krnpimpsta

That horse keeps getting up for more beatings.. it's a **** zombie horse..

just doing my part to keep the hoardes of zombie horses at bay.

rhans

In addition to fade, better modulation and control are the key benefits to the Brembos - and you don't need to track the car or hit them 15 times in a row to notice this.

The only downside of the Brembos (other than cost) is the tight clearances on the wheels limit the selection of alternatives.

hawkeye18

Troof. 9", single pot brakes feel like they're connected via marshmallow. Rubber hoses just make it worse.

Generally speaking, the more pistons a caliper has, the more even its application will be and the more precise feeling you will have. Above four, though, you start approaching diminishing returns. I've seen 12-pot brakes; I can't imagine they'd be more than 5-10% better than 6-pot brakes.

And yeah, having to use 19" wheels sucks. I hope somebody finds some good 18" wheels that fit; the tires are a lot cheaper. Then I could sell my stock wheels to some schmuck for $1400 or something ridiculous. Apparently they're all the rage.

CO_VaporGT_09

The other downside is the increase in weight, unsprung weight in particular, and the increase in rotational inertia.


Unless they changed the design of the Brembos (don't believe so) the 18" GT500 wheels from the 07-09 and the 10+ should clear the calipers easy. The 18" GT500 10+ wheels are going for $600/set.

JScottGT

The clearance issues with Brembo calipers comes because of the width of the caliper itself. An 18" wheel will clear the caliper radially, you will just need to look at spoke clearance to clear the side face of the caliper.

As has already been stated over and over, the advantage of the Brembo caliper is on the race track. It has a great ability to apply repeatable brake performance (with the right pad) over and over and not fade. But just as said, the street pad is not really up to the task for track driving. You NEED to use a friction compound that can handle the additional heat without failing.

Ted in Olympia

The summer only tires may not be the best on wet roads? Also I bet replacement pads cost a lot more for the Brembos? But this did not keep me from ordering them; but sometimes I wonder why.

Also a good question is why do they not put them on auto cars? Cars with autos have a very short list of options.

TED

krnpimpsta

it's a myth that summer tires are worse in the rain... they're actually better than all seasons in rain.

hawkeye18

Summer tires are as good, if not better, than all-seasons in the rain. The only reason summer tires are not recommended for cold/snow is that the rubber compound used, being much softer for better grip in the warm, gets brittle and hard and pretty much turns into teflon under about 40 degrees.

sam strano

The option for wheels isn't as great as a non-Brembo car, but wheels aren't a huge issue. I can tell you that Steeda Pentars and Ultralites fit as I've had both on my car.

Having a Brembo car, and having run a lot of different brakes over the years, let's see if I can add some more to this....

Given the same tires, it's true that a non-Brembo car will likely stop in a very similar distance from say 60 mph. As the speeds rise that will start to change, a Brembo car will stop better from say 100 mph. As it will if continual braking is applied and you build excessive heat. The bigger brakes not only dissipate heat better, but the larger rotor applies a bit more torque since the caliper is further out (a longer lever). And the fixed caliper is more rigid as well. The brakes on my '11 are a lot firmer and higher than on the 2-piston floating caliper design.

If you guys don't want to buy the Brembo's, that's fine. I certainly don't think you need to do it. In fact I really only did it for the fact I autox and the car comes with wider wheels and that helped me in stock category--and I will sometimes track the car too.

As for the suspension differences, who cares. Frankly while it's not bad--it ain't perfect anyway, and if you are going to change it, and don't care about the brakes or the wheels, then don't bother spending the $$$ on a Brembo car!

Driver72

Well actually the Brembo brake wheels weigh about 2-3 lbs less each than the optional 19" wheels and reportedly even weigh 1-2 lbs less than the stock 18" wheels.
Further, the summer rubber on the Brembo car also weighs less than the all season rubber on non Brembo cars.
And when it comes to inertia, the more weight FURTHER from the center affects the acceleration and braking more.
So the couple lbs more the Brembo brakes and rotors weigh over the standard brakes are easily offset by the lighter wheels and tires.

CO_VaporGT_09

That's good they changed that for the new cars, the old 05-09 GT500 wheels were heavier than the stock Bullitt wheels, as they were a bit wider as well. But strong as all get out. And the tire weight is generally true as well compared to all seasons, even better if you get the summer tires shaved

So sounds like it's a wash with the new 2011 Brembo setup, even in unsprung weight. Doing the same on the older models definitely was a hit in all ways, weight wise.

bob

Tru'dat, as long as they have a place for the water to go.

Another all-seaon tire myth; all season tires work in the snow - actually all season refers to a tires ability to operate in a wide range of temperatures. For an all season tire to work in the snow, it needs to be branded as such.

Not that there aren't really any all-season tires designed to do so (its all about the sipes baby and the wierdness of packing snow into them o_0 )

95cobraR

If you don't understand the difference in standard brakes and the Brembo option, you shouldn't pay the additional money.

The Brembo brake option also includes suspension upgrades.

CO_VaporGT_09

The other point to make is you can always upgrade the brakes later if you want too, it won't be financed but you can get the same Brembo brakes (and the suspension and even wheel upgrades) and put them on yourself if you're unhappy with the stock GT stuff.

Ministang

Not a myth. It depends a lot on what kind of snowfall you're talking about, but I've drove for 23 years in Ohio with only standard all-season tires, including on my Mustangs, and was able to make it ok. I did finally break down and buy my first set of snow tires last year for our Subaru, but regular (non snowflake symbol) all-season tires can do ok in a lot of areas that get snow, as long as they aren't worn down too far.

assasinator

that is true.

assasinator

the wheels on my brembo car are the ones i will have forever.

Ted in Olympia

But for nowhere as cheap as Ford will give it to you new. The tires alone almost sell for a much as the package price.

It is nice to know that the "summer" tires are not bad on wet pavement. In the Northwest we get plenty of rain but it does not get below freezing very often. I also have other cars to drive in the snow. I should be fine.

The only real question in my mind is why does Ford not offer this with an auto trans? Front brakes have nothing to do with the transmission. I think it really causes them to sell a lot less auto transmissions.

TED

sam strano

Summer tires are not meant to be driven in "near freezing" temps.... In fact the Pirelli's that come on the Brembo cars (max performance summer) aren't very nice when it's 50 degrees. I had no fun what-so-ever yesterday when I had to drive the car with temps in the 20's (had to go for some warranty work). That was sketchy....

Why not with an auto? Can't say--but you can always upgrade the brakes on an auto to something bigger like Brembo or Stoptech.

CO_VaporGT_09

Last May had to drive through a freak snow/sleet storm in Colorado Springs after a track day in Pueblo, on my heavily worn summer-only tires; I've never driven so slow on the highway.
That's no fun, but what you get in Colorado.