Hello,

I decided for Christmas I was finally going to get this project done. Then I made the mistake of going online and reading that huge 61 post thread about C4->C5->C6->Z06-> Upgrade. Now I once again am confused on what I want to do.

I have an 89 Vette, that is fully loaded with all the performance goodies offered that year. About 4 weeks ago I replaced the back brakes with New Stock Calipers, Hawk HPS Pads, New Slotted Rotors, Stainless Brake Lines, and New Emergency Brake Cables. I also blead the system and put in Dot 3 Synthetic brake fluid.

Is the C5 Upgrade still the best bang for the buck? I don't autocross, but I do intend on going to the drag strip in the spring. Bottom line, I drive fast and want the car to stop.

SO WHERE ARE WE AT WITH THIS.... From what I read the C5 & C6 Calipers are the same...

Are the C5 Z06 calipers any different?

I think the C6 ZO6 conversion is probably going to be out of my budget but is it worth the $$ or did we decided that its too much money and not enough benefit?

If i go with the c5 swap, whats the best place to get the brackets, and pick up a set of calipers?

Thanks guys, I just want to get this straightened out before i drop all this money on something and wish I had done things differently

DG

 

Base C5 - C5 Z06 - Base C6- C6 Z51 calipers are all interchangeable. The C6 caliper has a slightly different top window, but is otherwise the same.

If you aren't exceeding the stopping power of your current setup, why do you think you need more? 89 already has the 12" brakes with the dual piston PBR calipers. This setup is more than adequate for the street.

Also, you are leaving a lot of braking power on the table with your current setup. Your slotted rotors are doing nothing to improve braking performance, and HPS pads are not very aggressive. The HP+ or Carbotech XP8 will provide more stopping power (along with more dust and noise).

C6 Z06 brakes are expensive, especially the padlets. Also, they won't fit under 17" wheels. A lot of people have had lots of problems with the C6 Z06 stuff, so I see no reason to use it.

 

Well, the key difference is do you want bling or stopping power?

I think for the money the C5 (ZO6 v regular is just a powdercoat color difference) brakes are the best bang for the buck. Run those with some good pads and you can definitely stop.

The C6 Z06's look cool. But if you want a monoblock caliper, get a real one (probably out of your price range) don't waste time on a multi-puck caliper with $$$ puck/pad replacement costs. I would only recommend those for bling. They also require a special adapter I believe.

The C6 calipers are strengthened across the top I believe, to help prevent caliper warp, but drag strip stopping I don't think will do that. Repeated road course stopping will. That is the only change besides some slight cosmetic differences in the front face. I think* (not totally sure) they would bolt up with the kit for C5s but don't quote me on that.

Moral of the story, get the C5s and be happy or buck up and get some Willwood Superlites or something like that.

I have C5s with HP+ brakes. I love em. I took my brother out and he was just driving around doing ~35-40. I told him to nail the brakes. He didn't and I figured he was just going to do it when we got to the next light/sign. Then out of nowhere a few minutes later he nails em. I was only wearing the stock 3 point belts, and I slammed forward while they locked up. My collar bone was sore all night, it was the best type of pain :-D .

I'd also recommend getting the DRM bias spring. ~15$ or so and while you need snap ring pliars to get it into your master, it isn't all too bad. It will put more bias in rear, but it won't hurt your burnouts and if you have a linelock no worries.

 

My 88 had the stock 12" brakes and after going to PFC Z rated pads and Motul RBF fluid I had no problems with slowing down or stopping, especially on a racetrack.

With that said my 92 with J55 brakes and Carbotech XP 10's stops on a dime and gives me 9.5 cents change. Shoot even with Carbotech panthers all around it slowed down well enough to negotiate turn 10 at road atlanta.

Only thing to watch for if you drive on the track a lot is caliper spreading. So far I don't have any.

 

Thanks for clearing up all this for me guys.... just a couple more questions...

Where is the best place to buy C5 Calipers... can i just walk into autozone or are those junk remans?

What about rotors... I was actually looking at GM Parts Direct and they suprisingly had reasonable prices on their rotors.

Good Quality and Good Prices on brackets?

I have the HPS pads on the back can I mix those up with a set of HP+ pads on the front? As far as noise????? Whats the deal??? Are they noisy like a NY City bus or just a little louder than my HPS?

