barrok69

It was time for some new pads and rotors...
So... After doing lots of research and making heads and tails of all the information out there I've finally been able to go about doing the V2 swap without any worries. I'm using these in conjunction with the "stock" GM accessory wheels.

Stock V1 Caliper (with GM accessory rotors)


Upgraded to V2 Caliper and rotor


Parts list:
V2 Front 6pt Calipers $220x2 = $440 - PN# ACDELCO LH 172-2487, RH 172-2488
V2 Front Caliper Pin kit = $18 - PN# ACDELCO 18K2108X
V2 Front Caliper Bolts $4x4 = $16 - PN# ACDELCO 11570788
V2 Front Pads ACDelco durastop = $40 - PN# ACDELCO Durastop semi-met 17D1405M
V2 Front Rotors = $80x2 = $160 - PN# Centric Premium 120.62128
V1 girodisc brake lines (not necessary, can re-use stock lines)
9/16" Drill bit = $10

Total cost = $684


Step one (Rotors)
1-Get rotors re-drilled to accommodate 6x115mm lug pattern on stock 5lug V2 rotors. I used the logic of only interfering with two of the existing 5 lug holes instead of hitting three of them like others have done. (see pic below) which leave the option to still use the set screw on the rotor if you really wanted to by just drilling and tapping a new hole in the wheelbearing hub face.
2-Drill out 6 lug holes to 1/2" to provide adequate clearances for expansion. (I happened to use a CNC for the rotors which worked out nicely. I had the holes originally set to 12mm but the rotors were too much of a pain to take on and off, hence go slightly bigger to 1/2")
3-Get centerbore drilled out to 70.612mm



Step Two (Spindle)
1- Drill out caliper mounting holes from M12 to M14 using 9/16" drill bit.
2- Tip: Keep the drill perpendicular to the machined face of the bolt hole area or your bolts will not seat square against it.
3- Shave down about 1/4" off the end of the V2 caliper bolts at a slight angle to keep the threads neat and tidy

Step Three (Install)
1- Disconnect old brake lines caliper lines (enjoy wrestling with the safety clip on the hardline)
2- Connect brake lines to new Calipers keeping routing the same as stock calipers
3- Slap on the new rotor (should slide on with ease)
4- Bolt up the new Calipers and torque to spec
5- Check fluid reservoir and fill to the top (assuming you lost alot of fluid from disconnecting the lines earlier)
5- Hook up some tubes to the bleeders and open them up to gravity fill the calipers
6- Check brake reservoir and top up as necessary.
7- Go about bleeding the brakes with two people or power bleeder to firm up the pedal. (My pedal was firm from just the gravity bleed)



Step Four (Put those wheels back on)
1- Be mindful that your new Calipers are massive and only have about 3-5mm clearance from the wheel when re-installing wheels.



2- Inspect where your wheel weights are located and make sure they do not contact the calipers. If they do, remove them and have your wheels re-balance and instruct the shop to put them as close to the wheel face as possible.



All in all brakes feel the same from a pedal feel standpoint. I won't be able to really burnish the new stuff for a while until the weather settles down.

The only issue I ran into was that the replacement lines for the V1 by girodisc don't exactly fit up very good to the V2 calipers. The banjo is adjustable on the girodisc lines for whatever reason which makes them bulkier at that point and I had to use two washers on the bottom of the banjo bolt for it to clear the side of the caliper. I'm going to leave them on for now (not thrilled with the line setup but works), but I will be looking into the V2 front lines shortly. This isn't an issue for stock lines as they are designed better and are not adjustable.


Enjoy the new found stopping power and most likely longer padlife and rotor life!

A quick point about my rotor choice.
1) You can also "upgrade" to the 2-piece delco rotors but they are around $220 a piece and weight more than the co-cast rotors. The Zr1 Carbon rotors are also available but slightly more cash... $1500 a piece.
2) Cross drilled rotors have no place on vented rotors that exist today unless A) you race your car and need the weight savings and throw them away often or B) they look cool to some people. (Don't waste your money on these) as they will develop stress cracks over time and create circular grooves around the rotor that will cause pulsing in your brake pedal.
3) Slotting has its benefits for cleaning the pads and keeping the rotor surface fairly clean but typically comes at a cost of 25% decrease in pad life and obviously creates more dust.

silver1r

iTrader: (1)

Awesome write up. Where did you take your new rotors to be centerbored?

barrok69

I have limited access to a local machine shop. Any shop that has a mill can do it relatively easy.

liqidvenom

iTrader: (2)

nice write up

BamfinCTS-V

So much win right here! Thanks for the write up!

BigBlock.Condor

Awesome write up. I'm going to be needing new rotors this summer and I was wondering if anyone had tackled this yet!

ls1247

iTrader: (2)

I didn't think v2 calipers were that affordable. Where did you get yours?

