Johns07Z

I wanted to do a post about my new brakes! I worked with Jeff Ritter on upgrading the brakes for my C6 Z06. I knew the new Radi-Cal calipers were coming out soon, and while they sounded incredible, I knew I was going to have a few events prior to their release. Having already researched the CP5060 calipers, and reading several posts here and a post from Bill Dearborn that he should have listened to all the advice and jumped into a racing setup sooner than later, I talked with Jeff and made the plunge, including the Ferodo DS1.11 pads. Everyone at Essex was great to work with and delivery was prompt. The instructions that come with the kit are very straight forward and easy to understand. Follow them to the letter and your life will be easier.

A quick aside on this: I, for one, hate working with flared fittings and have a fear of installing brake lines, other posts here have documented the difficulties of this over the years as well. (I had also upgraded to stainless lines previously and had thoughts of keeping them. I’m glad I didn’t, as the fittings wouldn’t have mated to the AP setup as well and the caps supplied with the kit make it easy and clean to do). To strip these fine threads is my biggest fear and having to replace the hard piped portion, or fix the flared (if possible) always scares me. So I deviated from the well thought out, step by step instructions and installed the brake lines ahead of time while the rotor and calipers were still off so I had more room to work. This of course, allows fluid to start dripping during the rest of the process. The cap supplied by Essex/Spiegler, does just fit inside the banjo bolt and one side it plugged completely, but I needed to keep a can under it and keep an eye on the other side and my fluid reservoir. My recommendation is cap and install just as Essex suggests and your life will be easier.

Do read the instructions through (and follow them) so that you have all the tools and items laid out and the install will go very quick and easy. The ease of the pad installation, one of the reasons I upgraded, seemed just too easy, especially compared to that annoying spring clip of the stock Z06 brakes!

My first event came at Watkins Glen and the stopping power of these brakes and pads is just amazing! All my old braking points are gone and I constantly found myself having to let off the brakes into corners just to get into the turn in point. I spent the rest of the event going deeper into corners and working with my instructor to get the most out of the set up. I haven’t measured exactly,but after the two day event, the pads haven’t worn more than 30% and I’m looking to get several events out of one set, instead of 1 set per event prior. I do street the car after, and as promised they are a bit noisy on the street, but overall I’m thrilled with the setup! I’m actually looking forward to needing to change the pads since it will be so easy to do! Thanks to Jeff Ritter and all the staff at Essex and AP for providing a product that lives up to the billing, ease of installation and great design. They fit so well with the rest of my stock setup and the engineering and tolerances just amaze me. Another side benefit is that you can clearly see the outside pads without removing the wheel, so it’s very easy to do a quick check. And I have to say, they look pretty cool behind the wheels too! I’m looking forward to many track days with these babies! If you can wait a few more weeks, the new Radi-Cal calipers look to be even more amazing and look to be incredible and I’m sure worth the wait! Thanks Jeff and Essex!

Mugen1516

Nice! Which AP kit did you end up getting from Essex? Is it the AP Racing Factory Kit (red)? Or did you get the Sprint or Endurance Kit? I too am looking into a BBK from Jeff at Essex.

Any more feedback on the Ferodo DS1.11 pads? How are they noise wise on the street? I drive my car to and from the track.

Have fun!

EDIT: Never mind, reread the post and you have the CP5060 calipers so obviously the Endurance Kit. Very nice.

flash911

Thank you for the write up. I have the front Endurance kit / DS 1.11s and will be jumping into the install in a couple of weeks.

Tell me, did you do any upgrade to the rear?

argonaut

I've had the endurance kit on front of my FRC for near 2 years now:
- I still have stock rear calipers
- The DS1.11 pads are true track pads and will be noisy on the street. On the track they work great but they don't have the initial bite of some others (DTC70, CL RC8), doesn't bother me but I've talked to a few guys who miss the 'bite'. On the other hand they have better ability to modulate - more like a dimmer switch than an on/off switch.
- What I like best is the low maintenance. I use 14" Centric rotors (the ones for the C6 Z06) rather than the J-Hooks (requires a shim on the caliper mount) - due in part to the greater mass and thermal capacity they last far longer than I ever experienced with the stock 12.8" units. Likewise the pads last a pretty long time as well - depends a lot on your style, track, tires, etc. but I generally get 6-8 days out of the pads. More out of the rotors. Pad taper is very minimal but to maximize life I rotate the pads after every 2-day event. Of course its easy to do because of the ablility to load the pads thru the rear.
- Very, very happy with the Essex AP Endurance Kit - awesome brakes! There is just no downside to them (well, you do need 18" rims on the front...thats a bit of a downer I suppose).

flash911

^ so Argonaut, front Endurance (check) and rear stock c5 / concentric rotors (stock size?) and what pads? How's the pedal and balance?

Thanks man,

argonaut

^ rear is completely stock C5 - rotors and calipers. I've used a variety of pads: DS1.11/DS2500; DTC-60/Wilwood H; DTC60/DTC60; DTC70/DTC60. All have worked well and I'm not very brand loyal, whatever I can get cheapest that will hold up on track.

