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"Budget brake "upgrade question.

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Old Apr 29, 2026 | 02:03 PM
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Default "Budget brake "upgrade question.

Hi everyone,
My car is z06 and I have a square setup with z06 wheels x 10.5 all around.

I have been watching a few videos and reading a few posts about the caddy ats front brake upgrade. I understand all the steps but my question is, will the factory 10.5 wheel clear the calipers ?
Heres a pic for clicking on the post 😁 Heres a pic for clicking on the post 😁
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Old Apr 29, 2026 | 02:59 PM
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You should have a variety of big brake options if you have 18's in the front. I'm not certain about swapping brakes from a Caddy. I feel like I did see someone do it in the past though. Out of curiosity, what pads are you currently running, and what are your goals for the car? If you upgrade to Hawk HPS 5.0 brake pads that should be more than enough for anything you might do on the street, and will be cheaper than any worthwhile brake swap.
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Old Apr 29, 2026 | 03:35 PM
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I did a ton of research on this and ended up going with the C6 Z51 swap. Get's you an extra ~1" rotor diameter all around and clears the factory 18" wheels no problem. Basically caliper brackets (<$250) and new rotors and you're done.
If you decide to go further down the line you can always swap in Wilwood calipers

The ATS setup requires some grinding on the calipers, which makes me nervous.
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Old Apr 29, 2026 | 05:44 PM
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Originally Posted by Halfastock
Hi everyone,
My car is z06 and I have a square setup with z06 wheels x 10.5 all around.
I have been watching a few videos and reading a few posts about the caddy ats front brake upgrade. I understand all the steps but my question is, will the factory 10.5 wheel clear the calipers ?
Yes, they should clear those particular wheels, without issue. Best bang for the buck in a budget brake upgrade for a C5, IMO.
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Old Apr 30, 2026 | 02:20 AM
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Thank you guys for the response. I was originally going with the c6 z51 brackets and upgrade the rotors and pads. I only drive the car on the streets and I'm stock. Some spirited driving when a drive it. I just saw this ats upgrade recently but i think ill do the j55 upgrade instead. Thanks again. Save the wave 😁
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Old Apr 30, 2026 | 09:07 AM
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Provided that they're at least 18" wheels up front, the ATS 4-piston calipers and C6Z rotors are a hell of a budget brake setup. Very modest grinding needed on the inner part of the caliper to properly clear the rotor (less than 0.5mm) and you should be good to go.
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Old Apr 30, 2026 | 10:11 AM
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Oh OK that's not bad at all. Thanks for the info 👍
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Old Apr 30, 2026 | 12:05 PM
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I put together a sheet of parts options for the J55 update if it helps
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets...f=true&sd=true

If I was doing this again, I would not use the EBC yellow pads on the street car. They work great, but dust like crazy.
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Old Apr 30, 2026 | 02:28 PM
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Originally Posted by Lowend
I put together a sheet of parts options for the J55 update if it helps
https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets...f=true&sd=true
This upgrade is a decent one but the caliper brackets are getting really hard to find.
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Old Apr 30, 2026 | 02:51 PM
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I did Wilwood Aero 6 front brakes with the c6z06 355 mm rotors ( 14in) and a set of rear c6 z51 adapters and the larger 330mm rear rotors.

It’s a huge upgrade and more budget friendly than most options aside from the Brembo caddy calipers.
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Old Apr 30, 2026 | 03:25 PM
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The move to the Wilwood Aero6 front and FNSL4 rear CALIPER kits (calipers, pads, hoses) and your choice of 14" and 13" brand (and appearance) is probably the best bang for the buck. Short of changing to 2pc rotors you get the best of the aftermarket calipers without the added expense of the discs in the "complete" kits.

And of course there are the SLC56 CALIPER kits for your existing smaller rotors. But! You'll never go wrong with more rotor. Happy to walk you through any of that- just give me a call and have your browser open.
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Old Apr 30, 2026 | 06:04 PM
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Originally Posted by USAZR1
This upgrade is a decent one but the caliper brackets are getting really hard to find.
Good news - it looks like OER started making the brackets
https://www.oerparts.com/shop/parts/...liper-bracket/
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Old May 1, 2026 | 11:04 AM
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Originally Posted by Lowend
Good news - it looks like OER started making the brackets
https://www.oerparts.com/shop/parts/...liper-bracket/
Glad to see those available, again.
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Old May 1, 2026 | 01:59 PM
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I slapped some Hawk Hp+ pads on there a few years ago. I do an HPDE here and there and the HP+ are fine. I’m not a pro driver. HP+ pads stop the car faster than any other car I have driven. Car stops faster than the Hawk HPS pads, which I had on there before. The pads dust a lot, I bet it stops faster than your big brake kit with ceramic pads. Yours might look better after it’s done. But will it perform. Would love to do a brake test side by side, that would be fun. Good luck with your conversion, and my point is, enjoy the car whatever way, and how ever you want.
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