Thanks,

Dan

 

It seems unusual to me that you would want to do this since the extra weight would just make you slower in drag and you have not complained of brake fade. Ducts would be lighter and a better solution if you did have fade.

Without the bias spring it should be very safe to run the same pad in the back. With the bias spring it might be wise to run a less aggressive pad in the rear. Test for this in tweaking your car.

I got my calipers from FLY LOW. You can also get them used in the C5 section. The C5 brakes can be had for really cheap.

I have been enjoying the rotors from racepages.com. These:

http://www.racepages.com/products/?N...+9904+6854+837

Price: $47.16 Centric CE120.62061

NAPA or Rockauto blanks would be less. Racepages with free shipping and no tax was nice.

 

You could downgrade to 84-87 brakes or maybe some drum rears and still have more than enough stopping power for the dragstrip, unless you're running low 12s or better.

If you're looking for performance you'll actually use, spend it on something else. If you want your brakes to look pretty, go for it.

 

You can run HP+ in the front with no problems. HP+ were not too loud on my car, but my friends 350z squeals quite a bit right as he comes to a stop. It never bothered me, but something to consider if that sort of thing gets under your skin.

 

Thanks for the links...

I didn't see it necessary to start the topic off by complaining, but lets just make it simple... This car has the worst brakes out of any car I have ever driven. My ridiculously heavy 96 Impala stops, better, faster, and more precisely than my corvette.... and thats unacceptable. I want this car to stop, and I want it to stop fast. The stock brakes don't give me much if any confidence. As for the weight increase.... I could really use a diet so I will try and lose some pounds to compensate .


I have stainless Earl Brakelines up front (C4) will they still work with this new setup?

Do the stock C5's come powder coated black or do I need to send them out to have that done?

DG

 

The Z06 calipers come red powdered, the base cars have a base grey paint on them.

 

C5/ZO6 (red powdercoat) are cheap from the dealer and plenty on fleabay.Then you need the abutment brackets,I think I payed $40 odd apiece. The mounting brackets you can find here from WDO_MKR for around $125.I went with HPS pads all round and the total package cost me just under $500 with amazing results.It actually stops now The bias spring is fine with this set up. No probs with the SS lines and it's going to look so pretty.

 

wdo_mkr has been absent. The last few requests have gone unanswered. Jeff even supplied a guy in Africa a set after wdo_mkr ignored him.

http://forums.corvetteforum.com/show...1611445&page=4

Take a look at the ones from Jeffvette. DRM buys his brackets to sell to customers as well. Quality piece. I think Jeff offers his around 105 shipped with the hardware.

 

staugur who's line is that in the picture? It looks somewhat short. Could just be the angle though.

Mine all arc above the ABS wire. Test them by turning the wheel and moving the suspension up and down.

 

Honestly I can't remember where I got them but they are plenty long enough,same length as the rubber ones.Jeffvette's brackets look nicer than mine.

 

Those look like widowmkr's brackets.

 

The only reason why you would upgrade your brakes is if you plan to hit a road course more then once. And from what I understand, unless you plan on doing any racing at Road America, your stock brakes should be fine. Granted, if you ever do a track day you'll probably need to replace your pads and possibly your rotors by the end of the day, but there's no need to do the entire brake system unless you plan on racing alot. If you want to drag race, spend the money on the engine, if you want to road race, horsepower isn't as important as suspension and braking power.

 

Yes they are.
Not wishing to theres a thread on here somewhere with 247 posts the last time i looked all about peoples brake woes.I for one tried every combination in the book to keep the car stock and have brakes I felt comfortable with all to no avail.I altered my driving habits to leave more room between me and the vehicle in front and you all know what happens then.Some a** hole has to fill it.After one very close call I decided to upgrade and now I feel safe.One day perhaps these disparities will be explained.Until then I think it's the best $500 investment I've made.

 

J55's rock with the right pads.

I'm running HPS pads, whats the story on these Carbotech units?

I like a lot of stopping power, but I also like a pad that lasts for a bit. (track days excluded)

The reason most people think generic car X stops better than their C4 is I've found C4's don't have that initial bite that most cars have, my 96 J55's are smooth and even thought the breaking line, unlike my 97 cavi which has the initial bite to give a passenger a heart attack.

But the vette stops quicker.

 

For new parts, look up Superior Chevrolet in Kansas, ask for Chris May or really anyone in the parts dept, ask them for the Corvetteforum discount. You won't beat their prices on GM stuff.