The pedal feels about the same as stock - that is to say slightly soft/over boosted. The difference is that the pedal feel is consistent as the pads wear. My experience with stock was the pedal feel went south the thinner the pads got.

Balance seems fine. Essex designed the front piston size to work with a stock rear - so the balance is basically stock. Supposedly they throw a little more bias to the rear but I can't tell. I can tell you that the system works great and takes the abuse all day long.

NemesisC5

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Johns07Z

Sorry for the MIA here from me guys, been running from east to west and 2 days at Watkins Glen (which then necessitated new front hubs which i just finished last night) Yes it was the endurance kit as you figured and i apologize for no photos, been a little hectic. Again, follow the Essex instructions and take your time and you'll be very happy. I'm off to 2 more days at Watkins Glen this weekend with some stickier tires to match these awesome brakes and i'll try to post some photos when i get back.

Johns07Z

I'm running stock rears as well with Carbotech XP-8s and I fully agree, I didn't notice the difference from stock, just have to adjust the braking zones to shorter, which is a bit unnerving really, going harder and faster and deeper into the corners goes against our human self preservation nature! I'm not a full on racer - 14 track days at Watkins Glen over the last 3 years but lap times are about 10-15 secs slower than the pros. I say this only to point out that the DS1.11's only showed about 1/16" pad wear from the 2 days in April (highs in the 40's certainly helped). Beats the 2 - 4 days i was getting on softer pads. Another benefit to this set up is you can see the pads through the wheels. with the stock brakes you have to pull the wheels to see what you have left. Certainly not worth changing the whole system for, but really is a great side benefit in addition to all the rest !

flash911

So I just got off the phone with Essex. Man those dudes are helpful! I decided to do a refresh on my rear when I install my endurance kit so I'm fresh all around. What I did was get some slotted Stoptech cryo rotors and new stock calipers for the rear. Ordered DS2500 rear pads from Sam Strano (painless, good price and buying experience). I also called Essex and ordered some DS2500s for the front to start with. I already have the DS1.11 fronts sitting on the shelf. After get everything installed and try it out on the track, if I find I need more stopping power / bias in the front (or when I get to sticky tires) I'll throw on and bed the DS1.11s.

Thanks Argo and everyone in this thread for the help!

argonaut

Yea, the guys at Essex supply many pro teams and really do know their stuff. Strano is also awesome to work with. Good on you for spreading the wealth around.

Post back once you have the brakes installed and tested. You'll love them.

Brad

Lexicon

Please upgrade to the new AP setup. PM me and I will take the used old Z06 AP endurance!

Don't you think you need the latest stuff? You probably would have won with their new kit.

flash911

Hey Brad - brakes installed and tested. I am starting with the DS2500 pads all around. As I mentioned above, I refreshed the rears with new calipers and Stoptech rotors. Install went good, bedding was fun!

Drove about 100 break in miles and the brakes work fantastic. Rechecked for leaks (none found) and went out to an AutoX yesterday. All I can say is I freakin' love this set up! First run the brakes needed some heat in them, or my driving sucked, lol. Stock was ok, but the added torque with the larger front rotor and stiffer Essex / AP caliper and Ferrodo pads is definitely noticeable. No bias issues (yet), pedal travel appears almost exactly the same as stock.

Couple more light AutoX's and then off to some local track days. The DS2500s are really for street / track, so I'm expecting to swap the DS1.11s after a while.

Caveboy

Are you guys upgrading the back brake calipers too? I am thinking about the C6Z06 back brake calipers or the AP back calipers. Any opinions

redtopz

Here's my opinion. If you already have C6Z calipers then yes, you could keep the rears and upgrade the fronts only if you want to save some money. Install SS lines all around and SRF fluid. However, if you are contemplating buying rear calipers then I wouldn't waste a dime on C6Z calipers. I would spend the extra $ on a set of AP calipers for the back. AP's are vastly superior in design and performance (rotors included) and the pads are generally cheaper than OEM sizes.

Caveboy

it is a $2000 differences

Caveboy

Also do I lose my parking brakes?

12zo

I also went AP Endurance last summer w DS 1.1 pads, front and rear.
Incredible brakes and the support from Essex is top shelf.

I have only put six or seven days on them since the install but they look to me to be maybe half used. Maybe not even.
I'm thinking 12-14 four session DE days on these.

I did not see any taper when I went to flip them recently. If there was, it wasn't worth the effort to flip them but I used the opportunity to look them over really well and clean the calipers completely.

Rear parking brake still works.

I use P21S wheel cleaner after every track day. People ask me if they are brand new. They just don't seem to hold dust and clean up so nice.

Regarding braking deeper, this setup really sucks you into wanting to do that. I found myself braking so deep my pedal release had to be quicker and the nose would come up during corner turn-in and unsettle the car.
DRM upgraded shocks.

I am working on moving the brake box back so the turn-in is solid. These brakes are so good I really have had to adjust my driving style. It's like throwing out a drag chute.

Racingswh

Call Jeff about the new Radical kit if that's the way you're going but with my last years F & R Endurance kit I did not lose the parking brake.