1G Big-brake part differences.

[Talesin]

I already know that you can pull the two-pot 'big brakes' from a 93-94 GSX, Diamante or N/A 3KGT. What I'm wondering is if these parts are truly interchangeable, down to the brackets. Can you just buy '93 GSX front pads, and slap them in an NA 3KGT? Grab the rotors for a Diamante and pop them on your 93-94 GSX?

Mostly asking as I hit up a pick-a-part today and found two seemingly good sets of 'big' brakes, with intact brake lines and the master cylinder cap still in place (hopefully meaning no rust in the caliper piston hones, and no need to rebuild them). One from a Diamante, one from a 3KGT. The brackets look slightly different... the 3KGT appears more shaved on the ends of the hub mounting bracket, so I'd rather use those to avoid/reduce any potential clearance issues with my rims. But given that when companies hear 3KGT, they assume you have money to burn.. to the tune of over twice as expensive.

3KGT was ABS (not like it matters), Diamante was non-ABS. Calipers look identical aside from a few cast markings, just the mounting brackets show any real difference. So, are the pads/rotors mix-n-match, or do I need to mark down what car they came from, to avoid part incompatability in the future?

 

[absolute_DSM]

Subscribed. I would track down 'jtoby'. Hes really good with suspension and brakes.

 

[WatchItExplode]

They're all the same, interchangable parts. I have two sets of Diamante calipers and brackets and one set of NA stealth calipers and brackets in my garage, and I can assure you it's all the same stuff. If you look up aftermarket rotors for any of the "big brake" vehicles, they are all the same part number, so you can be confident that the rotors all match too.

Oh yeah, and for the record, 2g AWD brake parts are also interchangable, but the way the brake line connects is different. 2g AWD's use banjo type lines, and the rest use screw-in lines.

 

[staticbrainwash]

I thought actually, that the 3k brakes were a little bigger than the 2pot dsm ones. I could be wrong though.

 

[WatchItExplode]

you're thinking of the 3kgt VR4 brakes, which are quite a bit bigger than the 2 piston DSM brakes.

 

[staticbrainwash]

Except i know those aren't 2pot's also, they're 4 pots. I was talking about the 2pots.

 

[Talesin]

The calipers themselves seem to be physically identical except for cast markings, as noted above... only the mounting brackets (where the pads sit, making it a concern) show any kind of different design. I haven't taken measurements, but the NA 3KGT brackets also looked much thicker in diameter around the hub bolt holes.. just extra material I'd venture to guess that was removed from the Diamante brackets.

Diamante that I pulled them off was a wagon, if that makes any difference whatsoever.

Knew about the banjo versus screw-in fitting bit through VFAQ and reading through prior threads, but no one actually ever has mentioned (that I've seen or been able to find) if the pads and rotors between the 'big brake' caliper upgrades are interchangeable. I'd assume so, having looked at two different types of the actual calipers side by side, but want to be certain before I jump on the cheaper 93 GSX rotors/pads. After all, brakes are a huge part of personal safety, not to mention cornering potential.

 

[Ludachris]

Let's not forget about the N/A Stealth brakes, as that's what I used with my old setup - and I ordered pads for a 94 GSX when I had to replace them with no problems.

 

[Talesin]

NA Stealth, 3KGT, same same. Okay, so the pads should fit.. I guess with no other input, I'll be finding out today about the rotors, and returning them if there's any kind of fitment problem. Still going with '93, for some reason they're INCREDIBLY cheap. $84 for a pair of rebuilt Morse front calipers (no hub brackets though) with pads.

Curiosity speaking, is the 17mm 'nut' on the caliper end of the brake line supposed to rotate, or do you have to essentially spin the caliper up onto the line, and just use a wrench at the very end to torque the fitting in? :b I just cut the lines on the donor cars, and put a screw into the end of each brake line to prevent having the brake fluid attract water (brake system was still completely intact, so no rebuild *should* be needed for piston hone rust, I hope I hope I hope).

 

[Talesin]

Pulled out the Haynes and found out how to deal with the rubber brake line.. just going to replace them if they're already going to be off the car. Just have to find a flare wrench now and start spraying down the fittings with WD-40 for the next couple days.

Also, chatted with the manager at the local Autozone (slow night) and had him look up the part numbers for a few of the donor cars. Same rotor part number, same pad part number. Though for some reason the Diamante came up with an additional rotor part number that the GSX nor 3KGT had listed. Of course, none in stock at the moment. :b

 

[JrCRXHF]

I did mine about 2 years ago and just got loaded calipers and disc from the auto store off a 3k SL and bolted them on the car it was that easy. The stock wheels come really close to not clearing.