So i have an opportunity to buy the Wilwood Big Brake Kit for the fronts for about $500. It's a used kit my friend is selling. However, my other friends are saying a BBK is overkill, and can actually harm the performance on a street application.

1. They say the bigger rotors = more rotational mass.
2. The bigger pad/rotor doesn't necessarily mean better braking performance. Just less prone to brake fade. that's all.
2. They say just upgrade the pads, brake lines, and fluids.. and that should be all i need.

My argument.
1. For $500, i'll be getting brake lines, bigger pads, and bigger rotors, and the calipers, which is about double the price of just pads/lines/fluids.
2. I think the increased performance of the BBK will outweigh the weight negatives.
3. I will probably need bigger brake boosters.

So.. which way would you go? BBK or upgraded rotors/pads/lines?

 

go for it because the price is great.

you have 19" wheels. your whole car screams all show no go.

if tC owners really wanted to go fast, they wouldnt have bought a 3 ton compact with a window for a roof.

 

well.. in all honestly.. i just want better brake feel. maybe i'll go the rotor/pad direction.

 

thats some deal man. i'd say go for it. it's not like your gonna be racing continuously right? IMO, i'd buy it for the brand name, stuff your getting, and overall improvement.

 

hell for 500 bucks, i would do it. the tc has some major aesthetic issues with the brakes... the bbk can fix that. i just painted my calipers and bought new rotors instead cuz i cant get a deal like yours.

 

If this is true, why would an STI come with Brembo's BBK, I have the Stoptech BBK and it is awesome. But Stop tech's isnt designed for show, where Willwood is. For the price you should do it, or at least buy them and then resell them to someone else. You should make sure they will fit with your wheels first.

 

So the Wilwoods are just for show? i didn't know that.

 

No, NOT just for show, they're great performance brakes too, good company with a long history and great reputation.

When someone says 'designed for show', that doesn't always imply a PoS product which simply looks good, some products look nice and actually perform great too.

I agree with those that said get them. If you were to buy stock size slotted roters, good pads and SS brake lines, the cost might not be much less than the $500 bbk.

 

(1.5 tons)

 

that right lol. thats my dumbass thinking 1 ton was 1k lbs.

with any bbk consider the cost of replacement rotors and pads. powerslot wants $300 per rotor for their plus kit. i dont know if you can get replacement pads for these kits at your local auto parts store.

 

i'll tell you what, if you don't want to get them, tell your friend that i'll buy them. Honestly, that's a great deal and BBK's are not overkill at all

 

Wilwood just for show..??? *LOL* All they do is performance and racing brakes. They are not a "show brake company" Do some research on wilwoods history. Sounds like a stoptech salesman has hit you hard "and yes, stoptech is a good company, not knocking that" I can literally afford any brake system I want on my car, I specifically chose wilwood for...

#1 price of the kit / quality of the kit

#2 price of replacement parts if a part was to be damaged

#3 used them for years on track cars with amazing results

#4 stand up customer support


Big brake kits are a give and a take. Do you need one on your scion?
Not unless you use it on track

Does it give much better pedal feel and initial bite when braking?
100% - overall brake feel is 10x better than stock

Is it worth $500?
If the kit has lower milage I would be all over that, great price for a killer setup.

Anything suck with the wilwood kit?
Yes, the stock pads put out a HUGE amount of dust and tend to sqeek when the dust builds up. The good news is EBC makes a killer pad selection now compatable with wilwood calipers.


When does a brake kit hurt performance...

Big brake kits can hurt performance when under heavy throttle, usually noticed only in 1st & 2nd gear. Same effect as a flywheel. Even though the wilwoods rotors are exactly the same weight as a stock rotor, the mass is moved outwords which makes it harder to spin quicker.

When you are useing crap tires and your brakes outgrip the tires you are useing. When choosing a BBK you must also take into consideration that you may lock junky tires up with ease were as a sticky set of rubber goes hand in hand to help stop the car quickly.

Most kiddies around the internet simply think slapping on the latest 13" -15" rotors and caliper makes there car stop better than anyone elses. Just make sure it is a part of a total performance upgrade as one component can only do a good job when all others components are performing as well.

Last, remember when choosing a BBK, especially from companies that offer multiple rotor sizes... MATCH your needs accordingly. I simply cannot see a need for larger than 13"-14" rotors for the tc. I actually feel 13 is perfect. I have really pushed the wilwood kit on my tc to the limits coming off the mountain in Flagstaff and also coming from Payson. Had massive fun, never felt any sort of fade even when abusing them to see what they could do. Same roads I almost killed the stock brake system totally in one run and same roads I have killed numerous others brakes on my other vehicles.

Only negative effect of my brake system is when cold the bias is heavy to the rear as I have to get heat in the fronts before they grip really hard. Once I have heat in the fronts they feel amazing. But it is little scary jumping right into the twisties cold with stock rear pads and the wilwood fronts.. bias is a little much to the rears and the car gets a little tail happy in hard corners scrubbing speed. But once warm all is perfect. Definitly going to look into the EBC's soon all the way around.

Good luck with your purchase! I think you will be happy when all is said and done, especially for $500!

 

wow nice write up 1217 really informative i have been on your site and noticed that you had the wilwoods and did alot of research on them vs. competitors and have read only positive things about them...
so id say go with the set up man very well worth it... i want a setup like the one on 1217's car wilwood on the front and power slot on the rear but with money tight it wont happen for quite some time

 

wow great writeup man. thank you for that. much appreciated. i guess my mind is made up. ;)

 

Thanks guys, allot of people that have seen my car think it is mostly show but they do not know my background. My car is not the say all for tc performance but each item was carefully chosen and picked over time to compliment the tc in general. Only the handfull of people that have driven it understand what I was trying to accomplish with it and I have accomplished exactly what I wanted out of the car. Perfect balance of looks and real world performance. The car does not do the best in any one category, but it does well in all.

 

don't do it.


sell them to me

 

Lol Neb.

If you're mostly going for brake feel, go with the StopTech Stage II Brake upgrade. It's an oem replacement upgrade with slotted or drilled rotors (OEM Size), Axxis Ultimate pads, SS Braided brake lines, and DOT4 Fluid.

I have this install on my tC, and the brake feel is MUCH better. After re-bleeding the brakes after changing the brake lines, the brake pedal feel is a lot tighter, and does not vary. The OEM Brakes would seem to lift or go down to the floor. This doesn't happen anymore.

Even my friend EddNog (who has the Wilwoods - front and custom back) said "wow your brake pedal feels tight"

 

Agreed, bleeding is critical. Same brake system on 5 cars can feel totally different if 5 different people bleed them. The wilwoods make it nice as you can bleed both banks and they face straight up which helps get any air out fast. I found that even the stock system was not bled that well. I bled it with standard dot4 way before I upgraded the brakes and it really helped the pedal feel.

 

pffft the 2az-fe puts 135 to the ground if youre lucky. if you are getting wilwoods on a STOCK tC, its for show only. the braking performance is only a bonus. if you had a turbo, then yes it would serve for both purposes. and for those who say "ITS NOT FOR SHOW"... why do you see so many cars at car shows with the wheel off? to show off that shiny bbk.

 

Quit hating, matt - it's his preference. Sure it's not needed, but a lot of people hate the stock braking performance. This will definitely help.