XYZ Big brake kit install & review

[rado]

Here are some pics of my recent install of a Big Brake Kit (BBK).

I'll give my opinions on the product later.

Here's the box it came in


Everything all nicely packed


Let's see what we have here..


Wheel bling


Everything nicely protected, individually wapped


Offer up the rotors


Then RTFM

[rado]

Here is a comparison of the rotor size to stock


Because I wanted to keep my stock rims, I had to get some wheel spacers since the wheel offset was too great and did not allow the wheel to bolt on an clear the calipers.

This is the propper way to address offset issues with a BBK.

[nareshseep]

Looks great, what was the weight difference between the old and new bbk setup?

[rado]

^^ believe it or not, the old caliper is actually heavier than the new ones!



The new rotors are a bit heavier though..

[rado]

Here's the reason I had to tend to the brakes in the first place.



believe it or not, these are actually the same pads I drove off the showroom floor with!!! almost exactly 3 years ago

[rado]

Ok here's one of the major reasons I love this kit...

Attention to details! This is what I mean.

They even label the rotor bags so you know what side they should go on!!!


They include extra hard line connectors.... just in case!


Mounting hardware is included to secure the supplied brake lines, with various bracket options.


...and of course, covers for the bleed nipples too

[rado]

So I pre-assembled the calipers wth the suplied pads and the anti rattle clips. Instructions were adequate, but here's a tip for installing the clip:

[rado]

Here are a couple pics after the install

[rado]

As I mentioned earlier, once of the main things I appreciate with kits like these is attention to detail. Another key aspect is quality.

In both aspects this kit met my exectations.

In the performance area, well I was gald to find out that da to day drive-ability is not compromised by an over-agressive initial bite of the brakes. In fact the brakes offer a very porgressive feel. Operation is smooth an quiet, no rattle or vibration whatsoever.

Now when you squeeze a bit more on the stop pedal, you realize that things come to a halt in a hurry. Its hard to judge how much more brake power is available, but needless to say it is considerable. Whereas before it would be difficult to get the ABS to engage on a dry road, with lots of force on the pedal, now its very easy. So easy in fact that on the road, I know I have to be more mindful of the cars behind me.

This setup should shine on the solodex track!

[FullStop]

looks good man, be careful with the guys behind you, I upgraded my brakes and its become tiresome with the poor driving habits locally, men always on ur bumper.

[rado]

Update....

OK, I seriously have to re-educate my right foot! Driving on an open highway did not give a true sense of how well these brakes work. This morning on the commute to work, I'm literally using about half the normal brake pressure.

I hope I don't give anyone behind me a scare.... LOL

[Hook]

lol...they probably thought u were a noob driver with all the accidental hard braking
What vehicle BTW?

Good write-up tho. Did you use standard bedding-in procedure, or is there anything special that you need to do to a BBK for maximum performance and reliability?

[rado]

^^ Its a suzuki swift sport.. 2009 model

Pretty standard bleeding procedure. Since there are two nipples on each caliper I tried using two bleed tubes and do them simultaneously, however I think one at a time is fine. I usually cycle a lot of fluid through the system, just to be sure all the air bubbles are out. From then on, once ther are no leaks, you're good to go!

[CD4Accord]

What is the fluid of choice for this setup?

[Hook]

bedding-in I meant, not bleeding

[rado]

:lol: bedding-in I meant, not bleeding

Sorry... lol

I dunno of an special procedure for that... just clean the rotors and take it easy at first.

[rado]

What is the fluid of choice for this setup?

Some DOT4 fluid

[belalegosi]

Here are a couple pics after the install

lovely!
I love when the brakes fill the rim

[X_Factor]

U think u might need braided brake lines as well?

[CD4Accord]

X_Factor...

You never actually NEED a braided line kit.. All it will serve to do is improve the pedal feel...
So, if you want a stiffer pedal then yes, but on such a new vehicle I honestly wouldnt bother

[silent_riot]

Do you need to upgrade the master cylinder?
I'm assuming more fluid is being pumped to the larger calipers.
Will ABS still work?

[belalegosi]

X_Factor...

You never actually NEED a braided line kit.. All it will serve to do is improve the pedal feel...
So, if you want a stiffer pedal then yes, but on such a new vehicle I honestly wouldnt bother

Sure about that?
Rubber lines expand as the brake fluid heats up. Premature failure, line rupturing, spongy pedal, etc.

For a setup like this, he would have more of a need for braided lines vs stock. Bigger calipers, more heat.

Do you need to upgrade the master cylinder?
I'm assuming more fluid is being pumped to the larger calipers.
Will ABS still work?

ABS tone wheels are on the axle, not the brake system. ABS should not be affected.

[X_Factor]

^same thing i was thinking
because on normal driving....brakes works good and bites nice etc
but when it gets some pressure like say solodex as mentioned it might jus get spongy when the brake fluid heats up more

but i guess u'll probably find out if its needed in the future...

[rado]

The kit came with steel braided lines

The even had little plastic cups in the banjo bolts to keep them free of any debris.

[rado]

Do you need to upgrade the master cylinder?
I'm assuming more fluid is being pumped to the larger calipers.
Will ABS still work?

Good question, but no need to upgrade the master clinder. Remember that although its six pistons instead of one, the pistons are smaller and stagered in size.

Also, once the system is bled, not much movement is required to engage the brakes, so in fact it seems to me that the pedal does not go down as much as it used to before!

But with so much brake force on tap there is hardl any need to use much force on the pedal

[X_Factor]

^ yuh have d ting self right dey!

[rado]

Yup a really comprehensive kit. They even had .5mm shims included just in case the calipers needed centering on the rotors! None were needed in my indtall.

[Dave]

When i bought my old man's sentra he bought from massey brand new, at 38k km, I changed the lines to braided and it was a night and day diff and he was a very conservative driver

[rado]

I want to believe that if I had good enough tires, I could get the back tires to leave the ground under heavy breaking

[FullStop]

I want to believe that if I had good enough tires, I could get the back tires to leave the ground under heavy breaking

thats scary man, gotta maintain good bias of stopping power between front and rears, with the right bias the car stops more straight for want of a better word. In my limited experience, when the bias is upset, like when larger front brakes alone is installed, the car kinda wiggles a bit under hard stopping...