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Effective August 1st: All Wilwood factory and TCE/Wilwood kit sold with the W6A and W4A calipers will now be shipped with the new Aero6 and Aero4 models.
The Aero series represents an extension of the proven and popular W series and builds upon that success.
What makes the Aero series stand out?
1. A slightly larger body and anulus designed to accommodate up to 15" diameter discs. 2. A build in bridge reinforcement addressing those who had concerns about body flex. 3. An internal crossover, removing unsightly and potentially damaged external pipes. 4. Single fit bleeder fittings for ease of service and less visual streaking of the outer shell. 5. The availability of a base black anodized caliper for those with track use applications where powder coat finishes can trap heat.
Or course these calipers are also available in standard BLACK and RED powder coat as well as QUICK SILVER finish.
And if that's not enough; all models can be fit with Wilwood's Thermlock pistons for extreme heat applications.
The Aero series uses the same 6617 pad found in the W series as well as the same mounting specs making it a direct interchange for anyone using a W6A or W4A now.
This calipers does retain the pesky clip and pin pad retention found on the W series and does now require the caliper be removed from the bracket to replace the pads. It is no longer a 'top loading' caliper. I'm certain some will find fault with that but it's part of the design trade off. Hopefully compared to other options the additional 10-20% cubic pad material will not having you service the pads as often anyhow.
TCE will be supplying this caliper on all future 'house' kits and customs that were supplied with the W series as well as continuing to stock a extensive line of pads, service parts and Titaninum heat barriers for all your needs!
Looking at the pictures of those calipers, why is the bleeder on the inside and not on the outside of the caliper? Seems to me you wouldn't be able to get air out of the caliper?
I know you guys don't really support wheel fit, but i assume this means my dreams of one day upgrading to a w6a/w4a setup on my stock c5z wheels is now dead in the water?
I had talked to a few folks on the forum here and they said there was a couple millimeters of clearance on the 17's in front, the bridge likely consumes that?
The wheel fit for the Aero series is nearly identical to that of the W series. The Aero by .010" to the spoke. The radial height of the caliper (that bridge support) is however a bit more by .080" so barrel diameter could be an issue. A couple mm of space could be eaten up quickly.
1. There's no change in kit price.
2. The Aero6 ST with thermlocks for track use is available with 20mm thick pad? No more whining from others about 17mm pads ok?! *They will not sub for the current kits however and require custom brackets.
Last edited by Todd TCE; 08-05-2014 at 06:36 PM.
Reason: Clarify the info on the 20mm app
1. There's no change in kit price.
2. The Aero6 ST with thermlocks for track use comes with the 20mm thick pad? No more whining from others about 17mm pads ok?!
sounds good, will this by any chance work with stock discs?
(i'm still looking)
1. There's no change in kit price.
2. The Aero6 ST with thermlocks for track use comes with the 20mm thick pad? No more whining from others about 17mm pads ok?!
I thought the 6617's were 17mm and the 7420s were 20mm. Were the 6617s changed?
But the Aero6 calipers that take the thicker pad have different (larger) dimensions than the calipers that take the 6617 pad. Did Wilwood come out with a bracket for the calipers that take the thicker 6620 pad?
Kits that "used" W6A and the 6617 pad will still (as of now) be fitted with the new Aero6 caliper and the 17mm pad.
Custom builds and possible future use applications where there is a different bracket in place for correct centering would use the Aero6 with 20mm pads. These two calipers are NOT the same part as the bridge must be wider to take the wider pad.
Heading off the next obvious question: "could I use these on the oe rotor or the Wilwood 14.25" kits?!" The answer is 'no'. Not in current form. The reason is that you have to move the bracket inward, closer to the engine, to do so. The Corvette brackets mount to the outboard side of the spindle ears preventing this.
Will they be making a full kit or new caliper kit that does all that?? I'll go out on a limb a bit and say it's not likely. Or not any time soon. It would require both new brackets and a new hat to change the offsets of both. It would also compromise wheel clearance more as the caliper body is wider. But you never know for sure...a dedicated race kit could be in the offerings some time. I apologize if my comments were misleading on the fit.
I note that only the black ano and nickel plated calipers are offered with the 20mm pad. That's as most track guys don't really care about the powder coat or want the heat capture effect. The difference in the two bodies is about 1/8" of lost wheel clearance.
I get it that a lot of folks might like that added 3mm of pad but guys the current 17mm pad has more cubic inches of friction material than both the 7416 and 7420. As well as a lot of other pads from other manufactures. Between the complications, wheel clearance and added costs (so far the 20mm pads in fact are more money) you're really not getting something that most folks would benefit from. Run the 17s and keep up on simple maintenance; pad wear plats, Ti heat shims etc and/or thermlocks if you track the car hard.
