yankee_pony

To those who have converted to 6 piston Brembos either GT 500 or s550, for open track use is there a significant improvement?

What brake pad are you using?

Bert

I cannot answer your question, but your post made me wonder --
> this is for your 2012 Boss 302, right? (EDIT: I see you have a GT350 also, didn't notice the forum name until after I posted)
> what shortcomings do you have with the current setup (4-piston calipers and 14" rotors) ; what are you hoping to improve?

yankee_pony

Honestly I categorize my post as “bench racing”



The GT350 out of the box show room stock is fantastic car on track with the stock brake setup and pads.



I cant say this about any of the other Mustangs I open tracked for the past 20+ years even my 95R



If I were to use my Boss for OT ( again ??? Maybe?? ) I want to upgrade / install new pads, and new rotors



So I was thinking I would be purchasing new rotors any way and pads the cost difference from 14 to 15 inch parts is “minimal”



For $500 to $650 I could get 2 used 6 piston calipers.



The 15 inch diameter and extra sweep area “on paper” should be an improvement



#1 in stopping distance (get into the brakes latter)



#2 in brake pad longevity



Last time I OT the car at Road America for a 3 day event I consumed a Pair of DTC70 pads in 7 or 8 sessions



Compared to the GT350 with stock pads the Boss needed DTC70 to feel as good



I want a better feel and performance out of the Boss brakes.



My thinking is the 6 piston 2013/2014 GT 500 Brembo’s would be a cheap alternative????????????? Maybe????????



And it would be easy to go back to the stock setup at any time.

Bert

I see I am not the only one with the "extra line break" problem, but for me it only happens in other forums, LOL

Are you able to trigger the ABS now? If yes then the brakes are already overpowering the tires so there really isn't much more to be had in braking; except feel and fade resistance. But you didn't mention any fading problem.

I have been using Carbotech pads (XP10 front, XP8 rear) and they seem to last OK on the tracks I have around here; Road America might be a bit tougher on them plus you have 100 HP more than me so you are probably burning off more energy with the brakes than I am, so your mileage may vary.

Does your Boss have braided stainless lines? If no, this can help with brake feel; might be the first inexpensive change to try.

5.M0NSTER

Are you running slicks + aero at the track? If not 6pot brembos are a bit of an overkill. Good lines, good pads, good fluid and the 4 piston brakes work great. Extra cooling also, this will help more in expanding the life of the pads than bigger rotor to pad contact patch. Pads evaporate when overheated regardless of size, ask me how I know.

I was using Carbotechs 10/8 combo with Potenza S04 and then 12/10 combo with Ventus R-S3s. More stopping power and fade resistance with 12/10s but they would only last 3 days (21 or so 20 minute sessions). The 10/8 combo lasted 6 track days for comparisons. Performance with 12/10 was fantastic though. I would catch up to Porches and Corvettes in the brake zones. It's pretty solid with 10/8 as well, you just have to be mindful of pad temps and brake late.

As for lines, be careful. Boss comes with low expansion lines, and those are pretty good. I used Russel SS lines for 3 seasons and then the rear right popped right at the junction to the hard line when I was at Mid Ohio. Not fun. Rubber hoses with webbing like the Boss lines are the ones to go in my opinion.

yankee_pony

I run a Square Set of 275 30 18 Hoosier R 7


And Have the Boss LS Splitter plus the brake cooling ducts



At Road America there are 3 areas where we hit 150+ (speed confirmed by GPS track timer) before a brake zone



The brakes work well, but the pads did wear away faster than I would have liked



The upgrade I want/plan to do is cheap



The 15inch rotor is a technical plus



I not sure how much more sweep area the pads create.



Just looking for feed back from some one who has done the upgrade


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759Rider

I'm just here spectating, but conceptually I love this mod. Should really increase the fade resistance.

The 15" S550 brake package, seems like a super affordable, bolt-on hack for the S197.

Mine has the Brembo package, and I just run race pads and stainless lines. Adequate for my meager skill level at PIR, where I top out at more like 130, and the braking events are really quite mild. So fade really hasn't been an issue for the 20 minute sessions.

Really want to hear from some folks who have done this one.

Bert

yeah there are some threads about that, on this board and others, with the details; one key is to use the GT500 15" rotors, not the S550 rotors

but again it does seem to be overkill, unless you are running slicks . . . and the downside is the added unsprung weight, compared to the older 4-piston / 14" setup . . . not sure if it would actually improve lap times or not

however upsizing the rear rotors actually does address a problem, which is the rear brakes getting crazy hot . . . I would look at that first, if you haven't already done it

5.M0NSTER

That's a very valid point. The 11.4" rears are a joke on S197. The GT500 13.8" brake upgrade is a good one. I was able to find the caliper relocation brackets for mine, so I didn't even need to pull the axles, just upgrade to larger sloted rotors. It did help a lot, the back end seemed to do more and alleviated extra demand on the front.

759Rider

Bert

I'm pretty sure that 5.MONSTER and I used the same brackets, available from a guy on e-bay for about $110 for the pair, with a super-easy bolt-on installation. Also pretty sure 759Rider is talking about the GT500 adapters, which require you to pull the axle to install them. I know a guy who has used the e-bay brackets under some serious track abuse with no problems, running R-comp tires and quite a bit faster than me on the track, so I'm not worried about a failure.

5.M0NSTER

I'm pretty sure we did too!

Those relo brackets are the way to go. So much easier than pulling axles, and the setup works great. The best part about it is the pressure in the rear remains the same, but the arm of force is longer. This means more brake torque and same energy output. Same energy output over more rotor surface area means less heat. I was a big fan while I owned the car.

EF1

The calipers only need slight clearaning on 2010 and earlier S197's. The 2011 and later seem to work fine. I used the Ford parts and did the upgrade a couple of years ago. It makes a noticeable difference on the track. I know that the add on brackets that others have used hold up well, but I liked the idea of using the factory parts. Pulling the axles wasn't a big deal and it looks like the car came that way.

yankee_pony

I completed the brake upgrade yesterday

All of the parts purchased from rock auto

Except Caliper rear caliper brackets

with brake fluid and 75W/140 dif oil
$1100

EF1

Sounds like you did all four wheels for $1,100.