NIKDSC5

iTrader: (10)

Amazon.


OP, why not just order shorter bolts at similar grade rather then cut V2 bolts down?

I like how 220-1500$ a piece rotors is just a little bit more cash.....

Also, I cannot confirm this but you could also run racing brake two piece rotors with the V1 hats and V2 rotors. At a heafty price but I think 7 LBS unsprung weight reduction to boot

MN_V

iTrader: (5)

Very nice write up and they look awesome!

FuzzyLog1c

iTrader: (4)

• OEM V1 355mm rotor (one piece) = 26.0 lbs
• OEM V2 370mm rotor (two piece) = 25.5 lbs
• RacingBrake V1 355mm rotor (two piece) = 21.5 lbs
• RacingBrake V1 370mm rotor (two piece) = 23.5 lbs

• V1 Front Brake Caliper (assembled with pad) = 11.6 lbs
• V2 Front Brake Caliper (assembled with pad) = 13.0 lbs

• V1 spindle, OEM hub, ARP 100-7708 studs, Grade 10.9 M12-1.75x50 fasteners, front shield = 21.8 lbs
• STS spindle, SKF X-Tracker hub, ARP 100-7708 studs, Grade 10.9 M12-1.75x70 bolts, front and rear shields: 18.0 lbs

• Cast iron V1 spindle + OEM 355mm rotors + V1 brakes = 59.4 lbs
• Aluminum STS spindle + RB 355mm rotors + V2 brakes: 52.5 lbs
• Aluminum STS spindle + RB 370mm rotors + V2 brakes: 54.5 lbs

Delta unsprung weight from OEM using 355mm RB rotors: -6.9 lbs
Delta unsprung weight from OEM using 370mm RB rotors: -4.9 lbs

MN_V

iTrader: (5)

Awesome thanks Fuzzy. For some reason I thought the V2 calipers were 15lbs.

liqidvenom

iTrader: (2)

What does the 1 piece v2 rotor weigh?

jcollege

iTrader: (2)

Fantastic write up man! This is a mod that I am constantly debating on doing.

barrok69

Amazon for the win. Silver and yellow colors are the cheapest. Red is double the price for some reason.

From the bolt aspect I actually bought a series of different bolts to compare what i was going to use. I could only find fully threaded bolts locally and they were more money than the dealer wanted for the V2 bolts. I liked the OEM bolts the best due to the nice shoulder they had on them vs. threads scoring the through hole of the spindle. The coating and material properties on the OEM bolts has been tried and tested in this application making them even more desirable. Plus they come with lock patch already applied. Cutting bolts isn't rocket science just takes some patience and finesse.

With respect to the racing brake setup it is what it is. I did the entire V2 swap setup for cheaper than you can buy one RB rotor..
You also need spacers from what I understand to run the RB rotors due to the hats being slightly thinner than OEM rotor hat. The outright costs is ridiculous for what little benefit you get from the slightly lighter components. Not to memtion replacement rings are equally more expensive than brand new OEM 2piece rotors. For the same prices you can buy ZR1/Z28 Carbon ceramic rotors which will own the RB stuff from a weight aspect and track abuse aspect.

I didn't notice any increased steering efforts or anomalies from the "heavier components" I chose over my old stock setup. And quite honestly Mass is your best friend when it comes to brakes. Unless you have increased cooling capacity going to a lighter rotor can be trouble. Additionally the more mass you take away from your rotor, the less of a heat sink it becomes and transfers the heat to the next closest thing it is touching... which is your wheel-bearings.

I'm not planning a career of racing this car, but it will see a few track days and the occasional auto-X a year and I believe this setup will be more than enough for it, including aggressive street driving.

barrok69

I'm not sure what the V2 OEM Co-cast ones weigh but the Centric ones I purchased weight 28lbs as measure on my scale. V2 rotors are not only larger diameter but they are also thicker than the V1 rotors.

NIKDSC5

iTrader: (10)

Also, prices are nice, but part numbers help!

barrok69

I've updated my original post with the following information

Parts list:
V2 Front 6pt Calipers $220x2 = $440 - PN# ACDELCO LH 172-2487, RH 172-2488
V2 Front Caliper Pin kit = $18 - PN# ACDELCO 18K2108X
V2 Front Caliper Bolts $4x4 = $16 - PN# ACDELCO 11570788
V2 Front Pads ACDelco durastop = $40 - PN# ACDELCO Durastop semi-met 17D1405M
V2 Front Rotors = $80x2 = $160 - PN# Centric Premium 120.62128

NIKDSC5

iTrader: (10)

atta boy!

liqidvenom

iTrader: (2)

still a great thread....

it should be added to a mod sticky

Fweasel

iTrader: (6)

Yep...