be bought. I say .5 because I had to redrill the rotor lug pattern to match, that isn't too hard. The only major custom part is the bracket to move the abutment out.

These are the new prices of the parts needed:

Rotor - $102 x2
Caliper - $100 x2
Abutment - $34 x2
Rubber boot - $3 x4
Caliper pin - $4 x4
Bracket spacers - $20
Rotor rings - $25
Hardware - $20
SS flex lines - $80
Pads - $70
Adapter bracket - $120


As I said, all parts new. I know it can be done for cheaper, I was picky on a few parts. I was specific on the rotors, I did not want cross drilled, slotted crap; just simple blanks. I can get all major brake parts at any automotive store. Believe it or not but I can even fit my 17" OEM Talon rims over this for the winter

You could have bought the Baer track kit for less money and had a better designed caliper. But with that said I think it's a nice setup you've got there. And I'm jealous that you have a wider range of options for rotors. With my Baers you have to get them through Baer. Nobody else makes them. Not sure if it's just the drill pattern or if the offset is different as well. Not that there's anything wrong with them, I'd just like to have more choices.
What kind of pads did you go with?

BAER uses PBR calipers which these are. These are essentially 2 generations up from what they use in their track kit. They are made from powdered metal with increased ribbing for a more sturdy design. I went with the OEM pad for the moment.

You would be surprised as to what rotor that kit uses. I will put money on them being C4 corvette HD rotors that have had the lug pattern changed.

I know the price is a little high, but hey, I wanted new.

Only thing is Mustang Cobras use the same setup as C4 but the Cobra has the same bolt pattern as a DSM. So I'm thinking it must be the offset. Oh well... Anyway, yeah nice upgrade for sure. It's amazing how much better they are compared to the stock crap.

Yeah, I had a Cobra rotor in the beginning. It doesn't have the offset that the HD does; which enables me to use the OEM Talon rim.

If you measure the offset, overall dia, hub dia, and thickness of your rotor, I might be able to find you another option.

It is a wonderful feeling only using light pedal pressure to stop the car quickly.

I was working with Dave at buybrakes.com on other rotor options and he couldn't come up with anything. My baer track fits behind the oem wheels too so I guess that's why the stay away from the Cobra offset.
I also have the powerslot bb upgrade on the rear. New Porterfield pads going on all around and some fresh Motul rbf600 going in this weekend. It should be rediculous after that.

Nice upgrade - hope to see a VFAQ posted in the Tech Articles section soon with pics!

Aren't they just dual piston calipers?

Thanks for the details. Now I know if I ever find some cheap used parts, this would be a great route to go.

InvaderGSX said:

Aren't they just dual piston calipers?

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Not really much "just" about them What his mod gave him is more brake pad surface area at a larger distance from the axle. Like a longer handle on a shovel/jack etc. moving the caliper further out allows it to use less force over more distance. The bigger rotor also creates a larger heat sink for less brake fade.

I don't pretend to understand the 2 piston vs. 4 benefits, but if you read up in the 3kgt brake conversion thread on here the last few pages has a brake guy in it who sort of explains that due to some very complicated math it really doesn't make any difference. Brembo sure thinks it does though so who knows.

Either way, the brakes are an improvement over the smaller 2 pots on DSMs. Nice work!

In other words, it gave him more front braking torque (assuming that the piston area wasn't decreased) and more thermal capacity. Therefore, if the problem with his car was cooking the fronts, he will gain in performance. In contrast, if he didn't have thermal issues, then his car could well take longer to stop after doing the mod, because he's using his rear brakes less than before.

So, I ask: what is the total piston area of a C5 caliper? And if the answer is "I don't know," then you have been doing no-one any favors by posting about this mod in a technical forum.

- Jtoby

Are there any differences or advantages of this setup over the EVO conversion which seems to me simpler. Does the C5 rotor have a larger surface area?

housegsx said:

You could have bought the Baer track kit for less money and had a better designed caliper. But with that said I think it's a nice setup you've got there. And I'm jealous that you have a wider range of options for rotors. With my Baers you have to get them through Baer. Nobody else makes them. Not sure if it's just the drill pattern or if the offset is different as well. Not that there's anything wrong with them, I'd just like to have more choices.
What kind of pads did you go with?

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I don't know if he knows it but the Baer brake setup is actually what he has put on his car. The Baer brake setup is the stck setup used on the Corvette and Mustang Cobras. or am i a day late and a $$ short with this info? !

ceedawg: You are not a day late, dollar.. I am aware I could buy the BAER track kit. I wanted to do something different, and I have a few options that the BAER kit can't give.

gixrman: I have the Brembo's from an EVO for the rear, I just have not put them on yet. The fronts don't come close to the offset that this has. I have some EVO front rotors, they have an offset of 7/16. With that you are forced to deal with the calipers interfering with the rim.

JToby: With a 1.75 inch outer diameter, the total area is 9.62 square inches.

OK, so you've only upped the front area from about 4.4 sqr-inches to 4.8 (per side). That's not a problem. Thanks.

- Jtoby

Ludachris said:

Nice upgrade - hope to see a VFAQ posted in the Tech Articles section soon with pics!

Click to expand...

My sentiments exactly. Keep the term "photos" in mind. Great job. Way to stick with it.