I suspect there are those here who would knock me on the head for this, but I believe the stock brakes are perfectly acceptable for purely street and the occasional autocross/drag strip use. It really depends on your budget and what you deem as "good enough".

It's nice that you can get a Brembo brake package, which more than likely will give you not only a bit shorter stopping distance and possibly a higher resistance to fade (GT500 test results seem to bear this out to some degree), but you are taking that at the expense of certain wheels going with them and having capability you really might not use that much.

If I were to order the Brembos, I would do it because I didn't want to fiddle with the aftermarket and have it straight from Ford, tested and engineered by them. Otherwise, for the way I use my car, I would take the stock brakes, upgrade the pads, change to a higher temperature brake fluid, and put on stainless steel brake lines in the front.

I do think its great we have the choice though! Way to go Ford!

 

Thanks Tony!

I'm more concerned about the narrow tread width listed in the specs for 2011. 235 is too narrow!

Maybe I'll just order a different set of wheels/tires. I like the ones that come with the 2010 Track Pack. Maybe those will be offered?

 

Tony, I see you bought a 2010 Mustang. Congrats to you.

I dont want to beat a dead horse but need to ask once again.

How are the brakes on your 2010 compared to your 2003 Mach 1? I expect an improvemt but the Mach 1 brakes are really good.

What is your take? Which is better? I want your honest opinion. Thanks. I want a new Mustang bad but money will keep me from it.

 

Well, both systems stop the car in street driving situations without issue. The front rotors on the 2010 are smaller (12.4" vs 13.0 on the Mach). The pedal firmness on the stock Mach is noticably a bit more. The front calipers are dual piston in both systems. The stock pads don't make noises when you stop. In street driving situations, they operate similarly.

If I were regularly road racing, I would get an upgrade on the 2010s set-up. I would do what I did to my Mach's brakes - performance pads, better brake fluid, stainless steel brake lines. Besides the clamping force and the swept area provided by the rotors, what makes brakes better to me is the ability to resist brake fade when they heat up under hard conditions.

On the street, neither is really "better" than the other, in my opinion. The difference shows up on the track, and in both cases, stock is ok but really needs an upgrade to keep up with the demands of track usage.

Probably didn't help, but I think you are going to be just fine with the stock set-up on the 2011 GT.

 

I'm hoping the fact that the Brembo's will be on more factory cars means a greater number of take-off kits on ebay. If you don't want to get the track pack wheels, the way to go may be to wait for a set of calipers/rotors to pop up on ebay or take-off parts website.

 

Paying the difference for the Brembo brakes or any other option from Fords is usually a bargain considering the full costs of the aftermarket later on.

 

Thanks for your opinion. I have been able to drive a 06 Gt quite a bit and in everyday driving it seems to be as good as the mach 1 brakes. However, when you really have to stand on it the brakes dont seem as strong. I am not sure of the size of the rotors on the 06. In fairness, it weights more also because its a auto and a vert to boot.

It does not get talked about much but the Mach1 brakes are really really good imo. They were ahead of their time imo and I have fallen in love with them. They have spoiled me to be honest and I really pay attention to anything I drive now a days because of them setting such a high standard.

Good luck with your 2010!

 

The rotor is 12.4" on the fronts. This is for 2005-2010. Your experience with the "feel" is precisely what I experienced between the Mach and my previous '07 and the current '10. I can tell you that if you were to simply change the brake lines to stainless steel, you would notice a change. When I had this done on the Mach, along with better pads, it made the stock Mach brake set-up feel weak.

They were a good evolution of what the Cobra and '01 Bullitt had - PBR calipers and Brembo rotors, with upsized fronts. Since the '11 GT will have a bigger front rotor size (13.2"), one can presume they will "feel" different than the current GTs. As you note, the weight of the car can also influence the braking performance. If you can stop repeatedly in a relatively short distance, those define "good brakes" to me.

Thanks, and good luck with your future 2011

 

To "chevys" - what 1 BULLITT says above is a BIG reason to consider going with the optional Brembo brake package if you want to get better braking capability while saving some coin. If your driving requirements include a lot of track work, then you might look at the aftermarket or some selective changes in what Ford produces.

 

Tony Thats soo true, I have the 04 Mach1, and My brother bought a GT/CS and when he brought it home new, He came over with it to allow me a test drive, He and myself coulndt believe how much better my 04 Mach1 stopped compared to the newer GTs.. The 13 inch rotor on the Mach1 are awesome..