C8 Corvette Brembo Big Brake Kit Installation Walkthrough
Switching your C8 Corvette to the Brembo GT Big Brake Kit is a great do-it-yourself project.
The C8 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray with the Z51 package offers excellent braking performance in stock form, but those who want world-class stopping power may want to switch to a Brembo GT Big Brake Kit. This is a great do-it-yourself project for any 2020 or 2021 Stingray owner who likes to get their hands dirty. The team from Motoroso recently made a video showing how to the big Brembo kit on the new Corvette and it is a remarkably simple swap. It doesn’t require any special tools and it is a direct bolt-on swap, using the factory caliper bolt position.
C8 Corvette Brembo BG Big Brake Kit
There are three key components to the Brembo GT BM6 Big Brake Kit – the rotors, the 6-piston calipers and the caliper mounting bracket. The stock caliper bolts directly to the suspension assembly, but the bigger 6-piston caliper sits further out from the hub. That requires a bracket that bolts-up in the factory caliper bolt positions. This relocates the caliper and making space for the Brembo GT rotors. Those rotors measure 380 millimeters across and 34 millimeters thick. These are the only rotors for the C8 to combine that diameter and thickness.
Install DIY
The video below begins with a quick introduction, but host and Motoroso owner Alex Littlewood gets right to the nuts and bolts of the job. Of course, to service the brakes, you begin by lifting one corner of the C8 Corvette Stingray to remove the wheel. Once the wheel is off, you start by unbolting the brake caliper from the suspension assembly. You will want to set it on something that will hold the caliper up off of the ground. This prevents any unnecessary street on the brake line while also keep the paint from getting scratched on the ground. Leave it connected to the factory brake line to begin with. This prevents unneeded brake fluid leakage, but this factory line is used with the Brembo caliper. With the caliper out of the way, you can remove the stock rotor.
Installing the Brembo GT BM6 caliper begins with installing the bracket in place of the factory Corvette caliper. With that in place, the brake rotor can go on, followed by the new BM6 caliper. The video includes all of the information on socket sizes needed, along with torque specs for every nut and bolt.
Bleeding the System
This is the point at which the C8 Corvette GT Big Brake Kit project gets messy. The factory brake line is attached to the back of the factory caliper with a banjo bolt. The Brembo kit comes with a new banjo bolt. You have to unbolt the line from the factory caliper, remove the factory bolt and use the Brembo bolt to attach it to the new, 6-piston caliper. The catch is that when you remove the brake line, it will begin to leak fluid. Before you can remove the factory banjo bolt, you have to remove the spring clip on the back of the bolt. To do so, you have to pretty much destroy it, so be prepared to do that while trying not to spill much brake fluid. Also, remember that brake fluid is very corrosive, so wipe it off of any painted surfaces and clean up any mess on the floor under the Corvette. Once the old banjo bolt is removed, you can install the line to the new caliper with the Brembo banjo bolt.
After making sure that all of the fasteners are tightened to the proper torque spec, you can bolt up the wheel. Move to the other side and repeat the process. The project is finished by bleeding the brake system, which is a necessity before hitting the road. If you do not know how to bleed a brake system, you will want to buy a brake bleeding system.
Meanwhile, those who know how to bleed a brake system manually can get a helper and get to work on moving the air out of the fluid. Once the brake system has been bled, you are ready to bolt-up the wheels and hit the road.
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