Brake upgrade question
Joined: Aug 2012
Posts: 223
Likes: 11
From: Hialeah, FL
Brake upgrade question
Ok,I have a 04 g35 and want to do a brake upgrade. I can go brembo or akebono, question is one better then the other. Also akebono needs brackets do I need them for the brembos to. I've noticed the brembos sell for more then the akebonos not sure what to do.
Go with factory original brembos - I recommend this primarily because you will be able to easily transfer over the correct dust shields, this will ensure long brake life with even rotor cooling.
The stopping distance between 03/04 single piston with 11.8" rotors, Brembo with 12.8" rotors, and 05+ two piston calipers with 12.6" rotors is virtually the same. The difference is in fade resistance and aesthetics. The Brembo and the 2 piston calipers also use a larger pad which is better for heat management and pad life.
I swapped to the 05+ brakes and have another set that I was planning to install on a friend's car until he backed out. I autocross and "spiritedly drive" with them with Stoptech SP pads and blank rotors. It'll out stop Brembos with OEM pads even with repeated stops.
I swapped to the 05+ brakes and have another set that I was planning to install on a friend's car until he backed out. I autocross and "spiritedly drive" with them with Stoptech SP pads and blank rotors. It'll out stop Brembos with OEM pads even with repeated stops.
you are correct, however the oem brembo pads suck i hate them and would never run them, if you were to run stoptech pads with the oem brembos i bet they would perform just as well if not better than your 05+ brakes
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The benefit to the Brembo is that there's likely more availability for dedicated track pads.
The Akebono brake rotors are also ridiculously heavy, so keep that in mind. It's both unsprung and rotational mass.
What it comes down to is cost versus benefit. My 05 brakes could stop just as fast, resisted fade just as well, and were like 1/3 the cost of used Brembos. Pads are also slightly cheaper. Brembos do look much nicer, but for me, it's function over form.
I don't have the Akebono BBK, I've got the 05+ 2 piston sliding pin calipers. I think I paid like 300 for fronts and rears over a year ago.
Probably not a whole lot better since the rotors are very close in size. As is, I can get into a braking battle with a Z06 and win. Haha. Though the rear pad life in the single piston rear calipers sucks since the pad is tiny. The Brembo should be slightly better.
The benefit to the Brembo is that there's likely more availability for dedicated track pads.
The Akebono brake rotors are also ridiculously heavy, so keep that in mind. It's both unsprung and rotational mass.
What it comes down to is cost versus benefit. My 05 brakes could stop just as fast, resisted fade just as well, and were like 1/3 the cost of used Brembos. Pads are also slightly cheaper. Brembos do look much nicer, but for me, it's function over form.
The benefit to the Brembo is that there's likely more availability for dedicated track pads.
The Akebono brake rotors are also ridiculously heavy, so keep that in mind. It's both unsprung and rotational mass.
What it comes down to is cost versus benefit. My 05 brakes could stop just as fast, resisted fade just as well, and were like 1/3 the cost of used Brembos. Pads are also slightly cheaper. Brembos do look much nicer, but for me, it's function over form.
Saving weight is a big deal, but (to me) the weight saved from 2 piece rotors does not justify the cost. As for the other benefits, you don't really see them unless you're getting the brakes hot enough to mushroom them. Additionally, 2 piece rotors are higher maintenance. Regular inspection is necessary and is one of the reasons why 2 piece rotors were standard on European BMW M3 but not available to the US market.
But ignoring all of that, the RB Performance 2 piece rotor is available for both the Brembo and the standard. They'll save you about 6 lbs per front and 1.5 lbs per rear. Not worth the exorbitant costs. For 2 front rotors, you can get an entire set of used forged wheels and still have money left over.
Slotted/drilled rotors themselves will already net you some weight savings. But weight savings comes at the price of reduced thermal mass.
The entire Carbotech lineup is available for both the Brembos and the standard calipers. And pads for the standard calipers are typically a bit cheaper.
also the OEM Brembo calipers are lighter than the sliding pin, also can't really start comparing to stuff you can pick up used considering I picked up my AP 6/4 BBK used for a little over $2k