So this caliper has to be removed to replace the pads. Is Wilwood not ever going to produce a top loading caliper again in the future?
As a racer, having the top load W6 and W4 kits is a HUGE advantage in terms of maintenance, checking your brakes, and total ownership. Anyone can change the brakes in the amount of time it takes to remove the wheel.
Todd the pics I saw of the SL6 caliper mounted on the Vette the radial bracket mounted on the back or inside of the knuckle. Does the GStop kit and the other kit similar to the Gstop kit mount to the front of the knuckle? This pic is from a Gstop kit install.
So this caliper has to be removed to replace the pads. Is Wilwood not ever going to produce a top loading caliper again in the future?
As a racer, having the top load W6 and W4 kits is a HUGE advantage in terms of maintenance, checking your brakes, and total ownership. Anyone can change the brakes in the amount of time it takes to remove the wheel.
-Kevin
You are correct in this case Kevin; yes the caliper must be removed to service the pads. While I agree with you, and a vast number of folks do also, the "dark side" who can can find nothing but fault with every Wilwood product have been quick to point out the shortcomings of the W series with regard to its large pad window in terms of caliper stiffness and lack of a bridge. And while to the 1% most hardcore users this 'might' have been a problem....having sold hundreds on a wide range of platforms I can tell you it was never an issue for the vast majority of buyers. But...Pretty sure that's been addressed looking it it now.
Exactly why the rework was done this way vs a removable and serviceable bridge I can't say. In part this caliper was built to allow rotors up to 15" be installed- something that did not work well with the W series. Obviously having both of these in overlapping applications would be foolish.
I can only suggest you share your thoughts with them on their Facebook page. I've noted it was not my first suggestion as well but I certainly don't set policy. Will they produce an alternative that reverses this? I have no idea. It would however seem clear that one could remove the current bridge, mill both sides and fit a removable spacer tho.
Todd the pics I saw of the SL6 caliper mounted on the Vette the radial bracket mounted on the back or inside of the knuckle. Does the GStop kit and the other kit similar to the Gstop kit mount to the front of the knuckle? This pic is from a Gstop kit install.
Can you please confirm this? If it bolts to the front of the knuckle, I'm going to make a hybrid kit for my Z28.
Some radial mount brackets mount to the outside, some on the inside. From my experience of producing both; it's usually due to packaging. The head of the bolt is far lower profile allowing more clearance to the rotor than a bracket that must be perhaps .625-.750 thick full of thread.
I can't speak for the G-stop or KNS systems engineering and design directly. Both have been proven, cost effective packages however so I'm sure they are a sound design.
Some radial mount brackets mount to the outside, some on the inside. From my experience of producing both; it's usually due to packaging. The head of the bolt is far lower profile allowing more clearance to the rotor than a bracket that must be perhaps .625-.750 thick full of thread.
I can't speak for the G-stop or KNS systems engineering and design directly. Both have been proven, cost effective packages however so I'm sure they are a sound design.
Thanks Todd.
I really see no issue with removing the caliper to change pads. You were/are doing that with the stock caliper, you have to do it when changing rotors.
You are correct in this case Kevin; yes the caliper must be removed to service the pads. While I agree with you, and a vast number of folks do also, the "dark side" who can can find nothing but fault with every Wilwood product have been quick to point out the shortcomings of the W series with regard to its large pad window in terms of caliper stiffness and lack of a bridge. And while to the 1% most hardcore users this 'might' have been a problem....having sold hundreds on a wide range of platforms I can tell you it was never an issue for the vast majority of buyers. But...Pretty sure that's been addressed looking it it now.
Exactly why the rework was done this way vs a removable and serviceable bridge I can't say. In part this caliper was built to allow rotors up to 15" be installed- something that did not work well with the W series. Obviously having both of these in overlapping applications would be foolish.
I can only suggest you share your thoughts with them on their Facebook page. I've noted it was not my first suggestion as well but I certainly don't set policy. Will they produce an alternative that reverses this? I have no idea. It would however seem clear that one could remove the current bridge, mill both sides and fit a removable spacer tho.
Thanks for the reply, Todd. I fully understand it is not your stance, no worries there.
I would have to say I am probably in the true 1% of hardcore users on Wilwood Calipers. I don't know of anyone else that runs their C5 in enduros, sprint races, and time trials like we have with my car. No issues to date with the calipers since installing them.
Thanks for the great service last week Todd. Car ran great at Inde. Got second overall on Sunday and first in class, was able to out brake just about every car with no abs. Thanks again!
08-04-2014, 10:42 AM
New Wilwood Aero6 and Aero4 Kits
